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A total lunar eclipse occurred at the Moon's ascending node of orbit on Tuesday, December 8, 1573, with an umbral magnitude of 1.5597. A lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon moves into the Earth's shadow, causing the Moon to be darkened. A total lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon's near side entirely passes into the Earth's umbral shadow. Unlike a total solar eclipse, which can only be viewed from a relatively small area of the world, a lunar eclipse may be viewed from anywhere on the night side of Earth. A total lunar eclipse can last up to nearly two hours, while a total solar eclipse lasts only a few minutes at any given place, because the Moon's shadow is smaller. Occurring about 2.4 days after perigee, the Moon's apparent diameter was larger than average.
Visibility The eclipse was visible across all of Africa, Europe, and Asia and most of Australia.
Observations It was predicted and then observed by a young Tycho Brahe (assisted by his sister Sophia) at Knutstorp Castle. He said, "I cannot but be very surprised that even at this youthful age of 26 years, I was able to get such accurate results." During the eclipse, the Moon was in the constellation Gemini.
Eclipse details Shown below is a table displaying details about this particular lunar eclipse. It describes various parameters pertaining to this eclipse. +December 8, 1573 Lunar Eclipse Parameters Parameter Value Penumbral Magnitude 2.56170 Umbral Magnitude 1.55966 Gamma 0.16203 Sun Right Ascension 17h46m12.8s Sun Declination -23°27'24.2" Sun Semi-Diameter 16'16.0" Sun Equatorial Horizontal Parallax 08.9" Moon Right Ascension 05h46m07.6s Moon Declination +23°36'58.9" Moon Semi-Diameter 16'14.0" Moon Equatorial Horizontal Parallax 0°59'34.6" ΔT 132.3 s
See also List of 16th-century lunar eclipses References
External links Curriculum vitae of Tycho Brahe Tycho observes a lunar eclipse together with his 17-year-old sister Sophie. From the observation he finds the perigee of the Sun. Sophie Brahe, 1556-1643 Brahe, Tycho, Complete Dictionary of Scientific Biography NASA graphics