Blood moon lunar eclipse visible across multiple continents

A total lunar eclipse on Thursday night turned the Moon a deep red as it passed into Earth's umbral shadow, an event observable from regions of North America, South America, Europe, western Asia, Africa and Antarctica. In New England, about 96 percent of the Moon was covered, though cloud cover limited viewing in many areas.

NASA explained that the reddish color results from sunlight scattering: >"The air molecules from the atmosphere scatter out most of the blue light. The remaining light reflects onto the moon’s surface with a red glow," and noted that higher amounts of dust or clouds can intensify the hue.

The eclipse follows a previous lunar eclipse on March 3 and precedes a penumbral eclipse expected in February 2027, when the Moon will pass through the faint outer part of Earth's shadow.