Great Refractor and Lunar Eclipse
Image Credit &
Copyright:
Laurie Hatch
Rain clouds passed
and the dome of the Lick Observatory's 36 inch Great Refractor
opened on November 19.
The historic telescope
was pointed toward a partially eclipsed Moon.
Illuminated by dim red lighting to preserve an astronomer's
night vision,
telescope controls, coordinate dials, and
the refractor's 57 foot long barrel were
captured in this high dynamic range image.
Visible beyond the foreshortened barrel and dome slit,
growing brighter after its
almost total eclipse phase,
the lunar disk created a colorful halo through lingering clouds.
From the open dome, the view of the
clearing sky above includes the Pleiades star cluster
about 5 degrees from
Moon and Earth's shadow.