Lunar eclipses can occur during the full moon. When the Earth is in the position between the Moon and Sun, Earth’s shadow falls on the Moon, causing it to appear a striking red colour for a few hours, and the surface can appear darker. Each lunar eclipse is visible from half of Earth.
There are three different types of lunar eclipses:
Total lunar eclipse - The Moon moves into the Earth’s shadow. Some of the light passing through Earth’s atmosphere reaches the Moon’s surface, lighting it only slightly. Because colours like blue and violet have shorter wavelengths, their light scatters more easily than colours with longer wavelengths, like red and orange. Because these longer wavelengths can get through the Earth’s atmosphere, the Moon appears to turn red or orange during a lunar eclipse.
Partial lunar eclipse - When the Sun, Moon and Earth are not in a perfect line, the Moon passes only slightly into the Earth’s shadow. The shadow becomes larger and then smaller on the Moon without fully covering it.
Penumbral eclipse - The Moon only very slightly becomes covered by the Earth’s shadow, so although it does dim slightly, it is hardly noticeable.
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