The lunar eclipse kicked off at 5.14pm Universal Time (6.14pm BST) when the July full Moon entered the Earth’s region of faintest shadow, the penumbra.
But the real eclipse spectacle started at 6.24pm UT (7.24pm BST) when the Earth’s darkest shadow slowly began eclipsing the glowing face of the moon.
Thereafter totality occurred when the entire face of the moon disappeared into the shadow and reappeared as the ominous Blood Moon.
This year totality will clock in at one hour and 43 minutes, making the July Blood Moon the longest total lunar eclipse of the 21st century.
The eclipse will feature mainly in the Eastern Hemisphere, over Central Asia and Eastern Africa, but stargazers in Europe, Southeast Asia, Australia and parts of South America will see the eclipse at moonrise or moonset.
Below are the last lunar eclipse updates as the Moon crosses paths with the Earth’s shadow.
Blood Moon total lunar eclipse 2018 LIVE – All times BST:
Saturday July 28
2.07am: Blood Moon pictured above the Colosseum
The Blood Moon was spotted above the Colosseum in Rome, which enjoyed clear skies throughout the entire evening.
It was also pictured over the church of San Giuseppe Falegname in the Italian capital.
The lunar spectacle was witnessed across most of Europe, and as far west as France.
It was largely invisble in the UK due to heavy cloud cover.
0.22am: Blood Moon pictrued above Ancient Greek temples
The Blood Moon was spotted rising above the temples of Ancient Greece, including the temple of Apollo in Corinth.
The lunar spectacle was also pictured next to the statue of ancient Greek god Apollo in central Athens.
The Blood Moon was visible above the city of Amman in Jordan (Image: REUTERS)
Friday July 27
11.20pm: Lunar eclipse visible over Europe and the Middle East
Stargazers enjoyed perfect views of the lunar eclipse in many European destinations.
The Blood Moon rose above the Swiss Alps and was clearly visible in Germany.
The lunar spectacle was also visible in the Middle East, with the moon rising clearly above the city of Amman in Jordan.
Additional reporting by Sebastian Kettley
9.21pm: Eclipse obscured by poor weather conditions in the UK
Moon-gazers across the UK are complaining about cloudy skies and rainy weather obscuring the Blood Moon from sight.
Rosie Del Rey, @StilinskiRosie, tweeted: “Why does the UK have to be cloudy on the day of the lunar eclipse. Ugh.”
Gemma, @gemmasarney, posted: “Longest lunar eclipse and Blood Moon of the century, trust the UK to be cloudy.”
And Dr Anne Jefferson, @highlyanne, said: “Ah UK weather. It’s now bucketing rain and even lightning, so we won’t be eclipse viewing.”
8.35pm: Blood Moon totality starts in nightside of Earth
The July full Moon has just reached totality and the breathtaking Blood Moon is now fully bathed in the Earth’s darkest shadow, the umbra.
The Blood Moon now glows with a deep red colour and will move across the Earth’s umbra for one hour and 43 minutes.
Once the Blood Moon leaves the umbra, the Moon will return to the partial eclipse phase and penumbral eclipse thereafter.
By around 12.30pm BST the Moon will return to its regular white glow.
Eclipse 2018: The Blood Moon has finally arrived and can be seen from a Greek observatory (Image: TIME AND DATE)
8.02pm: Blood Moon lunar eclipse turns red over Australia
Telescopes in Australia have picked up the intense red sunlight which characterises the ominous Blood Moon lunar eclipse.
Courtesy of Jonathan Bradshaw, the eclipsed full Moon appears to glow a deep red colour across one half of the Moon.
The other half of the Moon is still glowing white but will soon be swallowed up by the Earth’s shadow when totality starts.
The red colour of the Blood Moon is caused by an effect known as Rayleigh Scattering, which refracts sunlight in earth’s dusty atmosphere.
Eclipse 2018: The eclipsed Moon is slowly taking on a blood-red colour in the Earth’s umbra (Image: JONATHAN BRADSHAW/SLOOH)
7.47pm: Hundreds of eclipse photos flood from around the Earth
Before the full Moon entered the Earth’s penumbral shadow, thousands of astronomy boffins around the globe took the streets to photograph the Moon.
One picture snapped in Cape Sounion, near Athens, captured the Moon in its full glory against the ancient ruins of the Temple of Poseidon.
In Berlin, Germany, hundreds of people were photographed on the seers of the German capital bidding the sun goodbye in anticipation of the Blood Moon.
In Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong, astronomers lined up along the city’s bay with their telescopes to watch the moment the moon moves into the umbra.
Elsewhere the full Moon was captured rising over the mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk in Ankara, Turkey.
See all the amazing Eclipse Blood Moon photos from around the world here.
7.24pm: Partial eclipse of the Moon has BEGUN
The umbral phase of the eclipse, also known as the partial eclipse, has finally begun once the Moon entered the Earth’s darkest shadow.
Stargazers will notice the partial eclipse looks like a dark disc passing in front of the face of the full Moon.
Once the Moon completely enters into the Earth’s umbra, the total eclipse will last for 103 minutes and the Moon will glow red.
The red glow is caused by refracted sunlight scattered around the Earth’s dusty atmosphere.
