Supermoon and lunar eclipse delight star gazers

A supermoon has lit up the sky across the world coinciding with a rare partial lunar eclipse.

The Moon could be seen to appear brighter and bigger on Tuesday night.

Supermoons happen when the Moon is at its closest point to Earth in its orbit.

A rare partial lunar eclipse – when the Earth’s shadow covers part of the Moon – also happened with about 4% of the Moon’s disc covered in darkness.

Over night from Tuesday into Wednesday, the partiallunar eclipsewas visible across the globe – with some of the clearest sightings in the UK and the US.

In the UK it occurred between 01:40 BST and 05:47, reaching its peak at 03:44.

For those in the US, the eclipse is visible between 20:41 EST and 00:47 – or 22:44 at its maximum.

The eclipse was also visible in Latin America, Europe and Africa, as well as small parts of Asia and the Middle East .

This month’s full moon – known as the Harvest moon – is the second of four “supermoons” this year.

The next partial eclipse will be in August 2026, which will be special as around 96% of the Moon will be in shadow.

Reuters Partial lunar eclipse at the Samalayuca Dunes on the outskirts of Ciudad Juarez, Mexico
This image of the partial lunar eclipse was captured in Mexico
Weather Watchers/Julie's Garden  The supermoon seen from Birmingham
A skygazer in Birmingham, UK, photographs the Moon
BBC Weather Watchers/Jack March Supermoon rises in Baxterley, Warwickshire
Supermoon rises over a country house in Warwickshire, UK
Getty Images Moon rises in Caracas, Venezuela
The Moon seen from Caracas, Venezuela
Getty Images A supermoon seen from Nanjing, China
The Moon seen from Nanjing in China’s eastern Jiangsu province
Getty Images A man sets up a telescope in Indonesia
A star gazer sets up a telescope in Indonesia
A full moon rises over the Golan Heights
The supermoon rises over the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights
Walkers walk across Sydney Harbour Bridge
The silhouette of climbers descending from the summit of Sydney Harbour Bridge
Getty Images Full Moon rises behind the Galata Tower in Istanbul, Turkiye
The Moon rises behind the Galata Tower in Istanbul, Turkey
Getty Images A plane flies in front of the Moon in Toronto
A plane flies in front of the Moon in Toronto

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