Super blue blood Moon - latest updates as it happened: Lunar eclipse sweeps across the world

What is the super blue blood moon?

The super blue blood moon has arrived.

Australia got the first glimpse of the full event, as it spread across the world. Much of Asia and America also got a look – though the UK, Europe and Africa missed out on seeing the blood moon, or lunar eclipse.

They will, however, get to see the supermoon. And as well as being much bigger and brighter than normal it will also be second full moon of the month, making it a blue moon.

Taken together, that's a series of celestial events that haven't been seen for decades.

Here's all the latest updates as the sight makes its way around the world, and as all the best pictures, videos and live streams start to arrive.

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Key Points

• Full details on when and where the supermoon will be arriving
• How to take the best pictures possible
• Why we've always been fascinated by – and terrified of – eclipses

[31 January 2018 08:56 · Andrew Griffin]

Some interesting detail from Reuters on what it's like to watch the night's events from the famous Griffith Observatory:

In Los Angeles, a crowd ranging from 1,000 to 2,000 people was expected to make a pilgrimage in the dark to the Griffith Observatory on Mount Hollywood, where extra telescopes will be set up for them to see the celestial show, Griffith Observatory officials said.

"Griffith Observatory is all about having an eyeball to the sky, and so it's one thing to learn about this event in a book, but it's another to see it for yourself," observatory director Ed Krupp said in a phone interview.

Krupp, in an act he has performed during other eclipses, plans to dress up like a wizard and bang pots and pans outside the observatory while the crowd watches.

His presentation pays whimsical homage to myths about eclipses dating back to ancient Babylon, when people believed they had to frighten away a mysterious creature swallowing the moon, Krupp said.

[31 January 2018 08:58 · Andrew Griffin]

Krupp's strange rituals are a reminder of how ancient excitement about eclipses is. Here's a piece from the last solar eclipse, looking at why they've so terrifying and fascinating throughout history.

[31 January 2018 10:16 · Andrew Griffin]

Here's Dr Daniel Brown, an astronomy expert at Nottingham Trent University, who clarifies some of the things you might be wondering about today's events.

“The Super Blue Blood Moon is a lunar eclipse that happens on the second full moon of the month. It also happens to be during the Moon’s closest approach, being within ten percent of the nearest to Earth it can ever be.

“The term blood moon is actually quite misleading. The Moon will become much darker and take on an ash-grey colour – there will be no extensive red colour. Calling it a blood moon is rather exaggerated; only after large volcanic eruptions would we expect a rusty red colour, which will not be the case this time.

“The same can be said for the term super moon; definitely not a term used by astronomers. The closeness of the Moon results in it appearing 14% larger than when it is at its smallest. So it actually is 7% larger than on average. 

“Also, the previous and several of the following full moons are also super moons. The next ones are getting smaller and smaller compared to the this latest one. So if you could compare these full moons side by side you might be able to measure a size difference of 1%. 

“Events such as this cause us to look up and enjoy the skies above. The Moon is beautiful sight any time of the year. In the UK we will not be able to spot the eclipse but we should still get out there and watch the skies and the Moon and take some meaningful pictures of this beautiful sky-scape.

“If you can't get enough of the Moon there will be a black Moon in February – this means there is no full Moon in that month. But then March will have a blue moon again, so not as rare as you might think.”

[31 January 2018 10:17 · Andrew Griffin]

Here's another reminder of our time on what time and where the lunar eclipse (or blood moon) will be arriving. You might not even be able to see it, but here's when it will be taking place.

[31 January 2018 10:32 · Andrew Griffin]

Timings are a bit confusing, because of timezones. But here's an easy way to understand it: the full show will get started in about two hours, wherever you are. (Though as below you might not actually be able to see it.)

[31 January 2018 11:32 · Andrew Griffin]

In just 15 minutes, the partial eclipse begins. You might not be able to see it – unlike a solar eclipse, a partial lunar eclipse isn't really visible – but that's the moment that everything gets started.

The full eclipse will come about an hour later.

[31 January 2018 11:54 · Andrew Griffin]

Because of the arrangement of the sun and the moon, a lunar eclipse is always followed by a solar one soon after. This time around, that'll come on 15 February – but the bad news is that it will only really be visible in Antarctica, and the very bottom of South America.

[31 January 2018 12:00 · Andrew Griffin]

Just a reminder of when and where the eclipse will be arriving, courtesy of Nasa:

[31 January 2018 12:02 · Andrew Griffin]

Here's a shot from Nasa's live stream (which you can find here), where you can see something of the partial eclipse:

[31 January 2018 12:04 · Andrew Griffin]

Nasa's live streams are helpful not only to people who live outside the area of the eclipse  – they're also useful to people who are stuck underneath clouds. So it's worth storing away that link even if you're heading out to look up shortly.

(They're also great for fans of swirling, calming ambient music, it turns out.)