USA/FL: Lunar Eclipse 2026
The Aug 27-28 lunar eclipse visible in a vast swath of the Americas was a spectacle rivaling the solar eclipse in Spain just exactly 2 weeks before. It was near total lunar eclipse – 96.3% – eclipses occur in pairs (solar and lunar) during an eclipse season, but having a total solar eclipse followed by a near-total lunar eclipse in the same month is rather rare (the next one of this magnitude is not happening until Dec 2028). The Moon first slipped through Earth’s outer faint shadow (the penumbra), causing a subtle dimming, before entering Earth’s dark inner shadow (the umbra). At the depth of the eclipse, around 12:14 am past midnight, the moon was blood red in color – this red glow occurs because Earth’s atmosphere filters out blue wavelengths of sunlight while bending longer red wavelengths into Earth’s shadow and casting them onto the Moon. Because roughly 4% of the Moon missed the darkest part of Earth’s shadow, a bright paper-thin sliver along the northern edge remained exposed to direct sunlight, creating an intense contrast. The eclipse lasted 3 hours and 18 minutes from start to finish.
