In 2011, people saw a number of stunning solar and lunar eclipses around the world. In early January, the Middle East and much of Europe were treated to a partial solar eclipse. For Switzerland, the eclipse was the fullest since 1999.

In June, much of the world saw the first total lunar eclipse of the year. Lasting for 100 minutes, it was the longest in almost 11 years. Although it couldn't be viewed from North America, it was broadcast online for those who couldn't see it.

In early December, North America was able to view a total lunar eclipse. The eclipse lasted for about 51 minutes and was the last total lunar eclipse that will occur for three years. A total lunar eclipse occurs when the sun, Earth and moon are perfectly aligned, with the Earth in the middle.

Lunar Eclipse: A lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes behind the Earth so that the Earth blocks the Sun's rays from striking the Moon. This can occur only when the Sun, Earth, and Moon are aligned exactly, or very closely so, with the Earth in the middle.

Solar Eclipse: As seen from the Earth, a solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between the Sun and the Earth, and the Moon fully or partially blocks the Sun. This can happen only during a new moon, when the Sun and the Moon are in conjunction as seen from Earth. In a total eclipse, the disk of the Sun is fully obscured by the Moon.

Check out the photos below from 2011's lunar and solar eclipses

Only in the fleeting darkness of a total solar eclipse is the light of the solar corona easily visible. Normally overwhelmed by the bright solar disk, the expansive corona, the sun's outer atmosphere, is an alluring sight. But the subtle details and extreme ranges in the corona's brightness, although discernible to the eye, are notoriously difficult to photograph. Pictured above, however, using multiple images and digital processing, is a detailed image of the Sun's corona taken during the 2008 August total solar eclipse from Mongolia. Clearly visible are intricate layers and glowing caustics of an ever changing mixture of hot gas and magnetic fields. Bright looping prominences appear pink just above the Sun's limb. The next total solar eclipse will be in July but will only be visible in a thin swath of Earth crossing the southern Pacific Ocean and South America.

Thunderstorms almost spoiled this view of the spectacular June 15 total lunar eclipse. Instead, storm clouds parted for 10 minutes during the total eclipse phase and lightning bolts contributed to the dramatic sky. Captured with a 30 second exposure the scene also inspired what, in the 16 year history of Astronomy Picture of the Day, the editor considers may be the best title yet for a picture (title credit to Chris K.). Of course, the lightning reference clearly makes sense, and the shadow play of the dark lunar eclipse was widely viewed across planet Earth in Europe, Africa, Asia, and Australia. The picture itself, however, was shot from the Greek island of Ikaria at Pezi. That area is known as "the planet of the goats" because of the rough terrain and strange looking rocks.

This surreal, wintry scene is a composite picture recorded on December 10 as the Moon rose behind the Zagros Mountains of Iran. A total lunar eclipse was already in progress. The image combines nearly 500 successive frames taken over 1.5 hours beginning in twilight as the eclipsed Moon steadily climbed above the rugged landscape. The reddened lunar disk and deep blue twilight make for a striking contrast, yet the contrasting colors have the same root cause. The eclipsed Moon is red because the Earth's umbral shadow is suffused with a faint red light. The ruddy illumination is from all the reddened sunsets and sunrises, as seen from a lunar perspective. But the sunsets and sunrises are reddened because the Earth's atmosphere scatters blue light more strongly than red, creating the twilight sky's dim, blue glow.

What's that bright orange dot above the large telescope on the right? Even seasoned sky enthusiasts might ponder the origin of the orange orb seen by scrolling across this panoramic image, taken last December. Perhaps identifying known objects will help. To start, on the far left is a diagonal band of light known as zodiacal light, sunlight reflected off of dust orbiting in the inner Solar System. The bright white spot on the left, just above the horizon, is Venus, which also glows by reflected sunlight. Rising diagonally from the ground to the right of Venus is the band of our Milky Way Galaxy. In the image, the band, which usually stretches dramatically overhead, appears to arch above the elevated Chilean landscape. Under the Milky Way arch, toward the left, lie both the Large and Small Magellanic Cloud galaxies, while toward the right lies the constellation of Orion surrounded by the red ring of Barnard's Loop. On the ground, each of the four Very Large Telescopes is busy keeping an eye on the distant universe. The orange spot -- it's the Moon. The image was taken during a total lunar eclipse when the normally bright full moon turned into a faint orb tinted orange by the intervening Earth's atmosphere.

