HOUSTON — The Houston area got a view of Wednesday morning’s super flower blood moon and lunar eclipse.
The West Coast will get a full eclipse, but ours was still impressive here in Texas.
You can see the video, as it happened, below.
About the super moon
That's when a full moon coincides with the moon's closest approach to the earth, in its elliptical orbit. They only happen three or four times a year, and when they do, the full moon appears about bigger and brighter than the faintest moon of the year.
About the flower moon
No, the moon won’t look like a flower or turn multiple colors. This is the traditional name for the fifth full moon of the year, appearing right after April's pink moon and a month before June’s strawberry moon. According to NASA, the term is believed to originate in the time-keeping traditions of various native American tribes.
About the eclipse
It’s the first and only total lunar eclipse of 2021, and yes it will be visible across North America. Where you live will determine how much of a view you will get. Thankfully, Houston’s clouds mostly cleared just in time. A lunar eclipse is when the full moon gets caught behind earth's shadow.
There are two steps to it: the moon enters the earth's shadow and starts to darken; then once it's completely behind, the moon turns red. This is what we call a "blood moon". But the moon won’t be totally black for those on the Pacific who get to see the entire eclipse. Some sunlight from all of the sunrises and sunsets, wrap along the edge of the earth, casting a red light on the moon, giving it that 'ominous red color.'