A full lunar eclipse is seen during the Blood Moon Lunar Eclipse in Palm Springs, California, on Thursday.
Stargazers across the U.S. and other parts of the world tilted their eyes up into the night sky before dawn to witness the glowing "blood worm moon" staring back at them.
The stunning spectacle was the result of a total lunar eclipse — when the sun, Earth and the moon align. As the moon moved through the shadow of the Earth, it was also being illuminated by light from the sun — causing the moon to appear as if it was dipped in a deep red hue.
Its name is partly inspired by its crimson color. The "worm moon" component originated from Indigenous tribes, who noticed the emergence of beetle larvae resembling worms around the same time as the weather warmed up, according to The Old Farmer's Almanac.
The overnight transformation was visible in every U.S. state and other swaths of the Western Hemisphere. The celestial transit began at 11:57 p.m. EDT on Thursday and ended Friday at 6 a.m. EDT. The total eclipse began at 2:26 a.m. EDT and lasted a little over an hour, according to NASA.
Copyright 2025 NPR
Fadel Senna / AFP via Getty Images
/
AFP via Getty Images
The setting moon is pictured over the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi on Friday during Islam's holy fasting month of Ramadan.
Douglas Magno / AFP via Getty Images
/
AFP via Getty Images
A man looks through a telescope at the full moon, also known as the "blood moon," at the esplanade of the Mineirao stadium in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais state, Brazil on Friday, prior to the lunar eclipse.
Toby Melville / Reuters
/
Reuters
People view the full moon as a section moves into shadow during a lunar eclipse, before dawn on Friday, at Stonehenge stone circle, near Amesbury, southern Britain.
Luisa Gonzalez / Reuters
/
Reuters
People gather on the roof of the district planetarium to watch a lunar eclipse in Bogota, Colombia on Friday.
Adam Cairns / Columbus Dispatch/USA TODAY Network/Reuters
/
Columbus Dispatch/USA TODAY Network/Reuters
A blood moon total lunar eclipse occurs in Columbus, Ohio on Friday. Totality for the eclipse lasted just over an hour and could be seen throughout most of North and South America.
Gary Hershorn / Corbis News/Getty Images
/
Corbis News/Getty Images
The full worm moon rises above the skyline of Brooklyn and the Statue of Liberty as the sun sets in New York City ahead of a total lunar eclipse on Thursday, as seen from Jersey City, New Jersey.
Javier Torres / AFP via Getty Images
/
AFP via Getty Images
Scientists look at the moon displayed on a screen at the Foster Observatory in Santiago on Friday, prior to the lunar eclipse.
Gaby Oraa / Reuters
/
Reuters
A full moon is seen behind a statue after a lunar eclipse in Caracas, Venezuela on Friday.
Izhar Khan / AFP via Getty Images
/
AFP via Getty Images
A full moon, also known as the "Blood Moon," is seen during a partial eclipse in the sky over Lake George near the Australian capital city of Canberra on Friday.
Juan Mabromata / AFP via Getty Images
/
AFP via Getty Images
Skygazers watch the full moon eclipse at Galileo Galilei Planetarium in Buenos Aires on Friday.
Yui Mok / PA Images via Getty Images
/
PA Images via Getty Images
A lunar eclipse is visible above Canary Wharf in London as the full moon passes into Earth's shadow.
Marvin Recinos / AFP via Getty Images
/
AFP via Getty Images
This photo shows the full moon, also known as the "blood moon," as seen past a circus tent in San Salvador, El Salvador on Friday during a lunar eclipse.
Natacha Pisarenko / AP
/
AP
People sit outside the planetarium to watch the total lunar eclipse on Friday in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Tayfun Coskun / Anadolu via Getty Images
/
Anadolu via Getty Images
A full blood moon rises over the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, Calif.
Juliana Kim is a weekend reporter for Digital News, where she adds context to the news of the day and brings her enterprise skills to NPR's signature journalism.
U.S. chess grandmaster Daniel Naroditsky died this week at age 29. Former world champion Vladimir Kramnik had accused Naroditsky, among others, of cheating in the sport.
Over the past few days, cattle ranchers and agricultural groups have been sounding the alarm that a plan to import more foreign beef would hurt struggling ranchers.
Art heists may sound glamorous, but stealing priceless cultural artifacts doesn't always pay off like you'd expect. We talked with a veteran art thief, a lawyer, and an expert on heist economics.
Why does my toddler say "no" to everything? Say everything is "mine"? Want to crash into everything? Child development experts unpack common toddler behaviors and offer advice on how parents can cope.
Iranian director Jafar Panahi has been arrested repeatedly in his home country. His shockingly funny new revenge thriller was informed by the stories of people he met in prison.
You make NHPR possible.
NHPR is nonprofit and independent. We rely on readers like you to support the local, national, and international coverage on this website. Your support makes this news available to everyone.
Give today. A monthly donation of $5 makes a real difference.
