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Winter solstice sunrise in Donegal, Ireland (Credit:Sian Lindsey/geograph.ie/CC BY-SA-2.0)

With the days getting increasingly shorter and colder, it may appear as though winter has been upon us for many weeks. However, though meteorologists in the Northern Hemisphere consider December 1 as the start of the season, according to the astronomical calendar, the season will not begin until Friday, December 21. Often referred to as winter solstice, it is also the shortest day and longest night of the year. Southern Hemisphere residents, on the other hand, will celebrate summer solstice, the start of the astronomical summer, with the longest day and shortest night of 2018.

The disparate seasons are a result of the earth's rotation around the sun and its own axis, which is tilted at a 23.5° angle. The December solstice marks the time of year when the Northern Hemisphere faces away from the sun, receiving significantly less sunlight than the Southern Hemisphere, which is tilted towards the star. The date of the solstice varies between December 20 to 23 because our Gregorian calendar has 365 days, with an extra "leap" day every four years, and does not correspond exactly with the solar year, which lasts 365.2422 days.

December solstice marks the first day of the astronomical winter in the Northern Hemisphere (Credit: Przemyslaw "Blueshade" Idzkiewicz/Wikipedia Commons/CC BY-SA-2.0)

For ancient cultures, the winter solstice was particularly significant because after it passed, the days became increasingly longer. Though many months of cold weather remained, people felt secure in the knowledge that the sun had not abandoned them. Its "rebirth" was marked with elaborate ceremonies performed at structures specially built for the occasion.

Among the most famous is Stonehenge. Located in Wiltshire, England, the pre-historic religious site, which comprises a modest circle of stones precisely aligned with the sun's movements, is believed to have been specially constructed for winter solstice celebrations. Hundreds of people still make their way to Stonehenge every year to commemorate Yule, one of the oldest known solstice-related events.

Winter solstice at Stonehenge (Credit: english-heritage.org.uk)

Newgrange, a 5,000-year-old burial mound located in Ireland's Boyne Valley, is also a popular solstice destination. The massive stone structure that historians estimate took 300 men about 20 years to build, is designed to receive a ray of light into its central chamber at the dawn of winter solstice. As the dark room illuminates, it reveals a slew of incredibly intricate carvings on the walls. The event, which takes 17 minutes from start to finish, is so popular, that viewing tickets are now distributed through lottery. This year, there are 28,595 entries for the 60 spots available.

Over the years, many cities and towns have started their own winter solstice traditions. One of the most unusual celebrations takes place In Hollabrunn, Austria. Every year, hordes of people flock to the village to frolic with the Krampus - dancers dressed in fur suits and horned masks, depicting half demon and half goat creatures. "It is weird, but it's fun," said Natalie Kononenko, a professor in Ukrainian Ethnography Arts at the University of Alberta in Canada.

Labyrinths of Light in Vancouver (Credit: The Secret Lantern Society)

In Japan, residents, and in some cases even zoo animals, celebrate the occasion by soaking in hot baths filled with yuzu - a citrus fruit reputed to provide the body immunity from colds. Koreans mark the event by making red bean porridge, which is both consumed and spread around the house to keep evil spirits at bay. In Vancouver, Canada, the Secret Lantern Society honors winter solstice with processions, music, and artistic performances in four locations around the city, two of which feature Labyrinths of Light. Created with 700 lit candles, they are designed to provide visitors with a calming experience.

The residents of Anchorage, Alaska spend part of the 18-hour 33-minutes-long night with fun activities that include sleigh riding and hiking the Rodak Nature Trail, which is lit by beautiful ice candles made by kids.

Resources: Time.com, Booking.com,earthsky.org,Vox.com, Wikipedia.org

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Brace Yourselves, Winter Is About To Begin!

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With the days getting increasingly shorter and colder, it may appear as though winter has been upon us for many weeks. However, though meteorologists in the Northern Hemisphere consider December 1 as the start of the season, according to the astronomical calendar, the season will not begin until Friday, December 21.

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Happy 2019! (Credit: Covi/Pixabay/CCO)

Happy 2019! As is the tradition each year, at the stroke of midnight on December 31st, 2018, cities and towns worldwide ushered in the new year with elaborate fireworks displays. Here are a few that we thought were particularly noteworthy.

