<p>Stargazers in the Americas and Asia will be treated to a lunar eclipse today, a celestial show that will bathe the moon in red to create a "blood moon."<br /><br /></p>.<p>During the total lunar eclipse, which will last several hours, the Earth will pass between the sun and the moon.<br /><br />As it happens, the moon will reflect sunlight scattered in the Earth's atmosphere, taking on a red hue.<br /><br />The early phase of the eclipse began at 1330 IST, or 4:00 am local time, on the east coast of the United States, and will continue until sunrise.<br /><br />In Hong Kong, the eclipse will begin shortly after moonrise at 1000 GMT or 6:00 pm local time, with the total eclipse phase emerging half an hour later and lasting for around an hour before moving to a partial eclipse.<br /><br />Free viewing locations have been set up on a harbourside promenade by the Hong Kong Space Museum for the public to observe the various phases on astronomy telescopes.<br />In Tokyo's Roppongi fashion and entertainment district, enthusiasts were planning to perform yoga exercises under the blood moon. Many others had climbed atop the city's skyscrapers to view the sky.<br /><br />On Australia's east coast, a live video feed set up by the Sydney Observatory was pointing to cloud cover less than an hour ahead of the moon's move into Earth's shadow.<br />In New Zealand, the moon will be close to its highest point in the sky, according to Auckland's Stardome Observatory & Planetarium, holding out hope of a view of the spectacle unobstructed by buildings.<br /><br />Sky watchers will also be able to see the phenomenon live via NASA's robotic telescope service, Slooh.<br /><br />NASA's lunar experts are answering questions ahead of the celestial event via live web chat from 0700 GMT.<br /><br />"NASA moon experts will be up all night on October 8 to answer your questions," the space agency said.<br /><br />The eclipse is the second of four total lunar eclipses, starting with a first "blood moon" on April 15, in a series astronomers call a tetrad.<br /><br />The next two total lunar eclipses will be on April 4 and September 28 of next year.<br />The last time a tetrad took place was in 2003-2004, with the next predicted for 2032-2033. In total, the 21st century will see eight tetrads.<br /><br />Amateur astronomists in Africa or Europe are out of luck, NASA said, as the event will not be visible in those regions.</p>
<p>Stargazers in the Americas and Asia will be treated to a lunar eclipse today, a celestial show that will bathe the moon in red to create a "blood moon."<br /><br /></p>.<p>During the total lunar eclipse, which will last several hours, the Earth will pass between the sun and the moon.<br /><br />As it happens, the moon will reflect sunlight scattered in the Earth's atmosphere, taking on a red hue.<br /><br />The early phase of the eclipse began at 1330 IST, or 4:00 am local time, on the east coast of the United States, and will continue until sunrise.<br /><br />In Hong Kong, the eclipse will begin shortly after moonrise at 1000 GMT or 6:00 pm local time, with the total eclipse phase emerging half an hour later and lasting for around an hour before moving to a partial eclipse.<br /><br />Free viewing locations have been set up on a harbourside promenade by the Hong Kong Space Museum for the public to observe the various phases on astronomy telescopes.<br />In Tokyo's Roppongi fashion and entertainment district, enthusiasts were planning to perform yoga exercises under the blood moon. Many others had climbed atop the city's skyscrapers to view the sky.<br /><br />On Australia's east coast, a live video feed set up by the Sydney Observatory was pointing to cloud cover less than an hour ahead of the moon's move into Earth's shadow.<br />In New Zealand, the moon will be close to its highest point in the sky, according to Auckland's Stardome Observatory & Planetarium, holding out hope of a view of the spectacle unobstructed by buildings.<br /><br />Sky watchers will also be able to see the phenomenon live via NASA's robotic telescope service, Slooh.<br /><br />NASA's lunar experts are answering questions ahead of the celestial event via live web chat from 0700 GMT.<br /><br />"NASA moon experts will be up all night on October 8 to answer your questions," the space agency said.<br /><br />The eclipse is the second of four total lunar eclipses, starting with a first "blood moon" on April 15, in a series astronomers call a tetrad.<br /><br />The next two total lunar eclipses will be on April 4 and September 28 of next year.<br />The last time a tetrad took place was in 2003-2004, with the next predicted for 2032-2033. In total, the 21st century will see eight tetrads.<br /><br />Amateur astronomists in Africa or Europe are out of luck, NASA said, as the event will not be visible in those regions.</p>