Everything to know about tonight’s blood moon eclipse, and how you can actually watch it

We’ve only just stopped hearing about the “once-in-a-lifetime” solar eclipse that took place a few weeks ago, and there’s already another eclipse happening. 

This time, you can expect a rare blood moon eclipse, during which the moon will glow red.

The partial lunar eclipse is set to start in the early hours of Friday morning, starting at 2.23am, and reaching its maximum at 5.12am.

But don’t set your alarm just yet, because cloud and rain may obscure the view from some areas.

What will the blood moon lunar eclipse actually look like?

via Unsplash

During the eclipse, the full moon will glow red, very eerie, but why does this happen? The red glow is caused by the sun, earth and moon all lining up in the night sky.

The eclipse will occur shortly before moonset, so it will be low on the horizon. Due to a phenomenon called the “moon illusion,” the moon will appear more dramatic and bigger than usual.

With the weekends dark and drizzly weather predictions, rain and cloud are likely to obscure the view for some. The spots likely to get the best view are the south and east of England, parts of Northern Ireland and western Scotland.

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How can you watch the lunar eclipse and do you need glasses?

via Unsplash

Unlike the recent solar eclipse, you will not need special glasses to watch the blood moon lunar eclipse. However, if you’re planning to watch it, you will need to stay up pretty late.

At 2.23am, the moon will move into faint, outer section of the moons shadow, called the penumbra. You can expect the moon to look slightly dimmer than usual, but this stage won’t be noticeable to most people.

At 3.33am, the moon will enter the main partial phase of the eclipse, with the moon heading into the earths shadow, the umbra.

At 5.12am, 93 per cent of the moon will be in the darkest shadow, with the eclipse reaching its maximum.

The partial eclipse will end at 6.51am. However, by this point, the moon will have set beyond the horizon so this stage will not be visible in the UK. Exact moonset times will vary across the UK.

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Featured image via Unsplash