Given that Sydney, Australia is one of the first major cities to welcome the new year, it is not surprising to hear that the officials go all out to stage two magnificent fireworks shows. The first one, which takes place at 9:00 pm to enable families with young kids to celebrate the new year early, is broadcast live nationally. The second, more extravagant, show at midnight is streamed live internationally and watched by more than 1 billion people worldwide.

This year, over 1.5 million people gathered at the famed Sydney Harbour to admire the city's largest-ever fireworks display. Lasting a full 12 minutes, it featured 8.5 tons of fireworks, more than 100,000 individual pyrotechnic effects, and 35,000 shooting comets. The only thing that detracted from the otherwise picture-perfect extravaganza, which cost the city $5.78m, was the incorrect "Happy New Year 2018" message beamed on the Sydney Harbour Bridge!

Dubai, the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), usually takes the limelight when it comes to larger-than-life New Year's Eve fireworks. However, this year it was the less well-known Ras Al Khaimah emirate that made the headlines with an epic display, which spanned an impressive 8 miles (13 kilometers) long. In addition to delighting the locals, the show also broke the Guinness World Records for "longest straight line of fireworks" and "longest chain of fireworks." UAE's capital city of Abu Dhabi added to the country's accolades with the record for the largest ever sentence created in pyrotechnics by spelling out "Happy New Year 2019." The three records add to the country's 95 entries that will appear in 2019 Guinness World Records!

London kicked off 2019 with a stunning 12-minute fireworks display along the Victoria Embankment and South Bank areas of the River Thames. The sold-out show, which attracted over 100,000 revelers, featured 70,000 projectiles made up of 12,000 fireworks, with the iconic Big Ben chiming in the background. With less than three months left until Britain leaves the European Union, the city's mayor, Sadiq Khan, also used the occasion to assure the millions of European residents that the capital will remain "open minded," with the words "London is open" broadcast in seven languages.

A cold weather warning was not enough to deter over 340,000 people from gathering on either side of Hong Kong's famed Victoria Harbour for the new year countdown and a spectacular synchronized "pyromusical" of fireworks. The 10-minute-long, $1.8 million show featured pyrotechnics, lights, and music and was designed to create a "celestial kaleidoscope" effect.

Resources: channelnewsasia.com,BBC.co.UK, Timeoutdubai.com, Southchinamorningpost.com

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Cities Worldwide Kick Off 2019 With Dazzling Fireworks Shows

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Happy 2019! As is the tradition each year, at the stroke of midnight on December 31st, 2018, cities and towns worldwide ushered in the new year with elaborate fireworks displays. Here are a few that we thought were particularly noteworthy.

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Colin O'Brady, the first human to cross Antarctica unaided (Credit: Colin O'Brady/Instagram)

A thrilling polar competition between two adventurers to cross Antarctica solo, unsupported, and unassisted had a happy ending with both explorers achieving the unprecedented feat back-to-back. American professional endurance athlete Colin O'Brady and British Army Captain Louis Rudd set off a mile apart on November 3, 2018, from the Atlantic coast with the aim to become the first person to ski across the remote, inhospitable continent alone.

Colin O'Brady's route across Antarctica (Credit: Colin O'Brady/The Impossible First)

O'Brady was the first to conquer the 930-mile swath of icy terrain, arriving at the Ross Ice Shelf on the Pacific coast by way of the South Pole on December 26, 2018. The 33-year-old who spent 54 days skiing the world's windiest and coldest continent while lugging a 300-pound sled with supplies, pulled away from Rudd in the final two days when he traversed 80 miles, almost five times his daily average, in just 32 hours. The achievement was particularly poignant given that shortly after graduating from college, O'Brady had a freak accident which left experts doubtful he would walk again, let alone ski across the treacherous continent.

"I accomplished my goal: to become the first person in history to traverse the continent of Antarctica coast to coast solo, unsupported and unaided," a jubilant O'Brady later posted on Instagram.

An elated O'Brady calls home after reaching the Ross Ice Shelf (Credit: Colin O'Brady/The Impossible First)

Instead of leaving the hostile environment after completing the historic trek, the explorer pitched a tent on the world's largest ice sheet and waited patiently for Rudd to also complete the monumental undertaking. On December 29, just three days after O'Brady arrived, the British explorer emerged from the TransAtlantic mountains to become the world's second person to complete the solo crossing of the frozen continent. "Here he is!" a delighted O'Brady exclaimed on Instagram. "Captain Louis Rudd arrived at the finish line this afternoon. I've been waiting here to greet him."

