Everything about the total lunar eclipse of May 15-16

A total lunar eclipse will be occurring on May 15-16 and it will be seen especially on the American continent.

The phenomenon will be visible from the northern part of the United States to the more southern part of Chile and Argentine along the border, which is why it is also called "Eclipse for the Americas".

The lunar eclipse will occur between 03.29 and 04.53 UTC and its end is expected to be at 05.55, according to the calculations of NASA, which will be streaming the event.

A total lunar eclipse occurs when the Sun, the Earth and the Moon align in a way that the Moon passes through the Earth's shadow. In a total eclipse, the whole Moon is around the darkest part of the Earth's shadow, called the umbra.

When the Moon is inside the umbra, it takes on a reddish tone. The lunar eclipses are sometimes also called "blood moon", because of this phenomenon.

Noah Petro, a NASA planetary geologist who specializes in the moon, said about the eclipse that "This is really an eclipse for the Americas,"

"It's going to be a treat."

The moon will be 225,000 miles (362,000 km) away at the peak of the eclipse, around midnight time in the east coast of the United States.

"This is this gradual, slow, wonderful event that as long as it's clear where you are, you get to see it," Petro said.

These kinds of eclipses can be called Red Moon because the only solar light that reaches the Moon passes through the Earth's atmosphere. The more dust or cloud there is in the atmosphere during the eclipse, the redder will be the Moon.