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Millions of people will soon watch the full moon turn a coppery shade of red during a rare total lunar eclipse. For Kentucky, the celestial event will begin late Thursday night.
This year's total lunar eclipse isn't one to be missed, say experts, because of how high the moon will be positioned in the sky. Future eclipses — not happening in the Americas until 2026 and 2029 — will be lower on the horizon and possibly more difficult to see.
Here's what to know about watching the total lunar eclipse, commonly referred to as a "blood moon," in Kentucky.
When is the lunar eclipse?
Kentuckians can start watching the eclipse late Thursday evening, March 13, into the early morning of Friday, March 14, 2025. The entire process will take several hours.
Story continues after photo gallery.
What is a lunar eclipse?
A lunar eclipse occurs when the moon and the sun are on exact opposite sides of Earth. When this happens, Earth blocks the sunlight that normally reaches the moon. Instead of that sunlight hitting the moon’s surface, Earth's shadow falls on it.
What is the umbra in an eclipse?
During an eclipse, two shadows are cast, according to NASA. The first and innermost darkest shadow is called the umbra (pronounced UM bruh). This dark cone-like shadow gets smaller the further it gets away from the sun.
What does penumbra mean?
The second shadow in an eclipse is known as the penumbra (pronounced peh NUM bruh). This partial outer shadow is lighter than the umbra and gets larger as it goes away from the sun.
What time is the lunar eclipse in Kentucky?
You'll want to either drink lots of coffee Thursday night or set an early morning alarm Friday to catch the eclipse. Dr. Aarran Shaw, who serves as director of Holcomb Observatory and teaches Physics and Astronomy at Butler University, says this year's rare lunar moment is for night owls.
"The partial phase will begin at 1:09 a.m. EST (Friday) and totality will start at 2:26 a.m. and last for over an hour, much longer than the solar eclipse last year," Shaw said in an earlier message.
Here's what time Kentuckians can start watching the eclipse, according to NASA:
11:57 p.m., Penumbral eclipse begins: The moon enters the Earth’s penumbra, the outer part of the shadow. The moon begins to dim, but the effect is quite subtle.
1:09 a.m., Partial eclipse begins: The moon begins to enter Earth’s umbra and the partial eclipse begins. To the naked eye, as the moon moves into the umbra, it looks like a bite is being taken out of the lunar disk. The part of the moon inside the umbra appears very dark.
2:26 a.m., Totality begins: The entire moon is now in the Earth’s umbra. The moon is tinted a coppery red. Try binoculars or a telescope for a better view. If you want to take a photo, use a camera on a tripod with exposures of at least several seconds.
3:31 a.m., Totality ends: As the moon exits Earth’s umbra, the red color fades. It looks as if a bite is being taken out of the opposite side of the lunar disk from before.
4:47 a.m., Partial eclipse ends: The whole moon is in Earth’s penumbra, but again, the dimming is subtle.
6 a.m., Penumbral eclipse ends: The eclipse is over.
Weather forecast for Louisville, Kentucky during lunar eclipse
Weather permitting, Kentucky should have clear skies for watching the eclipse despite a slight chance of thunderstorms Thursday.
Meteorologists with the National Weather Service in Louisville are forecasting mostly sunny skies Thursday with a high near 75 and a low around 54. A 20% chance of thunderstorms is possible, according to NWS, but skies should clear by the late evening.
"We do have the possibility of some showers and thunderstorms, but that's later Thursday afternoon, said NWS meteorologist Brian Neudorff. "We're looking at mainly clear skies from midnight to 3 a.m. Generally, overall, it looks like we've got good viewing weather."
Why does the moon turn red during a total lunar eclipse?
During a total lunar eclipse the moon appears red, but why? According to NASA, that's because of how sunlight strikes the moon's surface after passing through our atmosphere.
Colors with shorter wavelengths, such as blues and violets, scatter more easily than colors with longer wavelengths, which include red and orange, writes NASA. The more dust or clouds in Earth's atmosphere during a lunar eclipse, the redder the moon appears.
The process occurs regularly on Earth with every dawn and dusk, explains Shaw.
"This reddish color comes from the Sun’s light being refracted through the Earth’s atmosphere such that only the red portion of the rainbow falls on the Moon," Shaw said. "This is actually the same physical process that causes the sky to be red at sunrise and sunset."
When is the full moon in March 2025?
In addition to the eclipse, Friday, March 14, is when the full Worm Moon wriggles its way into the night sky.
According to the Old Farmer's Almanac, moonrise for the Lousiville area will happen by roughly 8:26 p.m. Friday, March 14, crossing the meridian at 1:51 a.m. before setting at 8:05 a.m. Saturday. You can check moonrise and moonset times for your zip code by visiting the Old Farmer's Almanac online.
When is the next total lunar eclipse?
The next total lunar eclipse in North America will be March 3, 2026.
"This is probably our best shot at taking in the full glory of a total lunar eclipse for a while, simply because of the altitude of the moon during totality — more than 50 degrees above the horizon," Shaw said, adding the next total lunar eclipse for the Americas might be difficult to watch because of how close it will be to the horizon.
More about full moons in 2025: When's the next full moon? Dates for every one in 2025 and what time you can see them.
John Tufts covers trending news for IndyStar and Midwest Connect. Send him a news tip at JTufts@Gannett.com. Find him on BlueSky at JohnWritesStuff.
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: What time is the lunar eclipse tonight in Kentucky? When to watch
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