O'Brady greets Louis Rudd at the Ross Ice Shelf (Credit: Colin O' Brady/Instagram)

Rudd, who had also cut short his sleep in the last two days and skied for a mind-boggling 32 hours to get to the finish, was not disappointed at being second since he never considered it to be a "race." Besides, the British Army Captain had a more altruistic motive for attempting the feat. He was doing it in honor of his friend Henry Worsley, who died while trying to cross the continent alone in 2016. Rudd said, "I didn't want to get drawn into a race. I knew the expedition would be difficult enough as it was. All that mattered to me was that I completed it, that I skied solo and unsupported, carrying the flag with Henry's family crest."

O'Brady skis across the Antarctica with his supplies (Credit: Colin O'Brady/Instagram)

After spending a few days camped 10 feet away from each other and feasting on buried supplies left for another explorer who never made it across, the two adventures were whisked off by a ski plane to the South Pole scientific research station. From here, they will board another plane that will take them back to their respective homes. Though the two men may live in different continents and come from different backgrounds, they will forever be tied together by their amazing achievement. As O'Brady succinctly puts it, " [We] have a lifelong bond now having both completed this epic journey."

Resources: nationalgeographic.com, the guardian.com,bbc.com.

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Colin O'Brady And Louis Rudd Become The First Explorers To Cross Antarctica Unaided

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A thrilling polar competition between two adventurers to cross Antarctica solo, unsupported, and unassisted had a happy ending with both explorers achieving the unprecedented feat back-to-back. American professional endurance athlete Colin O'Brady and British Army Captain Louis Rudd set off November 3, 2018, a mile apart, from the Atlantic coast with the aim to become the first person to ski across the remote, inhospitable continent alone.

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The Moon's far side, captured by NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (Credit: Apollo 16 astronauts/ wikimedia.org/Public Domain)

The Moon's near side, the one we all see, has been the target of numerous robotic and human missions. However, our lunar companion's far side, which is not visible from Earth, has never been explored. That changed on Jan. 2, 2019, when Chinese spacecraft Chang'e 4 made a soft landing on what is often referred to as the "dark side," because it remained largely unseen until humans were able to send spacecraft around the Moon in 1959.

Since we only see one side, it would make sense to assume that our lunar companion is locked in place. However, that is not the case. The Moon does rotate around its own axis, but the Earth's gravitational pull causes it to be tidally locked to our planet. This means that it rotates just once as it circles Earth. As a result, the same side faces our planet at all times.

The Moon is tide-locked with Earth (Credit: Todd Timberlake/
Wikimedia Commons/CC-By-SA-4.0)

Prior to the advent of space exploration, researchers had assumed the two sides would have similar topography. However, images of the far side, captured during close flybys of the natural satellite, showed very different features. While the near side is covered with maria, or ancient lava flows, the far side largely comprises craters.

Though there were numerous theories explaining the stark difference between the two sides, none could be verified without exploring the lunar surface. However, since the Moon's bulk blocks all radio signals, making it impossible to establish communications with Earth from the far side, sending a spacecraft was not an option. To overcome this hurdle, In 2017, the Chinese National Space Administration launched a dedicated satellite to orbit the Moon and relay the signals. Once a reliable communication path was in place, the scientists began work on sending out a probe to explore the many astronomical mysteries of the far side.

Less than 12 hours after landing, Chang'e 4 sent back images of the moon's far side and also successfully deployed the Jade Rabbit 2, or Yutu-2, rover, which will gather information as it traverses the lunar surface. The spacecraft then opened its three 5-meter-high (16-foot) radio antennas to make low-frequency radio astronomical observations, which researchers believe will provide insights into the solar system's early days and perhaps even the origin of the first stars.

"Since the far side of the moon is shielded from electromagnetic interference from the Earth, it's an ideal place to research the space environment and solar bursts, and the probe can 'listen' to the deeper reaches of the cosmos," said Tongjie Liu, deputy director of the Lunar Exploration and Space Program Center for the China National Space Administration.

