That’s all folks
The sun (or blood moon) has set on our time together.
Tonight, the globe has witnessed the longest celestial event of the 21st century.
The so-called blood moon was visible at different times in Australia, Africa, Asia, Europe and South America when the sun, Earth and moon lined up perfectly, casting Earth’s shadow on the moon.
But star gazers in the UK largely missed out on the spectacle, as, in a twist of fate that could’ve made an Alanis Morissette lyric, after weeks of clear weather, clouds blanketed the skies and thunderstorms raged.
Astronomy fans will have to see another total lunar eclipse in January next year.
Updated
People all over the world were looking to the skies on Friday night for the longest lunar eclipse of the century, which was also a blood moon.
Check out this video of some of the best shots captured by Nasa.
Guardian readers in the UK have kindly sent in their pictures of what turned out to be a rather underwhelming evening...
Waiting. Edinburgh, Scotland.
The view from Dartmoor tonight as seen by Mark Wilkins.
Somewhere near Felixstowe.
And if all else fails ... imagine it?
By Nemorino.
Star gazers across the UK have been left disappointed after blankets of cloud obscured any hopes of spotting the blood moon.
After weeks of uninterrupted sunshine and cloudless skies, thunderstorms swept across the country just in time to ruin chances of seeing the longest celestial event of the 21st century.
Groups of hopefuls camped out on Primrose Hill were treated to dark skies, while those in Hampshire, Wiltshire, Hull, Liverpool and Dublin were also unable to see the moon due to cloud cover.
Astronomy fans will have another chance to see a total lunar eclipse on 19 January 2019.
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While some people have captured amazing pictures of the blood moon, those looking to catch a glimpse of it in the UK haven’t been quite so lucky.
Expectation vs reality #bloodmoon pic.twitter.com/yKa9szwzew
— Tony Shepherd (@tonysheps) July 27, 2018
Trying to spot the blood moon in the UK #BloodMoon pic.twitter.com/wgE05l5KaC
— oswald (@megrauhl) July 27, 2018
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Tonight’s lunar eclipse is the longest of the 21st Century.
The total eclipse will last 1 hour, 42 minutes and 57 seconds.
The partial eclipse preceding and following means the moon will spend a total of 3 hours and 54 minutes in the earth’s umbral shadow, according to Nasa.
The fullest eclipse (at 20:22 GMT) was visible from Europe, Russia, Africa, the Middle East, much of Asia and Australia, though clouds blocked out the moon in some places.
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Observers have been taking to social media to share their pictures of the moon where they are.
I managed to photograph these pics of the Blood Moon and longest Lunar Eclipse in a century for you. Incredible experience to watch this! #LunarEclipse #BloodMoon
— Ulrich Janse van Vuuren (@UlrichJvV) July 27, 2018
🌕🌖🌗🌘🌑🌚❤ pic.twitter.com/3cP3Rc9Wch
Readers from around the world have been sharing their photos of the blood moon, though the consensus so far is, that’s it not that red.
Nephet Dlief captured this image in Istanbul, Turkey at approximately 9.30pm local time (19.30 BST). He said: “Unfortunately there was cloud slightly covering the moon at the time, and it’s definitely not blood red yet.”
Dr Raj Bhagat took this photograph at 12:28am local time in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India. That’s about 20:00 BST.
Adrian Nichol is in the capital of the United Arab Emirates, Abu Dhabi. He also thought the moon didn’t appear to be very red.
If you want to share your pictures, you can do so here. Please do tell us where you are an what time you took the image. Hopefully we’ll get to see some really red pictures of the moon soon.
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Nasa’s live stream is capturing the reddening moon from various locations. This image was taken from the Bareket Observatory near Maccabim, in Israel.
There you are, beautiful. 🌗
— ً (@raphaelmiguel) July 27, 2018
Blood Moon // Lunar Eclipse
July 28, 2018
3:33 AM
(From NASA YouTube Feed) pic.twitter.com/yPY8A2Ih3f
The partial eclipse is due to begin in the UK around about now, so grab your binoculars and settle in. The total eclipse is due to occur at around 9:20pm, and should be visible till about 10:13pm.
How rare is tonight’s blood moon? Lunar eclipses are less common than solar eclipses, with a maximum of three occurring in any given location per year, though some years there can be none. However, each lunar eclipse is visible from more than half the Earth.
If this eclipse is rare, it is because it will last for so long. The moon will be in the Earth’s shadow for four hours and totally eclipsed for one hour and 43 minutes, which is just short of the theoretical limit of a lunar eclipse (one hour and 47 minutes). The eclipse will last for so long on Friday night/Saturday morning because the moon will be passing through the centre of the Earth’s shadow.
