{"id":498705,"date":"2026-03-02T04:51:07","date_gmt":"2026-03-02T04:51:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/498705\/"},"modified":"2026-03-02T04:51:07","modified_gmt":"2026-03-02T04:51:07","slug":"rare-blood-moon-total-lunar-eclipse-to-loom-over-north-america-australia-and-new-zealand-science","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/498705\/","title":{"rendered":"Rare \u2018blood moon\u2019 total lunar eclipse to loom over North America, Australia and New Zealand | Science"},"content":{"rendered":"

North America, Australia and New Zealand<\/a> will be treated to a rare total lunar eclipse on Tuesday known as a \u201cblood moon\u201d.<\/p>\n

As the full moon dips into the planet\u2019s shadow it will change colour to a \u201cdeep and coppery red\u201d, says astrophysicist Dr Rebecca Allen of Swinburne University.<\/p>\n

It will be the last time people will get to see this celestial phenomenon for nearly three years.<\/p>\n

What is a blood moon?<\/p>\n

A lunar eclipse occurs when the Earth lines up between the moon and the sun. The sun\u2019s light is blocked \u2013 casting a shadow on to the moon.<\/p>\n

But in some eclipses sunlight does reach the moon indirectly, daubing the moon in a sunset palette.<\/p>\n

\u201cAny light that does pass shines through our atmosphere and transforms the lunar surface into a deep, coppery red,\u201d Allen says.<\/p>\n

Dr Brad Tucker, an Australian National University astrophysicist, described it as a little bit of sunlight that \u201cskims\u201d the Earth\u2019s atmosphere.<\/p>\n

Sign up: AU Breaking News email<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cJust as a sunset or sunrise can be pink or red, this light is also refracted and so lights up the moon in an orange-red colour,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

For the best experience, Allen suggests finding a dark location away from city lights and allowing 10 to 15 minutes for your eyes to adjust.<\/p>\n

Jupiter will also be visible high in the sky, making for what Allen calls \u201ca great pairing\u201d.<\/p>\n

What time is the blood moon in Australia?<\/p>\n

Allen says the best time to view the eclipse in Australia on Tuesday night are:<\/p>\n

Sydney, Canberra, Melbourne, Hobart \u2013 starts 10.04pm, ends 11.02pm<\/p>\n

Brisbane \u2013 starts 9.04pm, ends 10.02pm<\/p>\n

Adelaide \u2013 starts 9.34pm, ends 10.32pm<\/p>\n

Darwin \u2013 starts 8.34pm, ends 9.32pm<\/p>\n

Perth \u2013 starts 7.04pm, ends 8.02pm<\/p>\n

What time is the blood moon in New Zealand?<\/p>\n

In New Zealand the eclipse will reach its \u201cdeepest point\u201d shortly after midnight on Tuesday, when the moon is high in the sky, says Prof Richard Easther.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt will be visible everywhere in the country,\u201d the University of Auckland physics professor says. \u201cEveryone who can see the moon will see the eclipse.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs an astronomer, I am excited by anything that encourages people to \u2018look up\u2019 and experience the night sky for themselves.\u201d<\/p>\n

What time is the blood moon in North America?<\/p>\n

The total lunar eclipse will be visible in the early morning of Tuesday 3 March in some parts of the Americas.<\/p>\n

\u201cObservers near the edge of the visibility region may see only part of the eclipse because, for them, the moon sets,\u201d according<\/a> to Nasa.<\/p>\n

Time and Date says the best times<\/a> to view the eclipse in North America are:<\/p>\n

New York, Washington DC \u2013 starts 3.44am, ends about 6.30am<\/p>\n

Detroit \u2013 starts 3.44am, ends 7.06am<\/p>\n

New Orleans, Chicago \u2013 starts 2.44am, ends about 6.24am<\/p>\n

San Francisco, Los Angeles \u2013 starts 12.44am, ends about 6.23am<\/p>\n

Other big international cities to see the blood moon include:<\/p>\n

Tokyo \u2013 starts 5.44pm, ends 11.23pm<\/p>\n

Beijing \u2013 starts 6.00pm, ends 10.23pm<\/p>\n

Manila \u2013 starts 5.57pm, ends 10.23pm<\/p>\n

Jakarta \u2013 starts 6.06pm, ends 9.23pm<\/p>\n

When is the next total lunar eclipse?<\/p>\n

Total lunar eclipses occur every 18 months to three years, Allen says.<\/p>\n

The next total eclipse will be New Year\u2019s Eve 2028. It will be visible to most of the world: Europe, Asia, Australia and Africa \u2013 but not the Americas. The next total lunar eclipse visible in North America will be in June 2029.<\/p>\n

A partial eclipse is due on 28 August 2026. The Americas and Africa will have the best view but it will be almost entirely invisible from Australia and New Zealand.<\/p>\n

What does the blood moon mean?<\/p>\n

In the modern age, of course, a blood moon is simply a dramatic astronomical event.<\/p>\n

\u201c[They are] a breathtaking reminder that we are living on a moving planet, in a dynamic solar system. Just one small, wonderful world, drifting through space,\u201d Allen says.<\/p>\n

In ancient times, though, they were invested with grim portents.<\/p>\n

Daniel Brown, a lecturer in astronomy at Nottingham Trent University, wrote for the Conversation<\/a> that the ancient Inca people interpreted the deep red colouring as a jaguar attacking and eating the moon, and in ancient Mesopotamia a lunar eclipse was considered a direct assault on the king.<\/p>\n

The native American Luise\u00f1o tribes from California would sing and chant healing songs towards the darkened moon, believing it to be wounded or ill.<\/p>\n

More recently, the 2013 book Four Blood Moons by Christian minister John Hagee promoted an apocalyptic superstition dubbed the \u201cblood moon prophecy\u201d.<\/p>\n

The March full moon is also known as the \u201cworm moon\u201d, according to the old Farmer\u2019s Almanac<\/a>, because in the northern hemisphere in March the soil begins to warm and the first signs of life begin to return.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"North America, Australia and New Zealand will be treated to a rare total lunar eclipse on Tuesday known…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":498706,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[48],"tags":[79,193],"class_list":["post-498705","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-space","tag-science","tag-space"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/498705","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=498705"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/498705\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/498706"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=498705"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=498705"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=498705"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}