Watch the Super Blood Blue Moon Before You Go to Work on Wednesday

Early Wednesday morning, if you live in the United States, the moon will bloom red, like a giant rose in the predawn sky. If you live in the western part of the United States, the eastern part of Asia or in Australia, you can watch the show unfold better than anywhere else.

The celestial event is known as a “blood moon,” and it occurs as the moon slides behind Earth’s shadow during a lunar eclipse. Unlike this past summer’s solar eclipse — where the moon momentarily blocked out the sun — a lunar eclipse is when Earth moves in between the sun and the moon. For half the planet, the cosmic alignment will turn the moon a coppery color for just over an hour.

Lunar eclipses are not uncommon, but the coincidence of Wednesday’s blood moon with other astronomical events is what makes this event special. First, because it is a “blue moon” — that means it is the second full moon to occur in a month. Also, it is a supermoon, meaning it will be closer to the Earth than usual, but the difference in size is hardly noticeable. Here’s what you need to know to catch this lunar trifecta some are calling the “super blue blood moon.”

A: It takes several hours for the moon to pass through the Earth’s shadow. First, it dips through the penumbra — the outer, lighter part of the shadow — and then the umbra — which is the darker portion that creates the reddish glow, known as totality.

For people living in New York and other parts of the East Coast of the United States, the moon will begin entering the penumbra at 5:51 a.m. local time, according to Gordon Johnston, a program executive at NASA. Then it will plunge into the umbra at 6:48 a.m. But because this occurs around the time the sun is rising, you might have trouble seeing much of the eclipse before it drowns in the dawn light.

Midwesterners are a tad luckier as they will be able to see more of the event. For them, the moon enters the penumbra at 4:51 a.m. Central Time and starts to turn reddish around 6:15 a.m. Central Time. Between 6:15 a.m. and 6:30 a.m. local time will be the best chance for anyone living in the Midwest to see the spectacle before the sun rises, according to Johnston.

The show starts to get good for people in the Mountain states. The umbra kisses the moon at 4:48 Mountain time. Its red lipstick becomes most visible around 6:30 a.m. local time, until it gets washed away by the sun at about 7 a.m.

Viewers on the West Coast will have the best seats in the continental United States. They will be able to watch the eclipse from start until finish, unabated by sunrise. The blood moon portion of the eclipse will enter totality at 4:51 a.m. and peak at 5:30 a.m. It will end about 6:05 a.m. local time.

Skygazers in Australia and eastern Asia will be able to watch the event on Wednesday night as the moon rises.

However, only some parts of Australia will experience the lunar triple threat, according to Tanya Hill, an astronomy curator at the Museums Victoria in Australia. Writing in The Conversation, she noted that Australia’s eastern states will not experience a blue moon because those areas observe Daylight Saving Time, which pushes the full moon and the lunar eclipse to Thursday morning on Feb. 1 and thus the next month and out of blue moon territory. Still, they will have a front-row seat as the moon goes red.

Western Europe, western Africa and most of South America will all miss out.

A: The best tip for anyone trying to see the eclipse is to get a clear view of the horizon and look in the west-northwest direction.

“The farther west you are, the higher in the west-northwest the moon will appear, the darker the sky will be,” said Johnston, “and the longer you will be able to view the eclipse before sunrise and moonset.”

You can leave those fancy eclipse glasses from summer at home. You can watch this safely with your naked eyes, though using a telescope could make for a fun experience.

A: Perhaps the best view of Wednesday’s celestial activity is from the moon itself, according to Johnston. Standing on the lunar soil looking back at Earth, you would see quite the sight as the planet’s shadow consumes you.

“You would see a red circle of sunlight scattered toward the moon by the Earth’s atmosphere,” Johnston said. “You would be seeing the glow of all the sunrises and sunsets on Earth, all at the same time.”

A: No need to fret if you can’t see the eclipse. NASA will be showing the event online beginning at 5:30 a.m. Eastern Time. You can also catch a broadcast by the Slooh Community Observatory, a telescope service, starting at 5:45 a.m. Eastern Time.

A: The next total lunar eclipse will be July 27, according to Johnston. That one won’t be visible from the United States, but Africa, the Middle East and India will get eyefuls. The United States will have to wait another year to see one, and that will be Jan. 21, 2019, though it will not be a blue moon, only a super blood moon.