The partial lunar eclipse of the evening of 5/6 July was so placed as to be easily observed from all of Australia. In fact at mid eclipse at 12.55am Eastern Time, the moon was directly overhead in Central Australia and 49.9% of its diameter was covered by the Earth's shadow as the northern part of the moon passed through the southern part of the Earth's shadow. (The moon entered the dark total or umbral shadow at 11.35pm and left it at 2.15am.) In Brisbane there was cloud earlier in the evening which cleared in time for the eclipse, but returned at 2.00am a little before the Earth's umbral shadow left the moon.

This eclipse came one half revolution of the moon after the 21 June African Total Solar eclipse. (Refer 'Astronomical Trips/Eclipse Expeditions' section.) Thus the fortunate saw two eclipses in a fortnight! Unfortunately there will not be any good lunar eclipses observable from our longitude in the near future. Whilst the early stages of the 5 May 2004 total lunar eclipse will be visible from eastern Australia in the early morning, and a tiny 7% umbral partial eclipse on 17 October 2005, and some of a 19% umbral on the morning of 8 September 2006, it will be 28^th August 2007 before we see another good umbral eclipse from eastern Queensland. This will be a total eclipse at a convenient time of evening, the umbral stages of which are between 6.51pm and 10.24pm, being total between 7.52pm and 9.23pm. Therefore it will be some years before we see another good lunar eclipse!