Former Kansas City Star photographer John Sleezer captured the last total lunar eclipse of the moon in the early morning hours of Nov. 8, 2022, in Olathe. John Sleezer John Sleezer
Kansas City residents will need to stay up late or wake up early if they want to catch the first total lunar eclipse in three years, weather permitting.
This eclipse, also called a blood moon, occurs when the entire moon passes into the Earth’s umbral shadow, the National Weather Service said. It’ll turn the sky a shade of red.
If you’re watching from Missouri or Kansas, the eclipse will begin at 12:09 a.m. on Friday, March 14, and it’ll reach its peak around 1:58 a.m., according to Time and Date. The peak is when the moon is closest to the center of the shadow.
The darkness of the night will give you the best view of the eclipse, so you don’t need a telescope or binoculars to see in the sky. Astronomy magazine Sky & Telescope says you may also see stars right next to the moon’s edge since the Earth’s shadow will dim the radiance of the moon.
“A lunar eclipse happens when the Sun, Earth, and a full Moon form a near-perfect lineup in space, in what is known as syzygy,” Diana Hannikainen, editor in chief of Sky & Telescope, said in a press release. “The Moon slides into Earth’s shadow, gradually darkening, until the entire lunar disk turns from brilliant white to an eerie dim orange or coppery color — only more rarely does it turn a dark red. Then events unfold in reverse order, until the Moon returns to full brilliance.”
The full portion of the lunar eclipse, when the moon is completely red, will begin at 1:26 a.m. March 14 and the full portion will end at 2:31 a.m., Time and Date says.
A forecast from the National Weather Service says Thursday, March 13, should have clear skies at night with a low temperature of 59 degrees.
Why is it called a blood moon?
This type of eclipse has been nicknamed “blood moon” because of the color it emits. When the moon is in the shadow, or the umbra, of the Earth, the planet casts a reddish-brown hue or shadow, according to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
The full moon is also called a “worm moon,” because it’s happening in March, according to The Old Farmer’s Almanac.
Earthworms begin to pop up from the ground around this time of year as the weather warms up and spring approaches, but the almanac also says the name comes from Jonathan Carver, a captain in the 1760s who visited Native American tribes and noted that the tribes used the moon to mark the appearance of beetle larvae from thawing tree bark.
Full moons in 2025
After the total lunar eclipse passes over Kansas City, viewers will have 10 more chances to see a full moon this year. Here’s when Astronomy.com says to look:
- Saturday, April 12: Pink moon
- Monday, May 12: Flower moon
- Wednesday, June 11: Strawberry moon
- Thursday, July 10: Buck moon
- Saturday, Aug. 9: Sturgeon moon
- Sunday, Sept. 7: Corn moon
- Monday, Oct. 6: Hunter’s moon (supermoon)
- Wednesday, Nov. 5: Beaver moon (supermoon)
- Thursday, Dec. 4: Cold moon (supermoon)
