Rare solsticlipse tonight!

Tonight, for the first time since the mid-1600s, a lunar eclipse is coinciding with the winter solstice and there’s also going to be a meteor shower. (The Ursids meteor shower!)

I suppose it kind of sucks for us East Coast folk that you can’t DVR the sky, because the winter lunar eclipse of 2010 isn’t going to happen until close to 3 AM:

The eclipse will start about 2:41 a.m. Eastern and last for more than three hours. Thanks to the confluence with the winter solstice, the moon will appear at the highest peak in the sky, affording better views for all would-be astronomers.

NASA says around 3:17 AM will be optimal viewing time for the eclipse, and if you’re on the fence, no lunar eclipses will be visible to the US in 2011. However, with temps dropping below zero and massive amounts of snow in much of the US, you might want to avail yourself of the option to watch the sky-show tonight via NASA’s livestream, viewable here.

[Image]