The night sky will be lit up by a rare Super Blue Blood Moon on 31 January, combining three lunar events dubbed the ‘lunar trifecta’ by NASA.
Skywatchers will see an extra big super moon (when the moon is close to the Earth and appears bigger and brighter than normal) a blue moon (the second full moon in a calendar month) and blood moon (when the moon appears red during a total lunar eclipse).
Live footage from Manila in the Philippines will allow viewers to catch the spectacular show as the eclipse reaches its peak at 6:49pm local time.
In the Philippines, the eclipse will last until the early mornings of Thursday February 1, according to the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA).
The total lunar eclipse will turn the moon red – a Blood Moon – because of the reddish-orange glow the Moon takes on during the eclipse.
However it will not be visible everywhere in the world, but NASA teased that “lucky folks” will witness it in large parts of the US, northeastern Europe, Russia, Asia, the Indian Ocean, Pacific and Australia.
The January 31 supermoon marks the fourth blue moon and total lunar eclipse in North America to appear at the same time in more than 150 years.
Dr Daniel Brown, an astronomy expert at Nottingham Trent University, said that the UK is on the side of the world that cannot see the moon at the time of the eclipse.
But for the rest of the world, he said: “Everywhere where you will be able to see the full moon, you will be able to see the lunar eclipse.”
The last time there was a super blue blood moon eclipse was 150 years ago in 1866, when Andrew Johnson was serving as the President of the United States following Abraham Lincoln’s assassination.
Unfortunately, the moon won’t move into the Earth’s umbra until near sunrise along the US’s east coast, making it more difficult to get a good view of the eclipse.
Californians and those living on the US’s west coast can look forward to some of the eclipse’s best views, NASA said.