Would you go to the end of the world to see a total eclipse of the Sun? If you did, would you be surprised to find someone else there already? In 2003, the Sun, the Moon, Antarctica, and two photographers all lined up in Antarctica during an unusual total solar eclipse. Even given the extreme location, a group of enthusiastic eclipse chasers ventured near the bottom of the world to experience the surreal momentary disappearance of the Sun behind the Moon. One of the treasures collected was the above picture -- a composite of four separate images digitally combined to realistically simulate how the adaptive human eye saw the eclipse. As the image was taken, both the Moon and the Sun peaked together over an Antarctic ridge. In the sudden darkness, the magnificent corona of the Sun became visible around the Moon. Quite by accident, another photographer was caught in one of the images checking his video camera. Visible to his left are an equipment bag and a collapsible chair.

For many Europeans, the Sun and New Moon rose together on January 4 in a partial solar eclipse. Arriving close on the heels of the new year, it was the first of a series of four(!) partial solar eclipses due in 2011. This composite image documents the graceful celestial event in colorful morning skies over Graz, Austria. Beginning before sunrise, frames were taken to record the position and progress of the eclipse every 15 minutes. As Sun and Moon rose above the eastern horizon, the town of Graz is seen bathed in warming sunlight only partially blocked by the New Moon, spreading beneath the town's landmark clock tower.

What's happened to the sky? A time warp, of sorts, and a digital space warp too. The time warp occurs because this image captured in a single frame a four hour exposure of the night sky. As a result, prominent star trails are visible. The space warp occurs because the picture is actually a full 360 degree panorama, horizontally compressed to fit your browser. As the Earth rotated, stars appeared to circle both the South Celestial Pole, on the left, and the North Celestial Pole, just below the horizon on the right. The image captured the sky over Mudgee, New South Wales, Australia, including the domes of two large telescopes illuminated by red lighting. A horizontally unwarped image is visible by clicking on the image.

Makemake, a god in Easter Island mythology, may have smiled for a moment as clouds parted long enough to reveal this glimpse of July 11's total solar eclipse to skygazers. In the foreground of the dramatic scene, the island's famous large, monolithic statues (Moai) share a beachside view of the shimmering solar corona and the darkened daytime sky. Other opportunities to see the total phase of this eclipse of the Sun were also hard to come by. Defined by the dark part of the Moon's shadow, the path of totality tracked eastward across the southern Pacific Ocean, only making significant landfall at Mangaia (Cook Islands) and Easter Island (Isla de Pascua), ending shortly after reaching southern Chile and Argentina. But a partial eclipse phase could be enjoyed over a broader region, including many southern Pacific islands and wide swath of South America

Our Moon turned red last week. The reason was that during December 10, a total lunar eclipse occurred. The above digitally superimposed image mosaic captured the Moon many times during the eclipse, from before the Moon entered Earth's shadow until after the Moon exited. The image sequence was recorded over a Shanti Stupa Peace Pagota near the center of New Delhi, India. The red tint of the eclipsed Moon was created by sunlight first passing through the Earth's atmosphere, which preferentially scatters blue light (making the sky blue) but passes and refracts red light, before reflecting back off the Moon. Differing amounts of clouds and volcanic dust in the Earth's atmosphere make each lunar eclipse appear differently. The next total lunar eclipse will occur only in 2014.

December's lunar eclipse graced early morning skies over the Rocky Mountains in Colorado, USA. There, this wintry scene finds the Moon in a cold blue twilight sky near the western horizon, above the snowy North American Continental Divide. About 22 minutes before the sunrise, the reddened lunar disk is almost completely immersed in Earth's dark shadow. This dramatic Rocky Mountain moon set during the eclipse total phase. But all parts of the geocentric celestial event were seen from Pacific regions, Asia, and Australia, including the entire 51 minutes of totality, and parts of the final eclipse of 2011 were shared in skies around much of planet Earth.

Seen from central and northern Asia, the Sun and New Moon set together on January 4, in a partial solar eclipse. Close to its maximum phase, the eclipse is captured near the moment of sunset in this wintry scene from the bank of the Berd River near Novosibirsk, Siberia, Russia. An evocative view in fading light, the picture looks toward the western horizon across a snowy, frozen landscape. Along with offset Sun and Moon, the dimly lit sky includes an industrial smoke plume and airplane contrail.

