Blood moon rising: When to watch total lunar eclipse

JACKSON, Tenn. — Set your alarm, grab a blanket and step outside Friday morning to witness a rare sight.

Around 1:26 [Central Time] in the morning on March 14, the moon, sun and Earth will align, causing the moon to turn red.

A total lunar eclipse happens when the Earth is perfectly aligned between the sun on one side and the moon on the other.

A partial eclipse occurs when the central part of the shadow only covers part of the moon, and this is what happens at the beginning and end of the eclipse.

“As the partial proceeds, it seems to take a bigger and bigger bite out of the moon and then, when it becomes total, the moon is kind of orange and red and dark red. All of the sunrises and sunsets from the earth are being projected onto the moon, and that’s why it’s red,” said Ernie Wright, Science Visualizer with NASA.

Unlike a solar eclipse where you need safety glasses to watch, you can watch this eclipse without special eyewear.

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