The country’s stargazers had the chance to see the total lunar eclipse on Sunday evening as a “Blood Moon” was visible from parts of the UK.
For the first time since 2022, the UK witnessed the moon turning a deep, dark red as the Earth passed directly between the sun and the moon, casting its shadow across the lunar surface.
According to the Met Office, the moon took on a reddish hue because it was illuminated by light that had passed through the Earth’s atmosphere and had been bent back towards the moon by refraction, scattering blue light and allowing red wavelengths to reach the moon.
A total lunar eclipse visible over Liverpool (Peter Byrne/PA Wire)
People watch a full ‘Blood Moon’ during a total eclipse from above Riex, western Switzerland (AFP via Getty Images)
Where skies were clear, the eclipse was visible at around 7.30pm.
The eclipse was visible to the naked eye, and unlike solar eclipses, was safe to view directly as the moon’s reflected light is not as bright.
The ‘Blood Moon’ rises over the West Bank, as seen from the Negev desert in Israel (Reuters)
The lunar eclipse is seen from Bourg-en-Lavaux, Switzerland (Reuters)
However, the rare spectacle was more visible in many other parts of the world, including parts of Africa and the Middle East.
A lunar eclipse happens when the Earth moves between the moon and the sun, obscuring the latter and turning it dark.
The light that reaches the lunar surface is scattered by the Earth, so that it appears red to people watching from the ground.
The Royal Observatory Greenwich said the next opportunity to see a lunar eclipse in the UK will be on 28 August 2026. But that is only a partial eclipse, unlike this weekend’s total one.
A full moon is seen during a “Blood Moon” total lunar eclipse (Reuters)
The full moon rises behind a sculpture of a chariot at the Palace Square for a total lunar eclipse in St Petersburg, Russia, Sunday, 7 September 2025 (AP)
Beach-goers rest on a shore of the Black Sea with a full moon also known as “Blood Moon” during a phase of a total eclipse in the background in Odesa, on 7 September 2025 (AFP via Getty Images)
People watch as the moon shines during a total lunar eclipse over Kfardebian village, northeast of Beirut, Lebanon, Sunday, 7 September 2025 (AP)
A full moon is seen during a ‘Blood Moon’ total lunar eclipse over the Residenz (residence) in Munich, Germany, 7 September 2025 (Reuters)
The “Blood Moon” is pictured during an eclipse in the night sky over Sydney on 8 September 2025 (AFP via Getty Images)
The full moon rises behind a statue of an angel fixed atop the Alexander Column at the Palace Square for a total lunar eclipse in St Petersburg, Russia, Sunday, 7 September 2025 (AP)
Stargazers will have a chance to see a ‘Blood Moon’ on Sunday night during a total lunar eclipse visible across Asia and swathes of Europe and Africa (AFP via Getty Images)
The Moon appears from behind the Tokyo Skytree during a total lunar eclipse in the middle of the night above the Japanese capital early on 8 September 2025 (AFP via Getty Images)
The moon appears at the very top of the Tokyo Skytree during a total lunar eclipse in the middle of the night above the Japanese capital early on 8 September 2025 (JIJI Press/AFP via Getty Images)
Onlookers watch the total lunar eclipse, also known as the blood moon, from a park bench, in Leipzig, Germany, Sunday, 7 September 2025 (AP)
A full moon also known as “Blood Moon” is seen in the night sky in Yangon, during a lunar eclipse, on 7 September 2025 (AFP via Getty Images)
APTOPIX Israel Lunar Eclipse (Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)
People are seen on a floor of the Shanghai World Financial Centre as a full moon, also known as the “Blood Moon,” rises above skyscrapers (AFP via Getty Images)
