A LUNAR eclipse will turn the Moon a striking red in days – and it won’t happen again for months.
The Blood Moon will appear to hundreds of millions of people around the world.
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It’s an incredible event that sees the Moon bathed in Earth’s shadow – hidden from the Sun’s light.
WHY IS THE MOON TURNING RED?
If you’ve ever looked up at the Moon (and surely you have), you’ll have noticed that it shines a brilliant white.
But it’s not producing any light of its own. You’re just seeing sunlight reflected.
Sometimes the Earth is between the Moon and the Sun.
This puts the Moon in the Earth’s shadow (or umbra).
If they’re in a perfect line in space then you’re seeing a total lunar eclipse.
When this happens, the Moon will turn a “deep, dark red” because it’s only being hit by light that’s passed through Earth’s atmosphere and then bent back towards the Moon.
“It has stages,” said Edward Bloomer, senior astronomy manager at the Royal Observatory Greenwich, speaking to The Sun.
“It will first look like a shadow is passing over the lunar surface at first – not totally dark, but darkening the surface.”
He added: “As the Moon moves into the umbra itself (for the most part), the surface will change to be a sort of orangey-browny-red colour.
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“Actually, if you take photos and boost the colour you can actually see a reddish sort of rainbow effect as the Moon moves into the umbra – you get pink and purple in there too.”
You can also get partial and penumbral lunar eclipses, which is when the Moon isn’t fully hidden from the Sun’s view.
WHERE IS THE LUNAR ECLIPSE VISIBLE?
Some parts of the Earth will get a better view of the eclipse than others.
North America is in for a real treat, as the entire lunar eclipse will be visible in every U.S. state.
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Central and South America are also in luck with a view of the entire eclipse.
For Brits (and anyone else in Western Europe), you’ll see the eclipse best just as the Moon is setting.
Parts of Western Africa will get a view of the lunar eclipse, and the same is true down in Oceania.
HOW TO SEE LUNAR ECLIPSE
Spotting the lunar eclipse is easy enough – if you know where and when to look.
What is a Blood Moon? Lunar eclipses explained
Here’s what you need to know…
The Earth is constantly rotating around the Sun, and the Moon is constantly rotating around the Earth.
Sometimes all three can align, placing the Earth directly between the Sun and the Moon in a straight line.
It means the Moon is in the darkest part of Earth’s shadow – the “umbra”.
And due to convenient sizing and distancing of all three objects, no sunlight can directly reach the Moon.
However, some sunlight is refracted by Earth’s atmosphere, making the Moon appear reddish – hence the name “Blood Moon”.
Lunar eclipses typically last just a few hours, and can be viewed from anywhere on the night side of Earth.
Because they’re typically quite dim, it’s also possible to view lunar eclipses without eye protection, which isn’t the case with a solar eclipse.
There are three different types of lunar eclipse:
- Total lunar eclipse – This is where the Moon turns deep red, receiving only light that’s passed through Earth’s atmosphere.
- Penumbral lunar eclipse – This is when the Sun, Moon and Earth fail to form a perfect straight line, so the Moon only travels through the outer part of Earth’s shadow. This means the Moon’s surface is partly darkened.
- Partial lunar eclipse – This is when part of the Moon travels through Earth’s full shadow, which results in part of the Moon being darkened.
For Brits, you’ll want to stay up very late for the best view.
It’ll take place in the early morning of Friday, March 14.
“The Moon will first move into Earth’s penumbra at 3.57am GMT,” the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, UK explains.
“The maximum of the eclipse in London will be at 6.19am, because during the eclipse’s actual maximum at 6.58, the Moon will have set below the horizon.”
The Observatory recommends getting to a high point where you have a “clear western view”.
For Americans, it’ll vary depending on your time zone.
Here’s when to look for the lunar eclipse totality:
- Hawaii Time – 8.26pm (March 13)
- Alaska Time – 10.26pm (March 13)
- Pacific Time – 11.26pm (March 13)
- Mountain Time – 12.26am (March 14)
- Central Time – 1.26am (March 14)
- Eastern Time – 2.26am (March 14)
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The entire event will last about six hours, with the totality at roughly the midway point.
Thankfully if you miss this one, it’s not the end of the road.
There’s a total lunar eclipse expected on September 7 this year, and then a partial one due on August 28 in 2026.
The September event is much easier to spy for Brits, as it will take place in the evening, just after 7pm.
