Blood Moon / Lunar Eclipse Tonight

So I wasn't much paying attention and here came a pretty dramatic Blood Moon event and took me by surprise. I'd seen headlines about an upcoming eclipse but they aren't terribly rare and I didn't pay much attention.

Then I was checking the local weather and saw this link on it:

For 72 minutes of eerie totality, an amber light will play across the snows of North America, throwing landscapes into an unusual state of ruddy shadow.

The eclipse begins on Tuesday morning, Dec. 21st, at 1:33 am EST (Monday, Dec. 20th, at 10:33 pm PST).

...If you're planning to dash out for only one quick look it is December, after all ­ choose this moment: 3:17 am EST (17 minutes past midnight PST). That's when the Moon will be in deepest shadow, displaying the most fantastic shades of coppery red.

Total lunar eclipse on the Winter Solstice, how dramatic can you get? The last one on the same date was in 1638. And we in the western hemisphere get the most drama out of this one.

On the same page is a picture of a big red moon. That sort of startled me. Supposedly I know that a lunar eclipse creates a red moon, known also as a "blood moon" and that that is probably what the Biblical passages are referring to that talk about the moon turning to Blood before the Day of the Lord, but I wasn't expecting it nevertheless.

Here's an animation of the expected event.

I was first made aware of the significance of the Blood Moon with reference to the Day of the Lord through the interesting presentation, The Star of Bethlehem, but most of that focuses on the birth of Jesus.

There's probably way too much cloud cover in my area to see any of tonight's eclipse, but maybe the clouds will thin a bit and some of the red glow will come through. I'll go out and see what can be seen outside my door anyway. It may be too cold to walk around the apartment building for a fuller view of the sky.

Joel 2:31 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come.

Acts 2:20 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before that great and notable day of the Lord come:

Revelation 6:12 And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood;

===============

Well, I did go out and look at the moon. Turns out we had a glitteringly clear night for viewing. Saw it in various stages. A bit disappointing. Really too far away, too small to appreciate it. A telescope would have helped a great deal. Yes it did turn orangeish at its fullest but very dark. Oh well, at least I saw it.