A picture taken on January 04, 2011 in Locon, northern France, shows the world's first partial solar eclipse of 2011. A solar eclipse happens when the Moon swings between the Earth and the Sun. AFP PHOTO PHILIPPE HUGUEN

From AP: The moon is seen in the sky during a lunar eclipse near the Narrows Bridge in Tacoma, Wash. on Saturday, Dec. 10, 2011. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)

From AP: A partially eclipsed moon rises on the sky over Belgrade, Serbia, Wednesday, June 15, 2011. The total lunar eclipse was visible throughout most parts of Europe on Wednesday evening. (AP Photo/ Marko Drobnjakovic)

From AP: A lunar eclipse is seen framed within Turret Arch at Arches National Park, Saturday, Dec. 10, 2011, near Moab, Utah. Saturday's lunar eclipse, resulting from the earth's position between the moon and sun, was forecasted to be the last of its kind until April 2014. (AP Photo/Julie Jacobson)

Have you ever seen the northern (or southern) lights? Auroras are part of a natural phenomenon that occurs at far northern and southern latitudes.

Many of us will be celebrating the New Year tonight and for many the skies will be filled with the beautiful and vibrant lights of firecrackers. These brilliant light displays are man-made and have been around for thousands of years. But Nature also has her own light shows that can be seen as even more beautiful.

In 2011 there were very intense aurora borealis (northern lights) due to the strongest solar activity in the last four years. Although the auroras are usually only seen in the Scandinavian countries, Canada and the northern United States, in October of this year they were seen as far south as Missouri and Arkansas. This rare occurance was caused by a Coronal Mass Ejection or a burst of solar wind.

The auroras tend to occur when "charged particles [from the sun] flow along Earth's magnetic field lines. The particles hit the atmosphere at the Poles and excite air molecules, which release the extra energy as light." ~ National Geographic.

Below are some beautiful photos of some of the aurora borealis from 2011. Enjoy them and a Happy New Year to All!


This aurora arched from horizon to horizon. During the current Shelios expedition to observe and learn about the northern lights, the sky last weekend did not disappoint. After sunset and some careful photographic planning, the above image was taken from the expedition's Qaleraliq campsite in southern Greenland. Visible straight through the center of the aurora, found with a careful eye, is the Big Dipper and the surrounding constellation of the Big Bear (Ursa Major). The brightest orb on the far right is the Moon, while Jupiter can be seen even further to the right. The Shelios expedition is scheduled to last until the end of August and include live broadcasts of ongoing auroras.

On September 26, a large solar coronal mass ejection smacked into planet Earth's magnetosphere producing a severe geomagnetic storm and wide spread auroras. Captured here near local midnight from Kvaløya island outside Tromsø in northern Norway, the intense auroral glow was framed by parting rain clouds. Tinted orange, the clouds are also in silhouette as the tops of the colorful shimmering curtains of northern lights extend well over 100 kilometers above the ground. Though the auroral rays are parallel, perspective makes them appear to radiate from a vanishing point at the zenith. Near the bottom of the scene, an even more distant Pleiades star cluster and bright planet Jupiter shine on this cloudy northern night.

September's equinox arrives today at 0905 UT. As the Sun crosses the celestial equator heading south, spring begins in the southern hemisphere and autumn in the north. And though the seasonal connection is still puzzling, both spring and autumn bring an increase in geomagnetic storms. So as northern nights grow longer, the equinox also heralds the arrival of a good season for viewing aurora. Recorded earlier this month, these curtains of September's shimmering green light sprawl across a gorgeous night skyscape. In the foreground lies Hidden Lake Territorial Park near Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada. Calm water reflects the aurora, with bright star trails peering through the mesmerizing sky glow. Of course, shining at altitudes of 100 kilometers or so, planet Earth's auroras are visible from space.

Aurora Moonscape
The spring solstice full "super" moon ....with the aurora over Tuktoyaktuk harbour March 19th, 2011




As northern hemisphere nights grow longer, October is a good month for spotting auroras, or even other eerie apparitions after dark. And this week the night sky did not disappoint. On October 24th a solar coronal mass ejection impacted planet Earth's magnetosphere triggering far ranging auroral displays. On that night, this dramatic silhouette against deep red and beautiful green curtains of shimmering light was captured near Whitby, Ontario, Canada. But auroras were reported even farther south, in US states like Alabama, Kansas, and Oklahoma at latitudes rarely haunted by the northern lights. Well above 100 kilometers, at the highest altitudes infused by the auroral glow, the red color comes from the excitation of oxygen atoms.



