Joe Rao is Space.com's skywatching columnist, as well as a veteran meteorologist and eclipse chaser who also serves as an instructor and guest lecturer at New York's Hayden Planetarium. He writes about astronomy for Natural History magazine, Sky & Telescope and other publications.
Lunar EclipsesAnnular 'ring of fire' solar eclipse February 2026: Live updatesContact me with news and offers from other Future brandsSign up to our monthly entertainment newsletter to keep up with all our coverage of the latest sci-fi and space movies, tv shows, games and books.
Discover this week's must-see night sky events, moon phases, and stunning astrophotos. Sign up for our skywatching newsletter and explore the universe with us!Space.com's Sci-Fi Reader's Club. Read a sci-fi short story every month and join a virtual community of fellow science fiction fans!are concerned, it seems that about half of the nation will have at least some occasional views of the moon plunging through the Earth's dark shadow. The totality — aka thephase — will begin at 6:03 a.m. Eastern Time on Tuesday, which corresponds to 3:03 a.m. Pacific time. Totality will last 58 minutes. The regions of the country that will likely have the best overall weather conditions for the moon show will be southeast New England, much of the Florida peninsula, the northern Rockies, the Southwest deserts, Nevada, and most of California. In contrast, several weather disturbances will induce considerable cloud cover primarily over the central and eastern states. A quasi-stationary front stretching across the Central Plains through the Upper Midwest east to the Mid-Atlantic region will be accompanied by a broad swath of clouds and wet weather, with the heaviest rains falling over parts of eastern Kansas, northeastern Missouri, central Illinois and west-central Indiana.How to use the moon on Feb. 4 to plan your view of March's total lunar eclipseOther areas where eclipse weather will be problematic will be over parts of Utah, Wyoming and Colorado, where light rain and snow may fall, as well as portions of the Northern Plains to the upper Great Lakes, where a cold front will be dropping southward from south-central Canada. In addition, an inverted trough of low pressure developing near the coast of the Carolinas will induce a moist flow of air from the Atlantic Ocean that will translate into widespread cloudiness across the Piedmont region of the Southeast U.S.So far as New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and New England are concerned, it is unfortunate that the eclipse does not take place 12 hours sooner. On Tuesday evening, for these locations, skies will likely be beautifully clear and moonlit thanks to a large dome of high pressure sitting over southeast New York. However, as the night progresses, that protective shield of fair skies will rapidly shift to the east and out over the Atlantic Ocean and will allow lowering and thickening cloud cover to move in from the west, which — depending on how rapidly the cloud shield advances — could partially or completely obscure the moon by eclipse time. Those who want to be assured of a good view of this shady little celestial drama should travel to the east to stay ahead of the clouds. Locations that hold the most promise for clear skies include eastern Massachusetts, southeast New Hampshire and southern Maine.We have provided a map of the percentage of cloud/sky cover, valid for Tuesday at 7 a.m. EST, from NOAA's National Digital Database. It shows those regions where sky conditions look the best . . . and worse, for eclipse watchers. We can break things down into three categories:Breaking space news, the latest updates on rocket launches, skywatching events and more!Cloud cover ranges from scattered to broken cloud cover; generally, 30% to no more than 70%. Despite the existing clouds, there will probably be large breaks and openings that will allow for periodic views of the moon going into eclipse, especially for places with no more than 50% sky cover.Cloud cover ranges from 70% to complete overcast. At worst, a complete shut-out of the eclipse. At best, perhaps some occasional views of the moon like what poet Alfred Noyes described in"The Highwaymen":How to use the moon on Feb. 4 to plan your view of March's total lunar eclipse. Just click on that part of the map where you live and you'll be taken to the NWS office that serves your area. There, you will find all the latest weather information pertaining to your area. If you are clouded out, the next chance at seeing a total lunar eclipse from the contiguous U.S. will come on the night ofJoe Rao is Space.com's skywatching columnist, as well as a veteran meteorologist and eclipse chaser who also serves as an instructor and guest lecturer at New York's Hayden Planetarium. He writes about astronomy for Natural History magazine, Sky & Telescope and other publications. Joe is an 8-time Emmy-nominated meteorologist who served the Putnam Valley region of New York for over 21 years. You can find him on Twitter and YouTube tracking lunar and solar eclipses, meteor showers and more. To find out Joe's latest project, visit him on Twitter.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Watch the 'blood moon' total lunar eclipse on March 3 with these free livestreamsAnthony Wood joined Space.com in April 2025 after contributing articles to outlets including IGN, New Atlas and Gizmodo. He has a passion for the night sky, science, Hideo Kojima, and human space exploration, and can’t wait for the day when astronauts once again set foot on the moon.
Read more »
Total lunar eclipseThe most important stories for you to know today
Read more »
A total lunar eclipse is happening Tuesday, when the Earth turns the moon 'blood' redis an associate producer for LAist.
Read more »
What time is the blood moon total lunar eclipse on March 3?Daisy Dobrijevic joined Space.com in February 2022 having previously worked for our sister publication All About Space magazine as a staff writer. Before joining us, Daisy completed an editorial internship with the BBC Sky at Night Magazine and worked at the National Space Centre in Leicester, U.K.
Read more »
A total lunar eclipse will occur this week, but will Chicagoans see it?Residents in the Chicago area are ready for the year’s only total lunar eclipse, but will anyone actually be able to see it?
Read more »
What the Total Lunar Eclipse in Virgo Means for Every Star SignThe total lunar eclipse on March 3 is one of the most dramatic moments on the astrological calendar—here, learn how it might affect you, according to your individual star sign.
Read more »