How to See Tuesday’s Blood Moon Total Lunar Eclipse
November 6, 2022
On Tuesday evening people across Australia and New Zealand will be treated to a total lunar eclipse, weather permitting. It’s an opportunity not to be missed, as the next one won’t be visible from the region until 2025.
A lunar eclipse happens when the moon travels through the Earth’s shadow. If the moon only partly makes it into the shadow, that’s a partial eclipse. In a total eclipse, the moon becomes fully immersed and takes on a reddish/orange glow.
In Tuesday’s eclipse the period of totality – when the moon is fully immersed in shadow – will last a leisurely 85 minutes.
The only light reaching the moon’s surface will first pass through the Earth’s atmosphere, which is why the moon will take on a red hue. Just how red it appears will depend on how dusty the Earth’s atmosphere is.
In New Zealand the eclipse will happen late in the evening, and the eclipse maximum will be just before midnight. The moon will be high in the northern sky.