The longer you look at this image, the more you see. Perhaps your eye is first drawn to the picturesque waterfall called Skogarfoss visible on the image right. Just as prevalent, however, in this Icelandic visual extravaganza, is the colorful arc of light on the left. This chromatic bow is not a rainbow, since the water drops did not originate in rainfall nor are they reflecting light from the Sun. Rather, the drops have drifted off from the waterfall and are now illuminated by the nearly full Moon. High above are the faint green streaks of aurora. The scene, captured one night last month, also shows a beautiful starscape far in the background, including the Big Dipper, part of the constellation of the Great Bear (Ursa Major).


Explanation: Intense auroral activity flooded the night with shimmering colors on February 24, captured here from a lodge near the city of Yellowknife in northern Canada. The stunning sequence (left to right) of three all-sky exposures, taken at 30 second intervals, shows rapid changes in dancing curtains of northern lights against a starry background. What makes the northern lights dance? Measurements by NASA's fleet of THEMIS spacecraft indicate that these explosions of auroral activity are driven by sudden releases of energy in the Earth's magnetosphere called magnetic reconnection events. The reconnection events release energy when magnetic field lines snap like rubber bands, driving charged particles into the upper atmosphere. Stretching into space, these reconnection events occur in the magnetosphere on the Earth's night side at a distance about 1/3 of the way to the Moon.
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Space has always been the last frontier. In ancient times, the stars and the moon and the Sun fascinated the humans below with their beauty and mystery. But there was little actual understanding for what really took place in the Universe so many wonderful stories were born in an attempt to do that. These stories and beliefs were passed down through time for generations upon generations of families and nationalities.

Today with the advance of scientific principles, photography and the actual exploration of space itself, we understand many of those previously unanswered questions. But one thing that has become so apparent from this understanding is that the beauty of the Universe is much more multifaceted than we had ever dreamed it could be. Below are some phenomenal photos taken by NASA and those at the International Space Station. They will take your breath away with their complexity and beauty.

The totally eclipsed moon shines amid the dense stars of our Milky Way galaxy in a stitched panorama picture taken in June from the Alborz Mountains of Iran. The eclipsed moon glows orange-red due to indirect light from the sun, which becomes reddish as it passes through Earth's atmosphere.

When a loop of plasma erupted from the sun in March, NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory spacecraft was there to capture the action.

The annual Orionid meteor shower peaked in activity in the early morning hours of October 22, as tiny remnants shed from Halley's comet plummeted through Earth's atmosphere. From dark locations, up to two dozen shooting stars an hour were visible during the peak.

A galaxy slightly smaller than our own Milky Way is getting its arm twisted, and a cosmic bully may be to blame.

Looking like a multihued jellyfish, the Betsiboka River in northwestern Madagascar flows into Bombetoka Bay, which in turn empties into the Mozambique Channel, as seen in a satellite picture released by the European Space Agency in August.

A dazzling green aurora frames the arc of the Milky Way over Jökulsárlón, the largest glacier lake in Iceland, in a picture taken in March. The image was a first-prize winner in the Second International Earth and Sky Photo Contest's "Beauty of the Night Sky" category.

A river of stars flows over the Mardi Khola Valley in the Himalaya, as seen in a long-exposure picture taken in Nepal and submitted to National Geographic's My Shot website in August.

Striped Supernova- In March astronomers using NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory released a new picture of the celestial "pom-pom" known as the Tycho supernova remnant.

Every year in August the Universe puts on a spectacular light show for all to see. This light show known as the the Perseid meteor shower promises to be an exciting event this year. The event is also known as " The Tears of St. Lawrence". Unlike last year when the moon's bright light blocked the meteor shower from view, this year there will be no interference at all since the full moon isn't until after the meteor showers are over.

The August Perseids are among the most visible of the readily seen annual meteor showers. At it's peak activity it can yield up to 90 or 100 meteors per hour but on average a good shower will produce about one meteor per minute under a dark country sky. Any intrusion of light and far less will be seen.

The Perseid meteor showers got their name because of their proximity to the famous Double Star Cluster of Perseus. As for the meteors themselves we now know that they are actually the dusty debris remains left behind by the comet Swift-Tuttle. This comet was discovered back in 1862, and was most recently observed in 1992. It takes the comet 130 years to circle the sun. Every time the Comet Swift-Tuttle passes the sun it produces a dusty trail along its orbit that causes the Perseids. The Earth passes the closest to the orbit of the Swift-Tuttle every year in mid August so this dusty debris trail of meteors becomes highly visible.

