How a complete lunar eclipse will trigger a full blood moon in March

A complete lunar eclipse will flip the moon a deep reddish-orange on Tuesday for sky-gazers in Asia, Australia, the Pacific Islands and the Americas.

This occasion, also known as a blood moon, happens when Earth strikes straight between the solar and the moon, casting a shadow on the satellite tv for pc’s floor and inflicting it to seem crimson, based on NASA.

This eclipse is the final of three consecutive whole lunar eclipses, mentioned Dr. C. Alex Young, affiliate director for science communication within the heliophysics science division at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. The first of those whole lunar eclipses occurred in March 2025 and the second happened in September 2025. If you’re in a position to catch the upcoming eclipse, it is best to make an effort to take action, he added, as the subsequent whole lunar eclipse received’t happen till December 31, 2028.

What to search for and when

For the practically 1 in 3 folks on Earth who can observe totality, the purpose at which the moon is absolutely in Earth’s shadow, “you don’t need a fancy telescope to witness this! Just head outside, look up, and enjoy the view,” Young mentioned. If you need to improve your expertise, you should utilize binoculars or a small telescope to assist sharpen the main points, he famous.

However, visibility depends upon the climate as clouds could obscure the view.

The eclipse might be seen from Asia, Australia, the Pacific Islands and the Americas concurrently, however the native time of the occasion will rely in your time zone. The penumbral lunar eclipse, which happens because the moon strikes by the Earth’s delicate outer shadow, inflicting faint dimming of the satellite tv for pc, begins at 3:44 a.m. ET. Then, a partial eclipse, the part throughout which the brilliant full moon is partially lined by Earth shadow, begins at 4:50 a.m. ET. The whole eclipse might be seen beginning at 6:04 a.m. ET.

During the height of the occasion, at 6:34 a.m. ET, viewers can anticipate to see essentially the most intense reddish coloration. “If you only have time to look at one part, this is what to aim for,” Young mentioned.

The whole eclipse will finish at 7:03 a.m. ET because the moon begins to depart Earth’s shadow, after which a partial eclipse adopted by a penumbral eclipse might be seen once more. The occasion concludes at 9:23 a.m. ET.

To test timing in your space, see Time and Date’s website.

While NASA typically refers to this full moon because the blood moon, the occasion goes by many names, which may mirror seasonal modifications or animals, based on the Farmers’ Almanac.

As the soil warms in early spring, worms and bugs emerge from dormancy, giving rise to the identify “worm moon,” which has been utilized by teams throughout America and Europe, based on the Farmers’ Almanac.
The Ojibwe, or Chippewa, tribes close to the Great Lakes check with the March full moon because the “snow crust moon” or “hard crust on the snow moon,” referencing the snow that thaws through the day however refreezes through the chilly nights.

The moniker “sore eye moon” is utilized by a number of Native American tribes together with the Sioux, Lakota, and Assiniboine of the Great Plains and Dakotas. The identify originates from the solar reflecting off the snow inflicting eye soreness.

This yr, sky-gazers will get to see two full moons in May, making 13 full moons for the yr. Because a full moon occurs each 29.5 days and most months are longer than that, generally two full moons happen in a single month, creating the blue moon phenomenon roughly each 2.5 years.

Here are the remaining full moons of 2026, based on the Farmers’ Almanac:

April 1: Pink moon

May 1: Flower moon

May 31: Blue moon

June 29: Strawberry moon

July 29: Buck moon

August 28: Sturgeon moon

September 26: Harvest moon

October 26: Hunter’s moon

November 24: Beaver moon

December 23: Cold moon

Future lunar and photo voltaic eclipses

After the upcoming blood moon, the subsequent eclipse, a complete photo voltaic eclipse, will happen on August 12. It might be seen from Greenland, Iceland, Spain, Russia and a small portion of Portugal, with a partial photo voltaic eclipse seen in Europe, Africa and North America, based on NASA.

The occasion will kick off this yr’s second eclipse season. Eclipses are available pairs and generally trios, known as seasons, with a photo voltaic eclipse all the time accompanied by a lunar eclipse roughly two weeks earlier than or after, based on Young.

The accompanying lunar eclipse falls on August 27 and 28, 2027. People residing within the Americas, Europe, Africa and Western Asia can anticipate to see this partial eclipse.

Looking forward to subsequent yr, there might be an annular photo voltaic eclipse on February 6, 2027, based on Young. An annular eclipse happens when the moon passes between Earth and the solar however is simply too removed from Earth to totally cover the solar. As a outcome, a hoop of fireside phenomenon will be seen, because the solar’s periphery seems like a glowing circle across the moon. The eclipse might be seen over Argentina, the Atlantic, and West Africa, Young mentioned.

The following eclipse, a complete photo voltaic eclipse, is the one which Young is most enthusiastic about. It will happen on August 2, 2027, and might be seen throughout Spain, North Africa, Egypt and Saudi Arabia. It has been dubbed the “eclipse of the century,” Young added. There might be a whopping 6 minutes and 23 seconds of totality, offering loads of time to glimpse the spectacular second.

Whether you’re touring for the most effective views or hoping to observe from residence, these celestial occasions provide a possibility to pause, lookup and respect the awe of the universe.