Yutu 2 leaves the mothership to explore the far side of the Moon (Credit: Chinese National Space Administration)

Also on board the Chang'e 4 is a "mini lunar biosphere" with potato and rockcress seeds, some silkworm eggs, as well as dirt, nutrients, and water. The insulated container, which is equipped with its own energy supply and a sunlight filter, is fitted with tiny cameras to enable researchers to observe if plants can grow, and survive, in the harsh lunar environment. The rockcress was selected due to its short and convenient growth cycle, while potatoes made the list because they could some day become a major food source for space settlers. As for the silkworms? The researchers believe they will help establish a sustainable ecosystem with the plants providing the silkworms with oxygen in exchange for carbon dioxide and nutrients from the Invertebrates' waste.

"We want to study the respiration of the seeds and the photosynthesis on the moon," Xie Gengxin, chief designer of the experiment, told Chinese state-run news agency Xinhua.

Chang'e-4 captures image of the moon's far side near Von Kármán crater (Credit: China National Space Administration)

While this spacecraft was unmanned, China next hopes to emulate NASA's successful Apollo Program by sending crewed missions, and perhaps even establishing a permanent lunar base, by the early 2030s. While we are assuming they are targeting the near side of the Moon, don't be surprised if Chinese astronauts make more history by visiting, and settling down, on the far side!

Resources: CNN.com, Phys.org,livescience.com.

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Chinese Spacecraft Is The First To Land On The Moon's Far Side

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The Moon's near side, the one we all see, has been the target of numerous robotic and human missions. However, our lunar companion's far side, which is not visible from Earth, has never been explored. That changed on Jan.

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Martin Luther King, Jr. is regarded as the most influential leader of the American civil rights movement (Credit: Cannon.af.mil)

Martin Luther King Jr. (MLK), whose life and legacy is celebrated annually on the third Monday of January, was an extraordinary man. It is thanks to the vision, courage, and leadership of the clergyman-turned-civil-rights-activist that all Americans are granted equal rights, regardless of race, color, religion, or national origin.

Born in Atlanta, Georgia on January 15, 1929, MLK grew up in a world where segregation was a way of life. It was only in the summer of 1944, when he went to work in the tobacco fields in Hartford, Connecticut, that he realized how different life was in the northern states. The 15-year-old expressed his astonishment in a letter to his father, saying, "After we passed Washington there was no discrimination at all. The white people here are very nice. We go to any place we want to and sit anywhere we want to." Though it was a few years before MLK began the fight to bring similar equality to the southern states, the seed had been planted.

MLK was well-known for his inspiring quotes (Credit: Vanderbilt.edu)

In 1954, MLK, now an ordained minister, had the option to become the pastor of a church in Montgomery, Alabama, where racial discrimination was prevalent, or to accept a similar position in the more progressive states of New York or Massachusetts. Fortunately for Americans, MLK, and his wife Coretta, chose Alabama. As the pastor, he encouraged Montgomery's African American residents to register to vote and join the NAACP, the nation's oldest and largest civil rights organization.

MLK's fight to end racial discrimination began in December 1955, when civil rights activist Rosa Parks was arrested for refusing to give up her bus seat to a white passenger. Angered by the injustice, MLK asked the city's African American residents to boycott public buses and trains. Despite having no other mode of transport to get to work, the locals stepped up to the challenge - not for a day or month, but an entire year! As news of the resistance spread, African American residents from the other southern states joined in the protest as well. The first-ever concerted effort to fight racial discrimination caught the nation's attention, and in 1956, the US Supreme Court ruled that segregation on public transportation was illegal.

MLK addresses the crowd of civil rights activists on August 28, 1963 (Credit: Wikimedia Commons/Public Domain)

Though it was a step in the right direction, MLK was determined to end segregation and racial discrimination altogether. The social activist took to the road, asking Americans throughout the country to protest the injustices in a non-violent manner, with sit-ins, boycotts, and marches. Over the decade, he gave numerous inspiring speeches, the most memorable of which is the oft-quoted 'I Have A Dream' address.

The events leading to the famous speech began in June 1963, when President John F. Kennedy asked the US Congress to approve a bill that would give all Americans equal access to public places. To try to convince government officials to sign it into law, civil rights leaders called upon Americans to stage a peaceful rally in Washington DC. Over 200,000 residents from across the country heeded their call and arrived at the capital on August 28 th, 1963 to participate in what later became known as the March on Washington. On this day, MLK, standing on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, revealed his dream of living in a country where everyone was treated equally.

