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Despite some cloud coverage obscuring some views around L.A., Sunday night's super blood moon lunar eclipse was still worth the wait for those who stuck it out.
The eclipse was particularly dramatic for a few reasons, which would explain why you may have seen your neighbors pointing skyward more than usual. During the eclipse—from 7:11 p.m. to 8:23 p.m. last night—the Earth cast its shadow on the moon, giving it a reddish or blood red appearance—hence the dramatic name. This eclipse also occurred when the moon was at its closest point to the Earth—also known as "in perigree"—making it appear roughly 13% larger than most full moons, making it a "super moon." The next time the two events will happen together will be 2033, reports the L.A. Times.
Some of the clearest views of the eclipse—which didn't even require a telescope—were from elevated areas around L.A. where there wasn't much artificial light. Huge crowds gathered at the Griffith Observatory where moongazers were treated to a star party complete with a Beethoven score played by LA Phil pianist Ray Ushikubo.
Thousands flocked to LA's Griffith Observatory to catch the eclipse of the epic #SuperBloodMoon!!! Next one 2033! pic.twitter.com/bZ7vZyOiSw
— Challywood (@akaChallywood) September 28, 2015
Not everyone could make it to the Observatory, but they still got some stellar shots:
And, of course, palm trees were part of the view for some (Photo by Christopher Polk/Getty Images)
(Photo by Ramirez_R via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr)
Meanwhile, some Angelenos watched the eclipse form the water:
While others checked out the blood moon from Mulholland Drive:
And others watched from North Hollywood:
And from San Pedro:
#supermoon/#los Angeles Super/Korean Bell - moon in eclipse rises over Korean Bell on Point Fermin pic.twitter.com/SmyvdMweG4
— Robert Chamberlin (@BeeCeeLive) September 28, 2015
Others provided their own soundtrack for a timelapse of the eclipse:
There were also some great views from the Mt. Wilson Observatory:
Red "blood moon" hangs over Los Angeles in this pic taken tonight by the Mt. Wilson Tower Cam http://t.co/QEjgh7rVTB pic.twitter.com/baE2JV02Gh
— L.Barlow & Company (@barlowco) September 28, 2015
And some caught a good look from Angel Stadium:
And others saw it from, well, somewhere near a Joshua Tree:
Some people even made L.A.-centric wishes on the blood moon:
In other parts of the city, cloud coverage—and possibly smog—disappointingly blocked the view for some people, or at least made it less dramatic than they hoped:
I blame #LosAngeles #smog that didn't look like a #bloodmoon to me. A pretty #fullmoon maybe... #BloodMoonEclipse pic.twitter.com/pt2bRRhFCU
— Sarah Michelle (@SarahMGellar) September 28, 2015
Tried to capture the #superbloodmoon on camera but it just looks like I'm taking 80's blurry porn shots of a ping pong ball with a red light
— N Moran (@ohtohellwithit) September 28, 2015
Super Moon Lunar Eclipse over Downtown Los Angeles #supermoon2015 #bloodmoon #moonrise #moon #lunareclipse #canon pic.twitter.com/r2gSaXXLUK
— jacqniv (@jacqniv) September 28, 2015
Even with the cloud coverage, the moon still looked pretty cool for some:
The end of the #LunarEclipse
— Vibberts Mixing (@BrianVibberts) September 28, 2015
...as the moon goes into the clouds#LosAngeles
SEPT 27,2015 9:30pm pic.twitter.com/LZhfVvaHLQ
You can also catch the full experience—complete with Beethoven score—by watching the Griffith Observatory's coverage: