Back in May, the Americas, Antarctica, Europe, Africa and the eastern Pacific basked in the spectacular sights of the first total lunar eclipse of 2022.
Unfortunately for Australians, the eclipse happened during our daytime, leaving only stunning photos from the Northern Hemisphere.
But that all changes on tonight when Australians will experience the first visible total lunar eclipse of the year.
Here's what you need to know.
What is a lunar eclipse?
A lunar eclipse is when the Sun, the Earth and the Moon align allowing the Moon to pass through the shadow cast by the Earth.
According to Tanya Hill, Honorary Fellow of the University of Melbourne and Senior Curator (Astronomy) at Museums Victoria, there are three phases of observing a lunar eclipse:
- 1.When the partial eclipse begins as the Moon begins to move into the Earth's shadow.
- 2.Totality, when the Moon is completely covered in shadow
- 3.When partial eclipse ends as the Moon moves completely out of the Earth's shadow.
What time is the lunar eclipse?
It's a family-friendly eclipse this year because most of the action will begin before 9pm.
However, according to Dr Hill, nailing down the best time to see the lunar eclipse is a little more complicated this time because it's happening at the moonrise.
This means certain states will miss out on some of the eclipse because the Moon won't be visible in the sky yet.
"For instance, moonrise in Brisbane is at 6.01pm so the Moon will have been in the sky for more than an hour before the eclipse starts," Dr Hill told ABC News.
"Whereas in more southern places, like Melbourne, for example, the Moon doesn’t rise until 7:53pm, so the Moon will be very low to the horizon."
It's not all amiss for those in southern states because a moon low to the horizon has the benefit of the 'moon illusion' which will make the lunar eclipse appear much larger due to its proximity to objects on the horizon.
Scroll right on the table below for the full list of capital cities. Times are shown in relevant local time.
State |
Adelaide |
Brisbane |
Canberra |
Darwin |
Hobart |
Melbourne |
Perth |
Sydney |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Moonrise |
7:43pm |
6:01pm |
7:30pm |
6:42pm |
7:54pm |
7:53pm |
6:43pm |
7:19pm |
Partial eclipse begins |
7:39pm (Four minutes before moonrise) |
7:09pm |
8:09pm |
6:39pm (Three minutes before moonrise) |
8:09pm |
8:09pm |
5:09pm |
8:09pm |
Totality begins |
8:46pm |
8:16pm |
9:16pm |
7:46pm |
9:16pm |
9:16pm |
6:16pm |
9:16pm |
Partial eclipse ends |
11:19pm |
9:41pm |
11:49pm |
10:19pm |
11:49pm |
11:49pm |
7:41pm |
11:49pm |
What parts of the world will see the lunar eclipse most clearly?
While most parts of Australia will have a clear view of eclipse totality, our neighbours across the ditch will have the most spectacular full show.
"The best place to see all of it this time around is New Zealand because for them, they don’t worry about the moonrise issue," Dr Hill says.
"For them the eclipse begins at 10.09pm New Zealand time and totality starts at 11:15pm, so the Moon will be really high in the sky by then."
Is it safe to look directly at a lunar eclipse?
Yes.
Unlike a solar eclipse, it is completely safe to look directly at a lunar eclipse with the naked eye, according to Dr Hill.
"You don’t need any equipment. It’s one of these events where it’s actually better to just sit back and watch the grandeur of the sky," Dr Hill says.
But if you do happen to have a pair of binoculars handy, Dr Hill says they can be used to spot Uranus during tonight's eclipse.
"It will still only look like a star because it's millions of kilometres away but if you centre your binoculars on the Moon, one of the bright stars in the upper right will be Uranus."
Those in Brisbane could have a even more unique show when Mars begins to rise as the moon is still totally eclipsed.
"There’s also two red stars that will be visible, Aldebaran and Betelgeuse, so you’ll have the red moon, the red planet and two red stars during the eclipse," Dr Hill says.
Why does the Moon look red during an eclipse?
Spectators of total lunar eclipses are treated to the Moon bathed in all different shades of orange and red.
According to Dr Hill, this dazzling effect is due to light being filtered through the Earth's atmosphere.
"One thing to note is that only the red light can make it though [Earth's atmosphere] because it’s got the longest wavelength, shorter wavelengths like blue get scattered," Dr Hill says.
"The other thing is that the light becomes refracted which means it gets bent towards the Moon like a lens. So it lands on the surface of the Moon and you end up with this red glow."
Or, to put it another way, "If you were on the Moon during a lunar eclipse looking at the Earth, what you would see is a red ring around the night side of the Earth."
What year is the next blood moon?
In a regular calendar year, the Earth usually experiences two total lunar eclipses; one towards the beginning and one towards the end of the year.
But tonight's eclipse will be the last in totality until 2025 because of the position of Earth and the Moon.
"Earth is orbiting around the Sun, then the Moon is orbiting around us and those two orbits are not in the same plane, they’re tilted by about five degrees," Dr Hill says.
"That means for most of the year when we have a full moon, which is the only time you can get a eclipse, most of the time the Moon passes above or below the Earth’s shadow, the shadow is still there but the Moon misses it."
While there will be partial eclipses between now and 2025, due to these shadows not aligning up correctly lunar enthusiasts will have to wait a couple years to see a total eclipse again.
