Toward the totality: total lunar eclipse in southern Sardinia, Italy.
Toward the totality. 2018, July 27th: the century’s longest total lunar eclipse occurs and, at the same time, the planet Mars reaches its opposition while it’s at its closest to Earth since 2003. As a result, this rare coincidence gifts us with a surreal and amazing night show.
Impossible for me to miss such a great wonder of nature. So, after some days of planning through the useful PlanIt app, I chose the beautiful Capo Carbonara, in southern Sardinia, to witness and capture the event. Not having with me a long tele lens, I decided to compose a particular scene, in order to show in a single frame the progression of the eclipse toward the totality, right above the lighthouse of Cavoli island.
Starting from about 21:00 to 23:00, I kept the camera steady in position capturing every phase of the totality every four minutes. Since the Moon has been inside the totality for almost the whole time, the arc drawn by it is colored with a vibrant tone of orange, differently from the “usual” eclipses in which this color is visible just for a few moments. Moreover, thanks to a clear night, the planet Mars has shone bright of a pale amber color.
During the totality, the Milky Way has been clearly visible at naked eyes. Nonetheless, my planning and my gears made me opt for a startrail, in order to emphasize the (real and apparent) movement of the heavenly bodies.
