Earth Shadow Rising Sequence

The series below shows how the earth shadow rises in the east after the sun sets in the west. It covers the period from 5 to 30 minutes after sunset. The exposure was increased each time to give a constant meter reading. The times ranged from 0.006 sec to 0.8 sec, which gives an idea of how much the light changed during this period. The boundary of the blue earth shadow with the pink Belt of Venus is quite distinct at first but fades as the sun drops lower. By the end of the series there is a distinct lighter band near the horizon in place of the blue shadow.

Looking west with the sun about to dip below the true horizon.

Looking east 5 minutes later the earth shadow is clearly visible, with the pink Belt of Venus above it.

The field of view is about 90 degrees.

Looking west 15 minutes after sunset.

To the east and 15 minutes after sunset.

The shadow is higher now but becoming less distinct as the Belt of Venus starts to fade.

Looking west again 25 minutes after sunset and the twilight colours are approaching their strongest.

Looking east 25 minutes after sunset. The Belt of Venus is barely visible and the edge of the shadow poorly defined.

The lower part of the shadow is now dominated by a lighter haze layer near the horizon.

Zooming in on the sunset shows some fine colour.