In Photos: The Rare Super Blue Blood Moon Eclipse of 2018

The Super Blue Blood Moon takes on a reddish hue during the total lunar eclipse of Jan. 31, 2018 in this view from the Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles.

Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles, California

The Blood Moon shines as a plane soars nearby in this photo from Hong Kong.

People with bicycles take photos of the Super moon in Lancelin, Australia.

The moon sets behind the Statue of Liberty in New York.

Astrophotographer Sergio Garcia Rill captured this composite image of the Super Blue Blood Moon of Jan. 31 over Houston, Texas.

Astrophotographer James Jordan captured this view of the Super Blue Blood Moon at totality from Oakland, California.

A plane flies passing the moon over Los Angeles, California.

the Boston Logan International Airport in Boston, Massachusetts, USA.

The Peace Gate at the Olympic Park in Seoul, South Korea.

Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk on Sakhalin Island in Russia’s Far East.

Vladivostok in Russia’s Far East.

Super Blue Blood Moon 2018

The moon begins passing through Earth’s shadow during the Super Blue Blood Moon total lunar eclipse of Jan. 31, 2018 in this view from NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California.

Uppatasanti Pagoda seen from Naypyitaw, Myanmar.

Singapore Flyer in Singapore.

Galata Tower in Istanbul, Turkey.

The moon sets behind the city of Jerusalem.

The National Capitol Columns at the US National Arboretum.

The eastern, southern and southwestern United States should have clear skies for the Super Blue Blood Moon on Jan. 31, but viewing conditions will be worse farther north.

This map by Sky & Telescope shows the visibility regions across North America for the Super Blue Blood Moon lunar eclipse of Jan. 31, 2018.

Astrophotographer Steve Scanlon captured this photo of the Super Blue Blood Moon over Locust, New Jersey at 6:53 a.m. EST (1153 GMT).

This map by Sky & Telescope shows the visibility regions around the world for the Super Blue Blood Moon lunar eclipse of Jan. 31, 2018.

Stages of the January 31, 2018 “super blue blood moon” (weather permitting) are depicted in Pacific Time with “moonset” times for major cities across the US, which affect how much of the event viewers will see. While viewers along the East Coast will see only the initial stages of the eclipse before moonset, those in the West and Hawaii will see most or all of the lunar eclipse phases before dawn.

The phases of the Super Blue Blood Moon total lunar eclipse of Jan. 31, 2018 are listed here in Pacific Standard Time.

Mobile astronomy apps such as SkySafari 6 are an ideal tool to preview celestial events. The total lunar eclipse on the morning of Jan. 31, 2018 features an enlarged supermoon. It’s also a Blue Moon, the second full moon in January — a combination that hasn’t occurred in many years. In the eastern US and Canada, the moon will set mid-eclipse. But skywatchers in the west will be able to watch the entire eclipse, as shown here near the end of the eclipse at 6:15 a.m. PST in San Francisco, CA. By telling you where in the sky it will occur, your astronomy app can help you plan to observe or photograph any eclipse.

Areas of the world that will see the Jan. 31, 2018, total lunar eclipse. The eclipse will be visible Jan. 31 in the morning before sunrise for North America, Alaska and Hawaii. Observers in the Middle East, Asia, eastern Russia, Australia and New Zealand will see it during moonrise the evening of Jan. 31.

The free Solar System Scope app features a 3D model of the solar system that you can manipulate to better understand the motions of the moon and planets. You can select a specific date and time, or allow time to flow forwards and watch things move. Here, the Jan. 31, 2018 total lunar eclipse is modeled. The software is available in both browser and mobile versions, and includes a sky chart mode for night-time skywatchers.

Using Astronomy apps to preview lunar eclipses allow you to discover additional interesting aspects of the events. The total lunar eclipse of July 27, 2018 coincides with the opposition of Mars. The blood moon and the very bright Red Planet will make a wonderful sight and photo opportunity for observers where the eclipse is visible. When fully immersed in the Earth’s shadow, the darkened full moon will also allow fainter deep sky objects to appear, such as the nearby Messier objects shown here. For skywatchers in Madagascar, the maximum eclipsed moon will be high in the sky, close to the Zenith (green cross).

Sunlight shining on the solid globe of Earth casts a circular shadow, or umbra, into space. The shadow is always opposite the sun and near the ecliptic (yellow line), which defines the plane of Earth’s orbit around the sun. The moon’s orbit (gray line) is tilted 5 degrees away from the ecliptic. Whenever full moons occur close to the point in space where the moon’s orbit and ecliptic intersect, a lunar eclipse can occur. While the moon is passing through the smaller white circle, only sunlight that has been reddened as it refracts over the Earth’s horizon reaches it — painting it a blood red color. The larger circle, or penumbra, represents the region where some direct sunlight still reaches the moon.

This graph shows the path of the January 2018 total lunar eclipse, and times when the event will be visible.