by The moon turned an eerie blood-red color in a total lunar eclipse overnight on Sunday (May 15) that was visible to millions of stargazers on four continents.
The lunar eclipse, celebrated as the Flower Super Blood Moon, was the longest total lunar eclipse in 33 years, according to Space.com skywatching columnist Joe Rao. It was visible, weather permitting, from a wide swath of the globe encompassing the Americas, Antarctica, Europe, Africa, and the eastern Pacific. You can see amazing photos of the Super Flower Blood Moon from sky watchers with clear skies to see it.
During the lunar eclipse, the full moon spent about 85 minutes inside Earth’s umbra, or darkest shadow, according to Space.com columnist Joe Rao. That compares to 96 minutes in August 1989, according to TimeandDate.com.
Even New Zealand, Eastern Europe and the Middle East got a subtle view of the penumbral or lightly shadowed version of the eclipse. But it was the Blood Moon that caught the attention of people all over the world.
Related: Lunar Eclipse of Super Flower Blood Moon: Is it the first of 4 supermoons?
Riste Spiroski captured a view of the moon in Macedonia at 4:45 a.m. local time. “It looks like Saturn, with a long, thin cloud in front of it, as the partial eclipse occurs, and you can see it clearly. I was amazed at the sight,” Spiroski told Space.com in an email. You can see the photo below.
Some Space.com readers commented on the beauty of the eclipse. “Beautiful view of the moon from Tucson, Arizona,” wrote reader Bod Read.
Michelle Jensen, another reader, used a smartphone to capture the eclipse from New Prague, Minnesota, about 45 minutes south of Minneapolis.
“I took some clear photos of the beginning of the eclipse. Nothing fancy, but I thought it was great that my phone captured so much,” Jensen wrote. You can see the photo below.
The timing of the Super Flower Blood Moon depended on its location. TimeandDate.com said that the partial eclipse phase of the lunar eclipse began on May 15 at 10:28 p.m. EDT (02:28 GMT on May 16). It reached the peak of the Blood Moon on May 16 at 12:11 a.m. EDT (04:11 GMT). The event then ended at 1:55 am EDT (0555 GMT). The penumbral eclipse began and ended an hour before the total eclipse.
Several webcasts discussed the art and science of Blood Moon, for people outside the viewing area, in cloudy conditions, or who were unable to see the show in person.
“Things that are impressive, almost spiritual, don’t require modern technology,” Slooh astronomer Bob Berman said during the live broadcast of the astronomy webcast.
As the Blood Moon shone live on remotely operated telescopes broadcasting live to Slooh, the company’s curriculum director spoke about how light around our planet refracts and falls onto the moon’s surface. “You’re looking at the sunrises and sunsets that are happening on our planet, right now, in the light of those hitting the moon,” said John Boisvert.
Eclipse scientist Fred Espenak said that a full moon was called a supermoon, taking into account the variability of perigees (closest approaches) and apogees (farthest approaches) that the moon has to our planet.
NASA, however, follows another definition that suggests a supermoon occurs when the moon is within 90% of its closest approach, which the agency says will happen in June.
Supermoon or not, the full moon turning red for a while attracted a lot of attention around the world.
If you’re hoping to photograph the moon or want to get your gear ready for the total lunar eclipse, check out our best cameras for astrophotography and best lenses for astrophotography. Read our guides on how to photograph a lunar eclipse and how to photograph the moon with a camera for some helpful tips on planning your lunar photo shoot.
Whole! Tonight’s #LunarEclipse, seen from Florida’s Space Coast against a beautiful field of stars. pic.twitter.com/7EiO4gH1utMay 16, 2022
From my Samsung galaxy s21 lunar eclipse May 15, 2022 pic.twitter.com/woAZdC77tbMay 16, 2022
A huge crowd turned out for the lunar eclipse! A beautiful moment in the Montreal park ❤️ Very happy that you guys saw this pic.twitter.com/ToZwh7jPefMay 16, 2022
Total Lunar Eclipse! Taken with an iPhone connected to my 8” telescope. 🌕📱🔭 #lunareclipse2022 pic.twitter.com/MBweZp6AvkMay 16, 2022
Super Blood Moon Lunar Eclipse pic.twitter.com/GRudCig4eQMay 16, 2022
Lunar eclipse, if you squint long enough pic.twitter.com/2qyF6UCcWVMay 16, 2022
Lunar eclipse tonight #LunarEclipse #Minnesota pic.twitter.com/HXF4D5rvaJMay 16, 2022
Publisher’s note: If you take an amazing lunar eclipse photo (or your own eclipse webcast) and want to share it with Space.com readers, send your photos, comments, and your name and location to [email protected]
Follow Elizabeth Howell on Twitter @howellspace. Follow us on twitter @Spacepointcom and in Facebook.
