The total eclipse, which coincides with the full moon on Monday, will last at least one hour
A new total lunar eclipse will set the stage for the shortest supermoon eclipse in nearly 600 years to fall on Monday.
The new eclipse, visible only in South America, the Pacific and eastern parts of Asia, will be visible during daylight hours. But an annular eclipse – when the moon is hidden from view by the Earth’s shadow – will also be visible throughout much of the western hemisphere and in Australia and New Zealand for most of the day.
There will also be a partial eclipse visible in much of North America, Europe and Asia.
On Sunday night, a total lunar eclipse will begin with the moon in the darkest part of Earth’s shadow, a region called the umbra. It will not fully disappear from view until around 11.10pm ET.
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Near midnight, the moon will be about 221,523 miles (356,750 km) from Earth and begin to travel into the lighter part of Earth’s shadow, called the penumbra.
This, combined with Earth’s gravitational influence, will make the moon appear larger and less-dramatic than normal – or more accurately, a “super blood wolf moon”, according to the American Association of Variable Star Observers.
It will be no more than 7% larger than usual and 10% dimmer, according to USA Today.
Millions of people in the Americas, Asia and Australia will be able to see at least part of the total eclipse, the second in a tetrad – four consecutive eclipses where two full moons will happen in a row.
This is the shortest and the closest to Earth of the tetrad, which was first spotted in 1835.
Martin Sharp, a lunar scientist at the California Institute of Technology, said: “It does not look like the moon is going to be spectacular – a little dimmer, a little lighter.”
The proximity of the moon also means the shadow’s path across it will be over land. The last time a tetrad of three eclipses happened in that area was around 500 years ago.