The blood moon won’t be the only treat in the sky for UK viewers this evening. Mars will add to the spectacle, shining brightly below the blood moon as it reaches perihelic opposition – where the Red Planet and the sun are on directly opposite sides of Earth.
And those awake after 11pm will be able to catch a glimpse of the International Space Station (ISS), as it moves quickly across the sky from west to east.
It will appear like a bright star, before fading from sight a few minutes later.
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What is the best way to view the lunar eclipse?
Unlike the sun during a solar eclipse, it is safe to look at the moon during an eclipse. You don’t need special filters or protective glasses because the moon will never be bright enough to damage your eyes.
“The best place to see it is out in the country away from lights,” says Chris Tinney, professor in the physics department at the University of New South Wales. “If you’re living in [a city] then there’s a lot of light pollution from the night sky, so the contrast between the moon and the sky won’t be as great.”
Timeanddate.com has a good eclipse tracker, which allows you to enter your location and find out when best to see the eclipse.
For those in areas that will miss out on the blood moon – or city dwellers who can’t escape the light pollution – the Royal Observatory at Greenwich plans to stream live pictures of the event.
Not able to see the blood moon from where you are? Check out Nasa’s livestream (which has just started) for a perfect view.
At 1:14 p.m. EDT, a #LunarEclipse started to become visible to much of Earth's population except North & Central America. Bad weather or not located in the right place to see it? No worries! Watch our live stream online starting at 2:15pm. Details: https://t.co/l8KKluvBso pic.twitter.com/giftUiPbsv
— NASA (@NASA) July 27, 2018
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Share your blood moon photographs
If you have good photos of the moon during Friday’s event we’d like to see them. Be sure to tell us where you took your image, and any other information you think useful. You can share them in the form here or on WhatsApp by adding the Guardian contact +44(0)7867825056.
One of our journalists may be in touch and we will consider some of your responses, which will only be seen by the Guardian, in our coverage.
The Met Office predicts that those in central areas will have the best view of the blood moon, as cloud and rain in the east and west will “make stargazing tricky”.
Evening plans? Want to spot the blood moon? Cloud and rain in the east and west will make star gazing tricky, central areas will fare better pic.twitter.com/SRUgkLsNah
— Met Office (@metoffice) July 27, 2018
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Our astronomy expert Dr Stuart Clark has this explainer of why blood moons happen:
A total lunar eclipse happens when the sun, Earth and the moon perfectly line up. The most spectacular part about a total lunar eclipse is that when the moon is fully in Earth’s shadow it turns red. This has earned the phenomenon the nickname of blood moon.
The red colour happens because sunlight is deflected through Earth’s atmosphere. The process is called refraction and it bends red light from the sun like a lens into the space behind Earth – and so on to the surface of the eclipsed moon.
The precise colour of the moon depends on the atmospheric conditions in Earth’s atmosphere. The clearer the atmosphere, the brighter and lighter the red colour appears to be.
If Earth had no atmosphere then the totally eclipsed moon would be black. As it is, we stay alive because we have air to breathe and as a bonus we get a beautiful celestial phenomenon to watch. So, a win-win.
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What time can you see the eclipse?
Australia
The moon will start getting red at 4.30am AEST on Saturday morning, with the total eclipse occurring between 5.30 and 6.30am, before the moon sets at 6.55am. The moon will be close to the horizon, so make sure to look west-south-west.
UK
The partial eclipse will begin at 8.30pm, the total eclipse will occur between 9.20pm BST on Friday, with the moon visible to the south-east, until 10.13pm.
East Africa
The partial eclipse will begin at 9.30pm EAT, with the moon completely red between 10.30pm and 12.13am. This region will have one of the best views of the eclipse.
India
The total eclipse will begin at 1am IST, finishing at 2.43am.
The longest lunar eclipse of the century so far will take place across Friday night and Saturday morning, as the moon is totally eclipsed by the Earth for one hour and 43 minutes. During this time, people around the world will be able to see a “blood moon”, as the Earth’s satellite turns red.
We’ll be covering it live here, with images as the eclipse is viewed across the globe. The best views will be from east Africa, the Middle East, across to India and the westernmost tip of China. But those in the rest of Africa, Europe, other parts of Asia, Australia and the eastern tip of South America will still – clouds permitting – see something of the moment.
North America and Greenland look to be the only places that will miss out entirely (apart from those canny enough to follow this live blog).
You can also share your own pictures – good or bad – with us here.
