Bhubaneswar: Skywatchers in the capital city witnessed a celestial spectacle as the partial lunar eclipse began, with striking visuals of the moon captured near Ram Mandir here on Tuesday evening. A shadow gradually crept across the lunar surface, offering residents a rare astronomical moment against the city skyline.
According to the India Meteorological Department, a total lunar eclipse will occur when the whole Moon comes under the umbral shadow of the Earth, and a partial lunar eclipse occurs only when a part of the Moon comes under the shadow of the Earth. In this, the Moon moves from right to left, passing through Earth’s shadow.
Earlier, the IMD mentioned that a total lunar eclipse is set to occur on Tuesday, March 3, 2026, marking a significant astronomical event with a deep magnitude of 1.155. This phenomenon takes place when the entire Moon enters the Earth’s umbral shadow, whereas a partial eclipse is limited to only a portion of the Moon being obscured. This particular total eclipse will be visible to observers across India, as well as in Eastern Asia, Australia, and the Americas”.
In the Indian context, the experience will vary by region. Most of the places in India will observe the ending of the lunar eclipse at the time of moonrise, except some places of North-East India and Andaman and Nicobar Islands, where the end of the totality phase of the eclipse will also be visible.
A total lunar eclipse occurs when the Sun, Earth, and Moon are precisely aligned, and the Moon passes into the shadow of the Earth. During a total lunar eclipse, the Earth comes between the Sun and the Moon and blocks any direct sunlight from reaching the Moon.