The Blood Moon & Total Lunar Eclipse

On March 14, from 06:26 to 07:31 GMT, a total lunar eclipse will occur. It will be visible from start to finish across the U.S., but parts of Europe, Asia, Australia, South America, Pacific and Africa will experience at least some part of the eclipse. The overall duration of the eclipse including the penumbral and partial eclipse phases will be 6 hours and 3 minutes. During this event, the Earth blocks the Sun’s direct light from reaching the Moon. However, some sunlight is refracted by the Earth's atmosphere, which filters out blue light so that only red light reaches the Moon. While it has no special astronomical significance, the Blood Moon view in the sky is striking as the usually whitish moon becomes red or ruddy brown.
 
While there are planets and moons all over the solar system, only Earth is lucky enough to experience lunar eclipses because its shadow is just large enough to cover the moon completely. The moon is slowly drifting away from our planet (at roughly 1.6 inches or 4 centimetres a year) and this situation won't persist forever. 
 
How Often Does a Lunar Eclipse Happen?
This depends on what type of lunar eclipse you are referring to. There are two shadows cast into space by the Earth. A faint outer shadow called the penumbra and a much darker central shadow called the umbra. Penumbral lunar eclipses happen at least twice each year. However, in many cases, the penumbra is so faint that, more often than not, most people completely miss out on noticing it when it happens. Umbral eclipses occur about every 2 or 3 years — sometimes twice in a single year. Since the umbra is dark and well-defined people notice it when the moon moves either partially or completely within it.
 
There are three types of lunar eclipses depending on how the sun, Earth and moon are aligned at the time of the event. 
1.Total lunar eclipse: Earth's shadow is cast across the entire lunar surface. During a full eclipse, however, something spectacular happens. The moon is fully in Earth's shadow. At the same time, a little bit of light from Earth's sunrises and sunsets falls on the surface of the moon. Because the light waves are stretched out, they look red. When this red light strikes the moon's surface, it also appears red. How red the moon appears can depend on how much pollution, cloud cover or debris there is in the atmosphere. For example, if an eclipse takes place shortly after a volcanic eruption, the particles in the atmosphere will make the moon look darker than usual.
 
2.Partial lunar eclipse: During a partial lunar eclipse, only part of the moon enters Earth's shadow, which may look like it is taking a "bite" out of the lunar surface. Earth's shadow will appear dark on the side of the moon facing Earth. How much of a "bite" we see depends on how the sun, Earth and moon align, .
 
3.Penumbral lunar eclipse: The faint outer part of Earth's shadow is cast across the lunar surface. This type of eclipse is not as dramatic as the other two and can be difficult to see.
 
The next total lunar eclipse will be on 7 – 8 September 2025.

How Long Do a Lunar Eclipse Last?
It depends on how deeply the moon penetrates into the Earth's umbra and how far away the moon is from the Earth. When the moon is near its closest point to Earth (perigee) it is moving much faster in its orbit as compared to when it's near its farthest point from Earth (apogee). Generally speaking, in the case of a total eclipse, it can last about three hours: one hour for the moon to move completely into the umbra, one hour for the moon to be completely immersed in the umbra and one hour for the moon to move out of the umbra. Totality can vary from just a few minutes to as long as 107 minutes. In the latter case, the moon moves directly through the centre of the Earth's shadow while moving at its slowest in its orbit (apogee).
 
What’s the Difference Between a Lunar Eclipse and a Solar Eclipse?
A solar eclipse occurs when the moon crosses in front of the sun (at new moon). A lunar eclipse is something quite different. It occurs when the full moon passes into the Earth's shadow.
 
How a Blood Moon Saved Christopher Columbus
Some ancient cultures didn't understand why the moon turned red, causing fear. At least one explorer — Christopher Columbus — used this to his advantage in 1504. According to a Space.com Skywatching columnist Joe Rao, Columbus and his crew were stranded on an island now known as Jamaica. At first the Arawak people who lived there were welcoming, but over time, Columbus' crew grew restless and murdered or robbed some of the natives. Understandably, the native people weren't eager to help the crew search for food, and Columbus realized famine was drawing near.
 
Columbus had an almanac with him foretelling when the next lunar eclipse would take place. Armed with this information, he told the Arawak that the Christian god was unhappy that Columbus and his crew received no food. God would turn the moon red as a symbol of his anger, Columbus said. As the event took place, frightened people "with great howling and lamentation came running from every direction to the ships laden with provisions, praying to the Admiral to intercede with his god on their behalf," according to an account by Columbus' son Ferdinand.

What are the Different Types of Full Moons?
A full moon occurs when the side of the Moon facing Earth is fully lit up by the Sun. When you look up at the night sky, you might notice that the Moon looks a little different each night. This is due to our Moon's many phases and types. Apart from the Blood Moon described above, there are the Supermoon, the Blue Moon, and the Harvest Moon.
 
A Supermoon appears to us as a larger-than-usual Moon in our night sky. A supermoon looks larger just because it's a bit closer to Earth. Supermoon is actually just a nickname for what astronomers call a perigean full moon – a moon that is full and at its closest point in its orbit around Earth.
 
When you hear someone say, "Once in a blue moon …" you know they are talking about something rare. A blue moon is not blue in colour. In fact, a blue moon does not look any different than a regular, monthly full moon. Rather, a blue moon is special because it is the "extra" Moon in a season with four full moons. This usually only happens every two-and-a-half years. Since the 1940s, the term "blue moon" has also been used for the second full moon in a calendar month. This usually happens only every two-and-a-half years.
 
The term "harvest moon" refers to the full, bright Moon that occurs closest to the start of autumn. The name dates from the time before electricity, when farmers depended on the Moon's light to harvest their crops late into the night. The Moon's light was particularly important during fall, when harvests are the largest.
 
References:
Dobrijevic, D. & Rao, J. (2025, January 4). Lunar Eclipses 2025: When, Where & How to See Them. Space.Com. https://www.space.com/33786-lunar-eclipse-guide.html
 
Dutfield, S. & Dobrijevic, D. (2025, January 7). What is a Blood Moon?Space.Com. https://www.space.com/39471-what-is-a-blood-moon.html