Stargazers had a lot to be excited about this week as a total lunar eclipse brought a brief 'blood moon' to Tampa Bay on Tuesday morning.
Meteorologist Jason Adams broke down the best time to view the orange glow ahead of the eclipse.
TIMING: The eclipse will begin at 3:44 a.m. as the moon moves into the Earth's outer shadow. By 4:50 a.m., the partial lunar eclipse will be underway, with a portion of the moon's surface fading to black. At 6:04 a.m., the moon will be in its total eclipse phase! This is also when the reddish orange glow will be at its peak! We'll reach its MAXIMUM around 6:33 a.m.
Now, remember, we talked at the start of this article about how the timing isn't in our favor. This is why. Sunrise is at 6:52 a.m. here in Tampa. This will work against the moon's glow, dimming the surface's red/orange glow minute by minute. Also, the moon will be very low in the western sky and will drop below the horizon by 7 a.m. This means we won't see the second half of the eclipse as the moon exits Earth's shadow.
This will still be fun to watch, especially between 4:50 and 6:33 a.m. as the moon turns "blood red". Why the blood red color?? That's just the sun's light being reflected from Earth's outer atmosphere, scattering most blue light and leaving a red/orange glow on the moon's surface.
Once we get past 6:33 a.m., it'll be harder and harder to see the remainder of the eclipse as the sun comes up and the moon sinks lower and lower on the horizon until it's no longer visible. See the graphic below for how the moon will move through the Earth's shadow!