Much of the world will get to witness the spectacle of a total lunar eclipse on Sunday night.
A total lunar eclipse happens when the Earth passes between the Moon and the Sun, briefly aligning in a way that completely shadows the Moon.
A full moon lunar eclipse happens in three phases. The first phase is the penumbral phase when the Moon starts to enter Earth’s shadow. Then the partial phase begins, when a part of the moon enters the deep part of Earth’s shadow called the umbra.
Next is totality, when the Moon is completely submerged in the Earth’s shadow. Then the phases end in order too. First totality ends, then the partial eclipse and finally the penumbral eclipse ends.
When the Moon is totally submerged in the Earth’s shadow, the light that does reach the moon’s surface has to pass through Earth’s atmosphere. During this, shorter wavelengths of light, like blue, scatter and only the longer wavelengths, like red, reach the surface.
This creates a dark, rusty red hue around the moon during the totality phase, which is why people often refer to total lunar eclipses as the “blood moon.” This blood moon effect is expected to be visible during this eclipse.
The totality phase of Sunday’s lunar eclipse will last an unusually long 83 minutes, one of the longest we will get to experience in decades, according to National Geographic.
Here’s everything you need to know about Sunday’s total lunar eclipse.
How rare is a total lunar eclipse?
The Moon has a tilted orbit, so we don’t get a total lunar eclipse every lunar cycle, which is roughly every month.
Instead, it happens only a few times a year and is only visible on either the Eastern or the Western part of the world each time.
Approximately 29% of lunar eclipses are total lunar eclipses, according to TimeandDate.com.
This year we will only get two. The first one took place earlier this year, on the night bridging March 13 to March 14.
Where will it be visible?
Sadly, the Moon will enter Earth’s shadow during daytime hours for most of the Americas, roughly between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. ET. So that means American skywatchers will not be able to see Sunday’s eclipse, except for Hawaiians.
Some parts of the archipelago will be able to witness the beginning of the lunar eclipse starting at 5:28 a.m. until 6:15 a.m. local time, but won’t get to watch the full eclipse.
The eclipse will be visible from Europe, Africa, Asia, and Australia, with the latter two getting the best views.
During the 83-minute total eclipse will start at around 8:30 p.m. in Turkey and Egypt, 11 p.m. in India, 2:30 a.m. in Japan, and 3:30 a.m. in Australian cities like Sydney and Melbourne, all in local time.
How to watch it
Solar eclipses require special glasses to watch, but lunar eclipses don’t require that. All you need is a clear night sky and minimal light pollution for an even better view.
The next one will be visible in the U.S.
The next total lunar eclipse will be on March 3, 2026, according to NASA. It will be visible in all of the Americas, Pacific, and parts of Australia and Eastern Asia.
It’s estimated to be a shorter one than Sunday’s eclipse, with the totality phase to last about 58 minutes.