Eclipse 2018: The full Moon is slowly taking on a red colour before totality (Image: TIME AND DATE)
Eclipse 2018: The partial eclipse of the Blood Moon seen from Australia (Image: SLOOH)
7.12pm: Umbral eclipse starts in 12 minutes
The partial eclipse of the Blood Moon will start in less than 12 minutes, at 7.24pm UT.
The umbral stage of the eclipse will see a dark shadow creep over the face of the glowing Moon.
Once the Moon completely enters the umbra, or darkest shadow, totality will start.
The total eclipse will see the Moon change to a deep red colour for one hour and 43 minutes.
Eclipse 2018: Partial or Umbral eclipse will start at 7.24pm BST (6.24pm UT) (Image: SLOOH )
7.08pm: Eclipse visibility omits the USA, Canada and Mexico
Unfortunately, stargazers in Northern and Central America will not get to see the total lunar eclipse tonight.
NASA tweeted: “At 1.14pm EDT, a Lunar Eclipse started to become visible to much of Earth’s population except North and 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.”
6.55pm: Eclipse moon-gazers gather in London’s Blackheath
Astronomy enthusiasts in the British capital will gather tonight in the wide-open field of Blackheath to welcome the Blood Moon.
The Flamsteed Astronomy Society welcomes all intrigued local to pay a visit.
The official invitation reads: “We will be running an observing session at Blackheath from 9pm until around 11pm.
“In Greenwich, the Moon will rise at 8.48pm, so will already be in full eclipse at the start of the event.
“It will be relatively low in the sky but will climb to around 9 degrees altitude by the end of the full eclipse. Weather permitting, it should still be a sight worth seeing.”
Eclipse 2018: The July full moon rising behind the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi, UAE (Image: REUTERS)
6.36pm: Lunar eclipse welcomed by NASA
Moon experts at NASA are answering questions the public might have about today’s total lunar eclipse.
If you have any burning question concerning the Blood Moon you can tweet them under the hashtag #AskNASA.
The team behind NASA’s NASA Moon twitter feed will be at hand for the next hour or so to answer all queries.
6.14pm: Eclipse enthusiasts gather in Singapore
A number of Blood Moon observers are camped outside at the Marina South Pier in Singapore to catch a glimpse of the moon.
The amateur astronomers are enjoying the penumbral eclipse with just minutes to go before partial eclipsing begins at 6.24pm UT.
The brilliant full moon was also photographed behind the spires of the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
Eclipse 2018: NASA’s Moon experts are answering questions about the lunar eclipse (Image: NASA TWITTER)
5.36pm: Blood Moon eclipse excitement sweeps through the world
Thousands of moon-gazers around the globe are excited to witness the total lunar eclipse today.
Ian Patrick, @IPatrick_Author, tweeted: “Tonight is a Blood Moon. At 20:50hrs, stop what you’re doing, step outside and look up.
“Put down your phone and observe. Be present for this opportunity of respite from everything happening around you.”
Tolu Adele Balogun, @tolulopeab, tweeted: “My fellow Nigerians, we will experience a ‘blood moon’ or full lunar eclipse this evening.
“The world is not coming to an end, it’s not an evil event, it’s just nature.
“Should start around 6:44pm as partial eclipse and develop into a total eclipse around 7:30pm”
Eclipse in Taiwan: Blood Moon enthusiasts have gathered to watch the lunar eclispe (Image: GETTY)
Eclipse 2018: The Blood Moon today is the longest of the 21st century (Image: GETTY)
5.15pm: Blood Moon eclipse parties kick off in Taiwan
Astronomy enthusiasts in Taiwan have gathered at the National Dr. Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall to watch the lunar spectacle.
Armed with high-power telescopes and cameras, hundreds have gathered just as the Moon entered penumbral eclipse.
Young space enthusiasts were photographed gazing at the dark skies with binoculars.
4.56pm: Full Moon spotted over Sydney, New South Wales in Australia
With just a few hours before partial eclipse begins over the nightside of Earth, stargazers in Australia have already spotted the full Moon.
The full Moon in it’s whole glory was spotted over Bondi beach, one of the country’s most popular sandy attractions.
The lunar eclipse over Sydney will start with the penumbral phase at 3.14am AEST on the morning of Saturday, July 28 (6.14pm BST, Friday, July 27).
Totality will not occur until 5.30am AEST (8.30am BST) and will end after 6.21am AEST (9.21pm BST) just as the moon drops below the horizon.
The Chilling Blood Moon
Fri, February 10, 2017
Pictures from around the world of rare astronomical event. The blood moon rises as supermoon and lunar eclipse combine.
EPA
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Total Lunar Eclipse, also known as a Blood Moon in Vietnam
4.30pm: Longest eclipse of the century to take place tonight
According to astronomer Guy Ottewell, the Moon will pass through the centre of the Earth’s umbra tonight, or darkest shadow.
The space expert explained: “The umbra is the core shadow. No sunlight reaches it directly, but varying amounts can be refracted into it by Earth’s atmosphere.
“This is why it can appear brownish or even reddish, in patterns that vary at every eclipse.
“It is why the media have taken to calling a totally eclipsed moon a Blood Moon.”
Click here to find out if the Blood Moon eclipse will rise in your area tonight.