Home   Sun, Moon & Space   Eclipses   March 2–3, 2026 Total Lunar Eclipse (Blood Moon)

March 2–3, 2026 Total Lunar Eclipse (Blood Moon)

This eclipse is visible in Washington DC - go to local timings and animation

What This Lunar Eclipse Looks Like

The curvature of the shadow's path and the apparent rotation of the Moon's disk is due to the Earth's rotation.

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Where to See the Eclipse

Try our new interactive eclipse maps. Zoom in and search for accurate eclipse times and visualizations for any location.

Regions seeing, at least, some parts of the eclipse: East in Europe, Asia, Australia, North America, South America, Pacific, Atlantic, Indian Ocean, Arctic, Antarctica.

Expand for a list of selected cities where at least part of the total eclipse is visible
Expand for a list of selected cities where the partial eclipse is visible

This eclipse is visible in Washington DC - go to local timings and animation

Eclipse Map and Animation

The animation shows where this total lunar eclipse is visible during the night (dark “wave” slowly moving across the Earth's surface).

Shades of darkness

Night, moon high up in sky.

Moon between 12 and 18 degrees above horizon.

Moon between 6 and 12 degrees above horizon. Make sure you have free line of sight.

Moon between 0 and 6 degrees above horizon. May be hard to see due to brightness and line of sight.

Day, moon and eclipse both not visible.

Note: Twilight will affect the visibility of the eclipse, as well as weather.

The entire eclipse is visible from start to end.

The entire partial and total phases are visible. Misses part of penumbral phase.

The entire total phase is visible. Misses part of partial & penumbral phases.

Some of the total phase is visible. Misses part of total, partial & penumbral phases.

Some of the partial phase is visible. Misses total phase and part of partial & penumbral phases.

Some of the penumbral phase is visible. Misses total & partial phases.

The eclipse is not visible at all.

Note: Areas with lighter shadings left (West) of the center will experience the eclipse after moonrise/sunset. Areas with lighter shadings right (East) of the center will experience the eclipse until moonset/sunrise. Actual eclipse visibility depends on weather conditions and line of sight to the Moon.

When the Eclipse Happens Worldwide — Timeline

Lunar eclipses can be visible from everywhere on the night side of the Earth, if the sky is clear. From some places the entire eclipse will be visible, while in other areas the Moon will rise or set during the eclipse.

Eclipse Stages WorldwideUTC TimeLocal Time in Washington DC*Visible in Washington DC
Penumbral Eclipse beginsMar 3 at 08:44:25Mar 3 at 3:44:25 amYes
Partial Eclipse beginsMar 3 at 09:50:07Mar 3 at 4:50:07 amYes
Full Eclipse beginsMar 3 at 11:04:34Mar 3 at 6:04:34 amYes
Maximum EclipseMar 3 at 11:33:46Mar 3 at 6:33:46 amYes
Full Eclipse endsMar 3 at 12:02:49Mar 3 at 7:02:49 amNo, below the horizon
Partial Eclipse endsMar 3 at 13:17:15Mar 3 at 8:17:15 amNo, below the horizon
Penumbral Eclipse endsMar 3 at 14:23:06Mar 3 at 9:23:06 amNo, below the horizon

* The Moon is below the horizon in Washington DC some of the time, so that part of the eclipse is not visible.

Quick Facts About This Eclipse

DataValueComments
Magnitude1.150Fraction of the Moon’s diameter covered by Earth’s umbra
Obscuration100.0%Percentage of the Moon's area covered by Earth's umbra
Penumbral magnitude2.184Fraction of the Moon's diameter covered by Earth's penumbra
Overall duration5 hours, 39 minutesPeriod between the beginning and end of all eclipse phases
Duration of totality58 minutesPeriod between the beginning and end of the total phase
Duration of partial phases2 hours, 29 minutesCombined period of both partial phases
Duration of penumbral phases2 hours, 12 minutesCombined period of both penumbral phases

Eclipse calculations usually accurate to a few seconds

How Many People Can See This Eclipse?

Number of People Seeing...Number of People*Fraction of World Population
At least some of the penumbral phase5,580,000,00068.78%
At least some of the partial phase5,170,000,00063.69%
At least some of the total phase3,340,000,00041.15%
All of the total phase2,500,000,00030.83%
All of the total and partial phases674,000,0008.30%
The entire eclipse from beginning to end176,000,0002.17%

* The number of people refers to the resident population (as a round number) in areas where the eclipse is visible. timeanddate has calculated these numbers using raw population data provided by the Center for International Earth Science Information Network (CIESIN) at Columbia University. The raw data is based on population estimates from the year 2000 to 2020.

An Eclipse Never Comes Alone!

A solar eclipse always occurs about two weeks before or after a lunar eclipse.

Usually, there are two eclipses in a row, but other times, there are three during the same eclipse season.

All eclipses 1900 — 2199

This is the second eclipse this season.

First eclipse this season: February 17, 2026 — Annular Solar Eclipse