Look up to the skies for a real treat this weekend. A rare Blood Moon and total lunar eclipse will happen Sunday night, May 15th. This is the longest lunar eclipse that Canadians have been able to see in 15 years. A total lunar eclipse occurs when the sun, Earth and moon line up so that the Earth blocks the sun and its shadow falls directly on the face of the moon. NASA has an animated map to show the progress of the eclipse here.
The eclipse, which is safe to watch starts at 9:32 p.m. in Thunder Bay Sunday night, at its maximum at 12:11 a.m. Monday, May 16 and ends at 2:50 a.m. ET. See the full schedule for Thunder Bay here. During the eclipse as the moon crosses into the fullest part of the Earth’s shadow, the usual bright white shine turns to a darker, redder color, giving it the unofficial name of Blood Moon. The next total lunar eclipse visible in Canada happens later this year in November.