A lunar eclipse, often called a "blood moon," occurs when the Moon passes through Earth's shadow, and unlike solar eclipses, it is safe to observe without eye protection and can be seen from anywhere on the night side of Earth. The Moon turns a striking orange or red because sunlight passing through Earth's atmosphere is stripped of its blue and violet wavelengths via Rayleigh scattering before reflecting off the lunar surface. There are three main types: penumbral (a subtle dimming), partial (where part of the Moon enters the dark umbra), and total (where the entire Moon enters the umbra). During a total eclipse, the Moon doesn't go completely dark because Earth's atmosphere refracts sunlight into the shadow cone, and totality can last up to nearly 107 minutes, with the entire event spanning up to 236 minutes. These events occur during eclipse season when the Moon's orbital plane aligns with Earth and the Sun.