“Celebrate the Winter Solstice with a Total Lunar Eclipse and Ursid Meteor Shower - YAHOO!”

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Celebrate the Winter Solstice with a Total Lunar Eclipse and Ursid Meteor Shower - YAHOO! Posted: 19 Dec 2010 05:48 PM PST Attention parents: Tuesday, Dec. 21, will showcase an event you and the family won't want to miss. No need to purchase expensive tickets. This event is coming to a galaxy near you. Keep the kids up late for winter solstice plus a total lunar eclipse and meteor shower. That's right folks, it's a TKO of the sun with a meteor shower to light the way. Kids, mom and dad have no excuse not to let you stay up for this stellar event because most of you are on Christmas vacation; no school night issues to worry about. It's not a common event that a total lunar eclipse coincides with Winter Solstice. The last time this happened, 372 years ago, Anne Hutchinson was being ousted from the Massachusetts Bay Colony for reading the Bible with other women, the Shogun was trouncing rebels and the Sultan was strangling Cyril of Constantinople. For our winter solstice, Ursid meteor shower and total lunar eclipse event, we will have front row seats. Enjoy this once in a quatercentenary (400-year) event. Getting the Ursid meteor shower, named Ursid because it emanates from the star Kochab in Ursa Minor, the Little Bear, is a special bonus. The Dec. 22 to 23 Ursid meteor shower is usually difficult to see because of the full moon around that time of month. The total lunar eclipse does double duty as is not only blots out the moonlight and makes the Ursids visible, an eclipse is pretty amazing to watch, too. A total lunar eclipse can be viewed safely with the naked eye, also. Unlike a solar eclipse which must be viewed with a pinhole camera or with special glasses, moonlight is not strong enough to harm the eyes. When is the best time to view the winter solstice, total lunar eclipse and Ursid meteor shower? According to Space.com, it depends upon where you live. West Coast viewers will want to start watching about 9:30 p.m. while viewers on the East Coast will see the total lunar eclipse best at 12:30 a.m. (just after midnight). The eclipse will reach full strength at 12:17 p.m. out west and 3:17 a.m. in the east. Across the country, the time zones add an hour as they move east. Live Science says that "across the country, the eclipse will be visible until the moon sets in the west and the sun rises." Another fascinating phenomenon about a total lunar eclipse is that the moon may appear deep orange or blood-red. For best viewing of the Ursid Meteor Shower, try to get as far from city lights as possible. Open fields and at the beach across bodies of water are best viewing sites. Marilisa Kinney Sachteleben, a 10-year veteran homeschooler, has nearly three decades of experience as a special needs and general education teacher. She has created hundreds of themed units and lesson plans on everything from ancient Greece to biodiversity to personal finance to poetry. She holds a BS in psychology and a degree as Dr. Mom from the university of life. She writes about parenting for the Yahoo! Contributor Network. This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php Five Filters featured site: So, Why is Wikileaks a Good Thing Again?. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

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