Total Eclipse of the Moon

Photo courtesy of NASA

With the exception of part of the penumbral phase, we should be able to see almost all of the upcoming lunar eclipse. Note that the times are in UTC. To convert to MST, subtract seven hours.

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We don’t think of it because we seldom notice it, but both the moon and the earth cast long shadows into space. Occasionally, these shadows create an effect we call an eclipse. In the wee hours of March 3, 2026, a total lunar eclipse, where the moon enters the shadow of the Earth, will occur. This phenomenon occurred in March 2025 as well and occurs 0-3 times a year depending on the year.

A lunar eclipse can only happen during a full moon when the moon is on the opposite side of the Earth than the sun. That is the exact opposite of a total solar eclipse where the moon must be in the new moon phase between the Earth and the sun. One might think that eclipses should happen monthly then, but that is not the case because of one simple reason—the moon’s orbit is angled or tilted in relation to the Earth’s orbit around the sun. Only when the orbits bring the moon into a certain position do we get eclipses.

Blood moon is an apt descriptor of what a total lunar eclipse looks like. As the moon enters the outer or partial (penumbral) shadow of the Earth, it will begin to darken just a bit. But as the moon enters the umbral or complete shadow of the Earth, the moon will turn a dark red. This is from red light passing through the Earth’s atmosphere while blue light gets scattered, just like at sunset.

Over eons, our forefathers came up with many supernatural explanations for lunar eclipses. A moon changing from a bright white to a dark red for almost two hours must have been quite frightening to them. However, there really are no consequences to a “blood moon” on Earth.

On the moon though, there is a dramatic change. I remember the total solar eclipse of a decade ago. When the moon fully blocked the sun, the temperature dropped by probably 15-20 degrees. It was very noticeable. During a lunar eclipse, once the moon enters the Earth’s shadow, the temperature can drop from 100 degrees Celsius to -150 degrees Celsius, a 250 degree (about 480 degrees Fahrenheit) drop over the course of about 90 minutes.

There is another big difference between a lunar and a solar eclipse. A total solar eclipse casts a shadow on the Earth that is only about 300 miles across. This means that only a small fraction of the Earth will actually experience or even see the eclipse. For instance, the next total solar eclipse will be August 12, 2026 but you will have to be in Greenland, Iceland, Spain, Russia, or a small area of Portugal to see it. Lunar eclipses can be seen by a much broader segment of the world. This particular eclipse will be visible from Australia to the East Coast of the United States, at least in part. We will be able to see almost all the eclipse in our area.

As for the times posted, realize that most websites will post the times in UTC (Coordinated Universal Time) time. To convert to Mountain Standard Time, you must subtract seven hours. This chart below from TimeandDate.com is easier:

 Mar 3 at 1:44:25 am            UTC time                         

West Yellowstone Time

Partial Eclipse begins           Mar 3 at 09:50:07          

Mar 3 at 2:50:07 am   

Full Eclipse begins                Mar 3 at 11:04:34          

Mar 3 at 4:04:34 am   

Maximum Eclipse                 Mar 3 at 11:33:46          

Mar 3 at 4:33:46 am   

Full Eclipse ends                   Mar 3 at 12:02:49          

Mar 3 at 5:02:49 am   

Partial Eclipse ends              Mar 3 at 13:17:15          

Mar 3 at 6:17:15 am   

Penumbral Eclipse ends        Mar 3 at 14:23:06          

Mar 3 at 7:23:06 am

You won’t need any special equipment to view the lunar eclipse although a set of binoculars could increase your enjoyment. The hardest part will be getting out of bed and heading to a dark area for viewing. Here’s to hoping for a cloudless night.

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Help Idaho Wildlife

When we traveled across the state in October 2017, we visited most of the Idaho Department of Fish and Game wildlife management areas. Most of the vehicles we saw using the wildlife management areas did not have wildlife plates. Buying wildlife plates is a great way for non-hunters and hunters alike to support wildlife-based recreation like birding.

C'mon folks, let's help Idaho's wildlife by proudly buying and displaying a wildlife license plate on each of our vehicles! 

See below for information on Idaho plates. Most states have wildlife plates so if you live outside Idaho, check with your state's wildlife department or vehicle licensing division for availability of state wildlife plates where you live. 

And tell them that you heard about it from Nature-track.com!

Wildlife License Plates

Great news! as of 2024, there are three NEW designs for license plates. They still are bluebird, cutthroat trout and elk, but they are beautiful.

Idaho Wildlife license plates provide essential funding that benefits the great diversity of native plants and wildlife that are not hunted, fished or trapped—over 10,000 species or 98% of Idaho’s species diversity. Game species that share the same habitats (such as elk, deer, antelope, sage-grouse, salmon, trout) also benefit from these specialty plates.

No state tax dollars are provided for wildlife diversity, conservation education and recreation programs. Neither are any revenues from the sale of hunting or fishing licenses spent on nongame species. Instead, these species depend on direct donations, federal grants, fundraising initiatives—and the Idaho Wildlife license plates.

Both my vehicles have Bluebird Plates. I prefer the bluebird because the nongame program gets 70 percent of the money from bluebird plates, but only 60 percent of the money from elk and trout plates - 10 percent of the money from elk plates supports wildlife disease monitoring and testing programs (to benefit the livestock industry) and 10 percent from cutthroat plates supports non-motorized boat access.

Incidentally, in 2014, the Idaho Legislature denied the Department of Fish and Game the ability to add new plates or even to change the name of the elk and cutthroat plates (very specific) to wildlife and fish plates, a move that would have allowed for changing images occasionally and generating more revenue. It would seem that they believe that we Idahoans don't want a well funded wildlife program.

I think it is time we let the Legislature know that Idahoan support wildlife funding and that we would like to see these generic plates come to fruition.