MLK's quotes inspire millions to this day (Credit: Wikimedia Commons/Public Domain)

The Civil Rights Act, passed on July 2, 1964, was the first significant victory in the activist's mission to achieve equality for all Americans. The Voting Rights Act of 1965, which allows African Americans to cast votes, was another step in the right direction. The 1968 Fair Housing Act, which prohibits discrimination in the sale, rental, or financing of property, sealed the deal. Finally, all Americans had equal rights. Unfortunately, MLK did not live long enough to see his dream realized. The 39-year-old was assassinated on April 4, 1968, in Memphis, Tennessee, where he had gone to support a sanitation workers' strike.

Today, thanks to MLK's courage and efforts, all Americans have the opportunity to pursue their dreams. It is now up to all of us, both young and old, to protect MLK's legacy for future generations by standing up against injustices and helping those in need. As you celebrate the holiday on Monday, January 21, be sure to reflect upon what you can do to make a difference and create your own legacy.

Happy Martin Luther King Jr. Day!

Resources: history.com,jfklibrary.com,wikipedia.org.

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Remembering The Life And Legacy Of American Civil Rights Leader Martin Luther King Jr.

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Martin Luther King Jr. (MLK), whose life and legacy is celebrated annually on the third Monday of January, was an extraordinary man. It is thanks to the vision, courage and leadership of the clergyman-turned-civil-rights-activist that all Americans are granted equal rights, regardless of race, color, religion, or national origin.

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European honey bee extracts nectar from an Aster flower (Credit: John Severns/ Wikimedia Commons/Public Domain)

In addition to providing us with delicious honey, the hardworking honey bees also pollinate about a third of food crops and almost 90 percent of wild grasses, like alfalfa, used to feed livestock. Hence, it is not surprising that their declining population, caused by climate change, habitat loss, and deadly microbial diseases, has researchers scrambling to find ways to protect the vulnerable insects, which are so crucial to our existence. Now, scientists from the University of Helsinki in Finland have found a way to help honey bees fight off infectious diseases with a sweet, edible vaccine!

Vaccinating non-humans is not a novel idea. Domesticated dogs and cats have been inoculated against rabies, Lyme disease, and even the flu for many years. However, using them to protect insects has never been considered possible. That's because vaccinations entail injecting a dead, or weakened, version of the virus into the body and allowing the immune system to create antibodies to fend off the disease. Since insects do not possess antibodies, they lack a "memory" for fighting infections and therefore do not benefit from traditional vaccinations.

Some of the foods that could be affected if honey bees disappear (Credit: Specialtyfood.com)

Dalial Freitak, a biologist at the University of Helsinki, came up with the idea of an edible insect vaccine in 2014, after observing that when a moth was fed certain bacteria, it was able to pass on immunity to its offspring. Meanwhile, her colleague, Heli Salmela, had noticed that vitellogenin, a bee protein, appeared to have a similar effect to invasive bacteria in bees.

"So they could actually convey something by eating. I just didn't know what the mechanism was. At the time, as I started my post-doc work in Helsinki, I met with Heli Salmela, who was working on honeybees and a protein called vitellogenin. I heard her talk, and I was like: OK, I could make a bet that it is your protein that takes my signal from one generation to another. We started to collaborate, got funding from the Academy of Finland, and that was actually the beginning of PrimeBEE," Freitak explains.

How the American foulbrood bacteria invade and decimate hives (Credit: Current Opinion in Insect Science/Sciencedirect.com)

The first PrimeBEE vaccine, which is still undergoing safety tests, aims to protect honeybees against American foulbrood, or AFB, an infectious disease which affects bee colonies worldwide. The harmful bacteria, introduced to the hive by nurse bees, feed on larvae and generate spores which spread and infect the entire hive. "It's a death sentence for a hive or colony to be diagnosed with the disease," says Toni Burnham, president of the D.C. Beekeepers Alliance in Washington.

The researchers, who unveiled their findings on October 18, 2018, say the vaccine teaches honeybees to identify harmful diseases, similar to how antibodies function in humans and animals. They explain, "When the queen bee eats something with pathogens in it, the pathogen signature molecules are bound by vitellogenin. Vitellogenin then carries these signature molecules into the queen's eggs, where they work as inducers for future immune responses." The researchers believe that once the first PrimeBEE vaccine is perfected, defense against other pathogens will be easy to create.