The prime time to see the meteor showers will be during late-night hours of Wednesday, Aug. 10th on through the first light of dawn on the morning of Thursday, and then again during the late-night hours of Aug. 12 into the predawn hours of Aug. 13. A few of the Perseids meteors can be seen as much as two weeks before and a week after the peak. The time limit range for the meteors can in fact extend from July 17 to Aug. 24.

As a special bonus to viewers every evening from the 10th through the 13th, the three bright planets of Venus, Mars and Saturn will be seen as tightly clustered just after sunset. So grab some lawn chairs, invite a couple of friends along and be sure to enjoy the show. Weather permitting as always.

Just before dawn on May 9th-12th, a very rare and magical sight will take place for all to see. There will be a cluster of 4 planets which will be visible to all low in the eastern sky. Next to the moon, these planets are the brightest things in the sky and this proximity is a very rare occurance.

Although they are really millions of miles apart, Venus and Jupiter will appear to come within inches of each other. Mars will appear to be a little farther away, on the lower left of the other three planets.

According to the Austin McDonald Observatory at the University of Texas, the best view of the clusters will be seen in the southern states of the U.S. It is also suggested to increase the visibility that binoculars and telescopes could be used because the light of dawn will make it harder to see as it approaches.

Some facts about the planets involved~

Jupiter - is the largest planet in the solar system. Jupiter takes about 12 years to orbit the Sun and rotates in about 10 hours. This short Jupiter "day" is amazing since the planet is roughly 11 Earth diameters wide. It also has 39 moons orbiting it and more are expected to be found in the future.

Mars - is the fourth planet from the Sun in the solar system. It is often referred to as the "Red Planet", as it has a reddish appearance due to the prevalent iron oxide on its surface. It was named after the Roman god of war. Mars is a terrestrial planet with a thin atmosphere, and resembles Earth somewhat with its surface feature of valleys, deserts, volcanoes and polar ice caps. Mars has 2 moons orbiting it.


Venus - is the second planet from the Sun. It was named after the Roman goddess of love and beauty. Venus is the brightest natural object in the night sky next to the moon and reaches it brightest point just before sunrise or right after sunset. Therefore it has been called the Morning or Evening Star. It is classified as a terrestrial planet and has been called Earth's "sister or twin planet" due to the similar size, gravity, and surface composition.

Mercury - is the smallest planet and the closest to the Sun. It was also named after a Roman god. Mercury is similar in appearance to the Moon: it is heavily cratered with regions of smooth plains, has no natural satellites and no substantial atmosphere but has a rocky body like the earth. It is also a bright planet and can be seen from the earth. Relatively little is known about this planet as compared to the other three.

The video below provides an illustration of the relative positions the planets should have throughout the week.

March 19th "Super Moon" ~ A cosmic event of beauty or disaster?

On Saturday, March 19, the moon will come closer to the Earth than it has in the last 18 years and it will be a full moon. It will light up the night sky from just 221,567 miles or 356,577 kilometers away. It is being referred to as a " Super Moon" or "Lunar perigee". Some are suggesting that it could cause massive damage to our planet.

In particular, Richard Nolle, a noted astrologer, who runs the website astropro.com, has famously called the upcoming full moon an "extreme supermoon." (Note: astrology is not a real science but rather makes connections between astronomical and mystical events.) He suggests that this moon will cause huge storms, earthquakes, volcanoes and other natural disasters. Nolle also lists a number of dates going back almost 60 years, which coincide with floods in 1955, 1974, 1992 and 2011 – each 18-19 years apart. He suggests that on March 19, the Super moon cycle for this year will be at its closest, warning that further flooding is on the way.

Scientists have agreed that this idea is not as crazy as it might sound. The moon does cause the ebb and flow of the ocean tides and it's gravity can also cause small ebbs and flows in the continents, called "land tides" which are greatest during full and new moon. So the moon does stress the earth a bit however there has been no observation of a correlation between earthquakes, flooding and other natural disasters and that of full moons. Scientists also say that the gravitational pull of a Super Moon is not different enough from it's pull at other times to significantly cause the likelihood of natural disasters. Most natural disasters have nothing to do with the moon at all. The Earth has a lot of pent up energy, and most natural disasters are usually caused by releases of it anytime the buildup gets too great.

However with the recent earthquake and tsumani disaster in Japan, many are left wondering what really will happen on the 19th with the Super Moon. One thing is for sure, this will be an exciting time to to make the "Super Moon" observation a must to do that night to witness the celestrial beauty of the moon as it orbits the closest ever to our earthly home.





Video Creation :White Wolf Art Work : Ashlie Nelson Music Talven - The Wolf and The Light