Get out and turn your eyes to the sky late Thursday night for a chance to see the full moon start its pass through Earth’s shadow, turning it a dark red-orange.
But we’ll have to hope for clear skies. Evening storms could clutter the metro Atlanta sky with clouds, obscuring the view of a total lunar eclipse.
It will be the first that Georgia may see since November 2022. Only partial eclipses have occurred since then, and not all have been visible in the United States.
If we’re lucky and skies are clear, you won’t need any special equipment to observe the celestial spectacle. But binoculars or a telescope and a dark environment away from city lights do enhance the viewing experience.
This is the first total lunar eclipse of 2025, according to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Another total eclipse will happen Sept. 7, but it will only be visible in Europe, Africa, Asia and Australia.
The United States won’t see another total lunar eclipse until March 3 of next year and a partial one on Aug. 28, 2026.
Then, the Americas won’t see another total eclipse until 2029. One will happen in 2028, but it will only visible in the Eastern Hemisphere.
Lunar eclipses happen when the sun, Earth and moon align just right so that the moon passes through the shadow cast by Earth as it orbits the planet.
The red-orange tint is caused by the same visual phenomenon that makes the sky blue and sunsets red. It’s also why eclipses are sometimes called “blood moons.”
What to expect
The moon will enter the outer part of the earth’s shadow — or penumbra — around 11:57 p.m. Thursday, according to NASA.
The moon will begin to dim, and if the weather cooperates, you should be able to see this transition, though it will be very subtle at this point.
By 1:09 a.m. Friday, the moon starts to reach the fully shaded area of earth’s shadow — the umbra. This marks the beginning of the partial eclipse, NASA explains. As the moon moves through this phase, it might look “like a bite is being taken out of the lunar disk,” as the section of the moon inside the shadow will appear very dark.
At 2:26 a.m., totality begins as the entire moon will be in the earth’s shadow. For about an hour, it will appear with a coppery red tint as it continues its journey across the shadow, NASA says.
By 3:31 a.m., totality will end and the moon will start the earlier phases in reverse until it exits earth’s shadow at 6 a.m.
What else can be observed
If you look to the western sky on the night of the eclipse, you may catch a glimpse of Jupiter and Mars, according to NASA.
As the eclipse begins, the moon itself will be in the constellation Leo, right under the lion’s hind paw. And as it ends, the moon will have passed into the constellation Virgo.
Both stellar groups may be easier to see as the Earth’s shadow dims the moon’s glow, NASA says.
About the Author
Keep Reading
The Latest
Featured
