Millions of Americans can see a total lunar eclipse in March: Here's what to know

Most nights, if the moon is clear, the celestial body hovering in the night sky shines with a bright silvery aura.

It can be a fetching sight, especially when the moon is full and unobscured by clouds. But it's nothing like what hundreds of millions of Americans will have the chance to see next month during the first total lunar eclipse in nearly three years.

On that night, the moon will appear to us here on Earth to turn a striking rusty-red color when it aligns with our planet and the sun. When this happens, the moon is passing into Earth's shadow in a color-shifting process that lends it the nickname, "blood moon."

The upcoming total lunar eclipse, the first since November 2022, will also coincide with this year's full worm moon, the third and final full moon of the winter.

Here's what to know about a total lunar eclipse, including when and how to see the next one.

'Planet parade:' There's still time to see the 'planet parade' that began in January

What is a total lunar eclipse and what does it look like?

A lunar eclipse occurs when the moon passes into Earth's shadow while aligning with our planet and the sun.

When the moon is imperfectly covered by Earth's shadow as our planet passes between our natural satellite and the sun, it produces a partial lunar eclipse – like the one that took place in September. In a total lunar eclipse, the entire moon moves into the darkest part of Earth’s shadow, called the umbra, completely blocking it from the sun, according to NASA.

While the moon will be dimmer than usual, its surface will also appear to have a striking reddish-orange hue for a few hours, creating a breathtaking sight in the night sky as it moves through the constellations Leo and Virgo.

What is a blood moon?

Because of the color-changing phenomenon, lunar eclipses are often called “blood moons."

The process that produces the red or orangish glow is the same that makes our sky blue and our sunsets red, according to NASA.

As light reaches Earth's atmosphere, it is scattered in all directions by gasses and particles in the air.

Because blue light scatters relatively easily, that's why our sky appears in that color most of the time. Reddish light, which travels more directly in the air, manifests to ground observers during sunrises and sunsets when the sun is near the horizon and its incoming light travels at a longer, low-angle path through Earth's atmosphere.

That's similar to what's happening during a total lunar eclipse, when any sunlight that's not blocked by our planet is filtered through a thick slice of Earth's atmosphere on its way to the lunar surface.

"It’s as if all the world’s sunrises and sunsets are projected onto the moon," NASA explains.

When is the total lunar eclipse?

The total lunar eclipse will be visible throughout the U.S. on the night of March 13-14.

The website Time and Date predicts the moon will complete all of the eclipse phases in 6 hours, 3 minutes.

If you live in the U.S., you can see the eclipse starting at about 11:57 p.m. EST when the penumbral phase begins as the moon enter the outer part of the shadow and begins to subtly dim, according to NASA.

At 1:09 a.m., a partial eclipse begins as the moon enters Earth's umbra and starts to darken. To the naked eye, the moon should look like a bite is being taken out of the lunar disk.

Totality occurs at 2:26 a.m. when the entire moon is under the umbra. This is when the reddish hues of the "blood moon" will be on display.

As the moon exits the umbra by about 3:31 a.m., the red color will fade and another bite-like display, this time on the other side of the moon, will appear. The entire eclipse process is projected to end by 6 a.m. as the moon slowly exits the Earth's penumbra, NASA explains.

Where and how to see the total lunar eclipse in March

While lunar eclipses are relatively rare, when they do happen, they're visible to an entire half of Earth.

For this eclipse, the Western Hemisphere will be treated to the view, including all of North America. For those in the United States, that means all lower 48 states should have a view. The total lunar eclipse will also be visible over South America and western parts of Europe and Africa.

While you don't need any special equipment to observe the phenomenon, astronomers insist that the view will be even better with telescopes and binoculars. Regardless, a dark environment away from bright city lights makes for the best spectating.

Time and Date provides more detailed information about where and when to see the eclipse.

When is the next total lunar eclipse?

According to NASA, another total lunar eclipse won't be visible in the U.S. until March 2026.

Eric Lagatta covers breaking and trending news for USA TODAY. Reach him at [email protected]

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Total lunar eclipse is coming in March 2025: How to see it in the US