"We need to help honey bees, absolutely. Even improving their life a little would have a big effect on the global scale. Of course, the honey bees have many other problems as well: pesticides, habitat loss and so on, but diseases come hand in hand with these life-quality problems," Freitak says. "If we can help honey bees to be healthier and if we can save even a small part of the bee population with this invention, I think we have done our good deed and saved the world a little bit."

Resources: Smithsonianmag.com, NPR.org, mnn.com.

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Finnish Scientists Develop Edible Insect Vaccine To Save Bees

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In addition to providing us with delicious honey, the hardworking honey bees also pollinate about a third of food crops and almost 90 percent of wild grasses, like alfalfa, used to feed livestock.

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As the Moon moves completely into the umbra, it turns a "blood," or reddish-orange, color (Credit: NASA)

Overnight from Sunday, Jan. 20 into Monday, Jan. 21, stargazers will be treated to what promises to be a spectacular total lunar eclipse. Also being referred to as the "super blood moon" - "super" because the Moon will be at perigee and appear larger, and "blood" because of its reddish-orange color during totality - the eclipse will be seen in its entirety in North and South America, Europe, and western Africa.

January 2019 eclipse visibility (Credit: NASA/Wikipedia Commons/Public Domain)

Lunar eclipses are a result of the Earth coming in between the Sun and the Moon. As you may be aware, the Moon shines because its surface reflects light from the Sun. When our planet gets in between the two, its shadow falls on the Moon, resulting in what we refer to as a lunar eclipse. However, instead of going dark, our satellite transforms into what is commonly called a "blood moon." Though regarded as a bad omen by some, the spooky color is caused by the Sun's rays bending around the edge of our planet and landing on the lunar surface. However, since the Earth's atmosphere scatters shorter wavelength light (colors like green or blue), only the longer wavelengths, or the redder-end of the spectrum, reach the surface of the moon, making it appear "blood" red.

"The exact color that the moon appears depends on the amount of dust and clouds in the atmosphere," NASA scientists told Space.com. "If there are extra particles in the atmosphere, from say a recent volcanic eruption, the moon will appear a darker shade of red."

The Moon does not completely darken as it passes through the umbra because Earth's atmosphere refracts sunlight into the shadow cone (Credit: Eggishorn/Wikipedia/CC-SA-4.0)

Lunar eclipses do not occur every month because the plane of the moon's orbit is slightly tilted in relation to that of Earth's. Hence, the satellite is not always in perfect alignment with the Earth and Sun, which in addition to a full moon, is necessary for a total eclipse to occur. Unlike a solar eclipse, which can only be seen from specific areas, a lunar eclipse is visible from every place that is on Earth's night side. They also require no special viewing glasses and typically last about an hour, giving viewers ample time to enjoy the event.

This year's show will begin at around 10:35 p.m. (EST) when the Earth's shadow begins to traverse across the front of the Moon and starts blocking the Sun's light. By 11:40 p.m. (EST), the Moon will be "swallowed up by the Earth's surface for about an hour. As our planet moves on, it will gradually start to receive the Sun's rays and return to its full glory by 1:45 a.m. (EST).

The supermoon lunar eclipse as it moved over NASA's Glenn Research Center on September 27, 2015 (Credit: NASA/Rami Daud)

The January eclipse, the only one in 2019, is particularly favorable for US residents given that it will be visible across the contagious 48 states. More importantly, totality will begin before midnight, allowing even early sleepers to enjoy the event. Best of all, it coincides with the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday weekend, which means kids of all ages will be able to stay up and watch the amazing event. If that is not enough incentive to view the eclipse how about this? The Jan. 20-21, 2019 total lunar eclipse will be the last one until May 26, 2021, and the last one visible from the United States until May 15-16 2022!

Resources: Space.com, NASA.gov

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Don't Miss The Spectacular "Super Blood Moon" Eclipse On January 20

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Overnight from Sunday, Jan. 20 into Monday, Jan. 21, stargazers will be treated to what promises to be a spectacular total lunar eclipse. Also being referred to as the "super blood moon" - "super" because the Moon will be at perigee and appear larger, and "blood" because of its reddish-orange color during totality - the eclipse will be seen in its entirety in North and South America, Europe, and western Africa.