March 2026 lunar eclipse
A total lunar eclipse will occur at the Moon’s descending node of orbit on Tuesday, March 3, 2026, with an umbral magnitude of 1.1526. A lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon moves into the Earth's shadow, causing the Moon to be darkened. A total lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon's near side entirely passes into the Earth's umbral shadow. Unlike a solar eclipse, which can only be viewed from a relatively small area of the world, a lunar eclipse may be viewed from anywhere on the night side of Earth. A total lunar eclipse can last up to nearly two hours, while a total solar eclipse lasts only a few minutes at any given place, because the Moon's shadow is smaller. The Moon's apparent diameter will be near the average diameter because it will occur 6.7 days after perigee and 6.9 days before apogee.
This lunar eclipse will be the third of an almost tetrad, with the others being on March 14, 2025 ; September 8, 2025 ; and August 28, 2026.
During the eclipse, the Moon will occult NGC 3423 over North America. Deep-sky objects are rarely occulted during a total eclipse from any given spot on Earth.
This eclipse will fall on the Lantern Festival, the first since February 11, 2017.
Visibility
The eclipse will be completely visible over northeast Asia, northwestern North America, and the central Pacific Ocean, seen rising over much of Asia and Australia and setting over North and South America.Eclipse details
Shown below is a table displaying details about this particular lunar eclipse. It describes various parameters pertaining to this eclipse.| Parameter | Value |
| Penumbral Magnitude | 2.18580 |
| Umbral Magnitude | 1.15263 |
| Gamma | −0.37651 |
| Sun Right Ascension | 22h56m56.0s |
| Sun Declination | -06°43'06.4" |
| Sun Semi-Diameter | 16'08.0" |
| Sun Equatorial Horizontal Parallax | 08.9" |
| Moon Right Ascension | 10h56m15.0s |
| Moon Declination | +06°24'05.3" |
| Moon Semi-Diameter | 15'37.0" |
| Moon Equatorial Horizontal Parallax | 0°57'18.7" |
| ΔT | 72.1 s |
Eclipse season
This eclipse is part of an eclipse season, a period, roughly every six months, when eclipses occur. Only two eclipse seasons occur each year, and each season lasts about 35 days and repeats just short of six months later; thus two full eclipse seasons always occur each year. Either two or three eclipses happen each eclipse season. In the sequence below, each eclipse is separated by a fortnight.| February 17 Ascending node | March 3 Descending node |
| Annular solar eclipse Solar Saros 121 | Total lunar eclipse Lunar Saros 133 |
Related eclipses
Eclipses in 2026
- An annular solar eclipse on February 17.A total lunar eclipse on March 3.
- A total solar eclipse on August 12.
- A partial lunar eclipse on August 28.
Metonic
- Preceded by: Lunar eclipse of May 16, 2022
- Followed by: Lunar eclipse of December 20, 2029
Tzolkinex
- Preceded by: Lunar eclipse of January 21, 2019
- Followed by: Lunar eclipse of April 14, 2033
Half-Saros
- Preceded by: Solar eclipse of February 26, 2017
- Followed by: Solar eclipse of March 9, 2035
Tritos
- Preceded by: Lunar eclipse of April 4, 2015
- Followed by: Lunar eclipse of January 31, 2037
Lunar Saros 133
- Preceded by: Lunar eclipse of February 21, 2008
- Followed by: Lunar eclipse of March 13, 2044
Inex
- Preceded by: Lunar eclipse of March 24, 1997
- Followed by: Lunar eclipse of February 11, 2055
Triad
- Preceded by: Lunar eclipse of May 3, 1939
- Followed by: Lunar eclipse of January 2, 2113
Half-Saros cycle
A lunar eclipse will be preceded and followed by solar eclipses by 9 years and 5.5 days. This lunar eclipse is related to two annular solar eclipses of Solar Saros 140.| February 26, 2017 | March 9, 2035 |