In the Americas alone more than one billion people in 35 countries could bear witness to the total lunar eclipse that played out overhead from late night Thursday to the early hours of Friday. Tens of millions more in New Zealand and parts of Africa, Europe, and Russia could take in the sky show too. The performance was the result of the orbit of the Earth carrying it between the sun and the moon in a perfect alignment that temporarily blocked the sunlight that usually reflects off of the lunar surface, giving it its glow. In its place fell a deep shadow.

But the moon did not vanish from the sky entirely. Bright white sunlight contains all of the colors of the visible spectrum—colors that break apart and spill out when the light passes through a prism or through the sky after a storm, producing a dazzling rainbow. During the eclipse, the sunlight the Earth was blocking similarly separated into its constituent colors, with blue wavelengths being scattered through the atmosphere, while longer red wavelengths passed right through and traveled to the moon. The result: The darkened moon glowed a distinct orange-red—a phenomenon popularly called a blood moon.

The cosmic dance did not last long; the Earth continued on its orbital path and the moon began to brighten again after just over an hour. That was enough time, however, for countless professional and amateur photographers to capture dramatic pictures of the blood moon—images that are circulating around the world today. The eclipse was a little gift from the heavens to us. Here are some of the best images of that passing loveliness.

A thin layer of clouds cover a total lunar eclipse as it enters its peak stage in Arlington, Texas. Julio Cortez—AP

The Blood Moon lunar eclipse is seen behind the CN Tower in Toronto. Frank Gunn—The Canadian Press/AP

The Blood Moon darkens to its signature shade in the sky during a total lunar eclipse over central Wisconsin. 

A Blood Moon is seen during a partial eclipse in the sky over Lake George near the Australian capital city of Canberra. Izhar Khan—AFP/Getty Images

A person is silhouetted against the rising full moon in the evening sky, in Los Angeles. 

A total lunar eclipse is visible in its peak stage Friday, March 14, 2025, in Overland Park, Kansas.

(AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

People watch the lunar eclipse on a screen at an overnight camp at the Humboldt Planetarium, in Caracas, Venezuela. Leonardo Fernandez Viloria—Reuters

The moon during the Total Lunar Eclipse in Colima, Mexico. 

Leonardo Montecillo—Agencia Press South/Getty Images

The Blood Moon darkens to its signature shade in the sky during a total lunar eclipse over central Wisconsin. Gabi Broekema—USA TODAY Network/Reuters