March 2025: Total Lunar Eclipse

Your Moon guide for March 2025

After two years of stunning solar eclipses dominating the eclipse seasons, we’re (finally) in for a total lunar eclipse on March 13 to 14, 2025.

According to our calculations, just over one billion people in the US, Canada, and the rest of North and South America are perfectly situated to see the Full Moon turn a shade of red for over an hour of totality—under clear skies, of course.

Because almost everyone on the night side of Earth can see a total lunar eclipse, people have more chances to see a lunar eclipse than a solar eclipse, even though both occur at similar intervals.

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What Is a Total Lunar Eclipse?

A total lunar eclipse happens when the Sun, Earth, and Moon align, and Earth casts its darkest shadow, called the umbra, on the Moon. However, because the sunlight scatters through Earth’s atmosphere, the Moon doesn’t go completely dark but turns a reddish-orange color. This is why total lunar eclipses are sometimes known as Blood Moons.

The exact shade of red, orange, or gold the Moon turns depends on several factors, including the depth of the eclipse and the condition of the Earth’s atmosphere at the time of the eclipse.

Moonrise and Set in Some Locations

In western parts of Europe, it is a moonset eclipse, meaning the Moon will be setting below the horizon during parts of the eclipse in some locations. In Australia and New Zealand, it is a moonrise eclipse, so the Moon will be rising up from the horizon during the eclipse.

A totally eclipsed Moon can be difficult to spot when it is close to the horizon around moonrise or moonset. This is because—as well as turning the Moon reddish—Earth’s dark shadow also makes the Moon much dimmer.

How to Observe a Lunar Eclipse

So, what other advice is good to take along to a lunar eclipse? We asked Dr. Ed Krupp, director at Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles, for his top tips for the total lunar eclipse back in May 2022.

• Don’t just go out once to have a look. Monitor the whole thing. Celestial mechanics and weather make it a dynamic event. Every lunar eclipse is different, and the surprises and delights are in the details.
• Look at a diagram of the Moon’s passage through the Earth’s shadow—try to guess how the Moon will look at maximum eclipse.
• The unaided eye will do the job, but if you have binoculars, use them, especially for the nuances of color.

If you are one of the lucky billion to see all of totality, a total lunar eclipse is more than seeing the Moon turn a shade of red. Bundling up and staying outside to see the full eclipse gives some other perks. For example, a dimmer Moon can make it easier to spot other stars, constellations and planets in the night sky: during totality the Moon is in the constellation Leo with Mars nearby too.