Total lunar eclipse to coincide with supermoon tonight

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Total lunar eclipse to coincide with supermoon tonight and the Moon will turn a rusty hue as well as may seem larger in the sky.

It’s the second total lunar eclipse of the year. The entire eclipse will be visible from eastern North America, South America, West Africa and western Europe.

Skywatchers in the western half of North America, the rest of Europe and Africa, the Middle East and South Asia will see a partial one.

From the UK, observers will see the Moon pass through the Earth’s shadow in the early hours of Monday morning. In North and South America the eclipse will be seen on Sunday evening.

As the full Moon moves into our planet’s shadow, it dims dramatically but usually remains visible, lit by sunlight that passes through the Earth’s atmosphere.

As this light travels through our planet’s gaseous envelope, the green to violet portions get filtered out more than the red portion, with the result that light reaching the lunar surface is predominantly red in color.

Observers on Earth may see a Moon that is brick-colored, rusty, blood red or sometimes dark grey, depending on terrestrial conditions.