The lunar eclipse known as “Blood Moon” takes place this Tuesday (3). The phenomenon will be visible in the Americas, Asia and Australia, but Brazil is not among the most favorable locations for observation.
During the eclipse, the Moon enters the Earth’s shadow, called the umbra, and takes on a reddish hue. The year 2026 will have four eclipses in total. The first was recorded on February 17, an annular solar eclipse.
According to the astronomer Thiago Gonçalvesdirector of the Valongo Observatory, Visibility in Brazil will be limited because of geography and time.
“Within Brazil, the further west you are, then the western regions of Amazonas, Acre, will have a little more visibility and will be able to, at least, partially see the eclipse”, explains.
He states that when the eclipse begins, the Moon will already be very low on the horizon. “When the eclipse begins, the Moon will already be very low on the horizon, unfortunately. So, anyone who can see anything there will see a little bit”, he says.
The forecast is that when the Moon will be close to setting. “It will be an eclipse seen in the morning, between 5 and 6 am, so the Moon will almost be setting at that moment”, he states.
He highlights that the ideal place to observe the eclipse will be in regions where it is still night during totality, such as Pacific islands. “The ideal place to see the eclipse would be in the Pacific Islands, New Zealand, Fiji,” he says.
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Why does the Moon turn red?
The reddish color occurs because the Earth is positioned between the Sun and the Moon, blocking direct light. Some sunlight passes through the Earth’s atmosphere before reaching the lunar surface.
“In the same way that we observe the reddish Sun when it is on the horizon, this happens because it is crossing a larger layer of area. It stops being, say, yellowish and becomes more reddish, because our atmosphere scatters this blue light”, he explains.
According to him, the same process occurs during the eclipse. “The blue light is scattered and only this red part of the Sun’s light reaches the surface of the Moon, which is what we see, which is why it is called a Blood Moon.”
