I kind of did and I kind of did not forget to write about the lunar eclipse event from last week. It was, from my location, a non-event. I saw the Moon very clear and bright, albeit through gathering clouds. Shortly after, well before the peak of the eclipse, I could not see the Moon at all as the clouds rolled in even more. Only hours later, through some cloud breaks, could I see the Moon as normal once more.
I recall a very similar partial lunar eclipse decades ago, so I have a generally good notion of what this one was about. The Moon last Friday, I assume, was still visible, just dimmed.
I have the horrible notion that I am not meant to see any good astronomical events. Last year, during the Mercury transit, I had the absolute worst cloud cover. Even a small break in or thinning of the clouds would have allowed my telescope to get a glimpse of the little dot going across the Sun. Just once over a seven-hour period was all I asked. The night before, I had my telescope set up, solar filter securely attached, and all my eyepiece and astrophotography equipment laid out, ready for the following day. Needless to say, it was a big disappointment.
I am more than sure this year’s North America solar eclipse in August will come, for me, with the darkest, thickest, blackest storm clouds ever seen in the Midwest.
