"And then there's the matter of converting his calendar post facto from our modern calendar to Shire Reckoning......"
That's easy. Just assume that First Yule is Christmas Eve and Second Yule is Christmas. It's just a matter of counting the days after that. I thought this was settled a long time ago.
One thing to keep in mind about a new moon is that it's not visible to the naked eye for about 18 hours after the astronomical event. I have a feeling Tolkien didn't realize this when considering what Sam saw. Unless Hobbits have really good eyesight.
The lunar eclipse of the night of Mar 2, 1942 was a central lunar eclipse. These are very deep ones and somewhat rare. The next one visible in Britain didn't occur until 1953.
By the way, the actual date for the Fall of Barad-dûr, if you can accept there is one, is March 13, 4502 BC (Gregorian proleptic).
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