A blood-red full moon is set to rise in the sky on the morning of Election Day, November 8, across the US.
As voters cast their ballots for the general election, Earth's shadow will cast a red glow across the full moon. It's a total lunar eclipse, often called a "blood moon," and there won't be another one until 2025.
The red color comes from the light of all the sunrises and sunsets happening across the planet. That's because Earth's shadow comes with a ring — the atmosphere, right along the day-night split. Sunlight passes through that atmosphere, which bends it toward the moon. The red portion of the light spectrum is what makes it through to the other side.
"It's as if all the world's sunrises and sunsets are projected onto the moon," NASA wrote in a blog post explaining the phenomenon.
"The more dust or clouds in Earth's atmosphere during the eclipse, the redder the moon will appear," NASA said.
The blood moon will be visible in the early morning hours across all of North and Central America, according to NASA. People in Asia and Australia can catch the lunar bloodbath in the early evening.
The total eclipse — the red blood moon — begins at 5:16 a.m. ET and lasts until the moon sets at 6:41 a.m. ET.
"The parts of the moon outside the umbra [shadow] during the partial phases are almost as bright as an ordinary full moon, making the obstructed parts appear nearly black. But during totality, our eyes adjust and reveal a range of hues painted on the moon by all of Earth's sunrises and sunsets," NASA wrote.
After that spectacle, you have the day to cast your ballot. Then wait until March 14, 2025, for the next total lunar eclipse.
