Total lunar eclipse — Pacific & Asia
On 3 March 2026 the Moon passed completely into Earth's shadow and turned red. Every stage, including about 58 minutes of totality from 11:04 to 12:03 UTC, was visible from north-east Asia, north-western North America and the central Pacific. It fell on the first full Moon of the East Asian lunar year.
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The story
On 3 March 2026 the full Moon moved into Earth's shadow in a total lunar eclipse. The Moon stayed completely inside the dark central part of the shadow for about 58 minutes, and the deepest point came at 11:34 Universal Time. The best places to watch were those where the Moon was up at that hour: the central Pacific, East Asia and western North America. The Moon did not cross the exact middle of the shadow but passed a little to the south of it.
A Moon inside Earth's shadow does not vanish; it turns a dark red. Sunlight passing through Earth's layer of air is bent slightly, just enough to reach into the shadow. On the way, the blue part of that light is scattered out of the beam and mostly the red part gets through, which is the same reason sunsets look red. The light falling on the eclipsed Moon is, in effect, the glow of every sunrise and sunset on Earth at that moment.
Unlike a solar eclipse, a lunar eclipse needs no special equipment. Moonlight cannot harm the eyes, so it is safe to watch for as long as you like. A total solar eclipse can only be seen from inside a narrow strip of land, but a lunar eclipse looks the same from everywhere the Moon is above the horizon. During totality the Moon's light fades so much that the sky darkens and many more stars than usual come into view.
In East Asia the eclipse fell on the 15th day of the first lunar month, the first full Moon of the lunar year, celebrated as the Lantern Festival in China and as Jeongwol Daeboreum in Korea. There the Moon rose in the east after sunset and was fully inside the shadow from about 11:04 to 12:03 UT, early in the evening. Set the sky view to Tokyo, Honolulu or Sydney and move the clock to that night, and the Moon's slide into the shadow and back out again is reproduced step by step.
Viewing guide — timing and direction
The eclipse is over, but the simulator can show it again. Set the sky view to Sydney and move the time to the evening of 3 March 2026, and the Moon in the eastern sky is reproduced sinking fully into the shadow at about 11:04 UT and starting to brighten again at about 12:03 UT. Switch the location to Honolulu and the same eclipse plays out in the middle of the night, high in the sky close to overhead.
Selecting the Moon shows its height above the horizon, its direction, its phase and its path across the sky over the day as seen from your location. Replay that date in the orbit view and the Sun, Earth and Moon are reproduced lining up, with the Moon moving into the long shadow that stretches out behind Earth, seen from out in space. The Moon's path a little south of the shadow's centre can be seen as well.
The next total lunar eclipse is on 31 December 2028, with the middle of totality at about 16:52 UT; the whole event can be seen from eastern Europe, Asia and Australia. There are two more total lunar eclipses in 2029, on 26 June and 20 December. After that comes a run of four in a row: 25 April 2032, completely visible from East Asia and Australia, 18 October 2032, 14 April 2033 and 8 October 2033.
See this for yourself — open that sky at that moment · replay the moment in the orbit view
Why this lunar eclipse is worth it
A lunar eclipse shows that the Moon's path around Earth is tilted by about 5 degrees compared with Earth's path around the Sun. Because of that tilt, the full Moon usually passes a little above or below Earth's shadow, which is why there is not an eclipse every month. Only when a full Moon happens near one of the two points where the paths cross does the Moon run into the shadow, and only a deep crossing gives a total eclipse.
How red and how dark the Moon looks during totality tells us about the state of Earth's air. When a large volcano throws dust and tiny droplets high into the sky, less light is able to reach into the shadow. The eclipse of December 1992, after the 1991 eruption of Mount Pinatubo, was so dark that the Moon was hard to find. For this reason, records of eclipse brightness are used in the study of the upper atmosphere.
An eclipse is also a chance to study the Moon's surface. When sunlight is suddenly cut off, the lunar ground cools quickly. Fine dust loses its heat fast, while large rocks hold on to it and cool slowly. Scientists therefore use spacecraft orbiting the Moon to measure how quickly different areas cool, and use the difference to map where bare rock lies on the surface.
Background
This eclipse belongs to Saros 133, one of the families of eclipses. A saros is the cycle of about 18 years and 11 days after which the Sun, Earth and Moon return to almost the same arrangement, so eclipses in the same family repeat in a similar way. The previous member of this family fell on 21 February 2008, and the next will come on 13 March 2044.
Solar and lunar eclipses often come in pairs about two weeks apart. For a period of a little over a month, the Sun sits near one of the points where the Moon's path crosses Earth's, so a solar eclipse can happen at new Moon and a lunar eclipse at the full Moon two weeks later. This eclipse's partner was the annular solar eclipse seen over Antarctica on 17 February. 2026 also had a total solar eclipse on 12 August, crossing Greenland, Iceland and Spain.
During totality the Moon becomes thousands of times fainter than an ordinary full Moon. Stars near it, normally drowned out by bright moonlight, become visible to the naked eye. In this eclipse the Moon stood in the constellation Leo, so the stars of Leo could be seen close to the red Moon. Once totality ended and the Moon brightened again, those stars were soon lost in its glare.
A lunar eclipse happens at the same instant all over the world, but it can only be seen where the Moon is above the horizon. The deepest moment, 11:34 Universal Time, was 8:34 p.m. on 3 March in Japan, 1:34 a.m. on 3 March in Hawaii and 12:34 a.m. on 4 March in New Zealand. In all three places the Moon was up in the night sky, so all three saw totality.
FAQ
Where could totality be seen?
Wherever the Moon was up between about 11:04 and 12:03 UT. North-east Asia, north-western North America and the central Pacific saw every stage from start to finish; much of Asia and Australia saw it after moonrise, and the rest of North America and South America before moonset.
How long did totality last?
About 58 minutes. The Moon passed a little south of the shadow's centre, so totality was shorter than in an eclipse that crosses the middle, which can last around an hour and 40 minutes.
Why does the Moon turn red?
Sunlight is bent into the shadow as it passes through Earth's air, and along the way the blue light is scattered out while mostly red light gets through. It is the same effect that makes sunsets red.
When is the next total lunar eclipse?
On 31 December 2028. The middle of totality falls at about 16:52 UT, and the whole eclipse can be seen from eastern Europe, Asia and Australia.
Related
- Total lunar eclipse of 2028
- Total lunar eclipse of 2032
- Total solar eclipse of August 2026
- The Moon — object index
- Earth — object index
Times and figures are approximate — verify with official sources when planning travel. Simulation uses J2000 mean elements.