Much of the world will see a rare lunar phenomenon combining a blue moon, a supermoon and a total lunar eclipse which has not happened since 1982 and will not happen until 2037.

In this Aug. 28, 2007, file photo, the moon takes on different orange tones during a lunar eclipse seen from Mexico City.
In this Aug. 28, 2007, file photo, the moon takes on different orange tones during a lunar eclipse seen from Mexico City. (AP)

The moon is providing a rare triple treat this week.

On Wednesday, much of the world will get to see not only a blue moon and a supermoon, but also a total lunar eclipse, all rolled into one. There hasn't been a triple lineup like this since 1982 and the next won't occur until 2037.

The eclipse will be best visible in the western half of the US and Canada before the moon sets early on Wednesday morning, and across the Pacific into Asia as the moon rises on Wednesday night into Thursday.

The US East Coast will be out of luck; the moon will be setting just as the eclipse gets started. Europe and most of Africa and South America also will pretty much miss the show.

An almost full moon is seen through the clouds over Frankfurt, Germany, Tuesday, Jan. 30, 2018.
An almost full moon is seen through the clouds over Frankfurt, Germany, Tuesday, Jan. 30, 2018. (AP)

"I'm calling it the Super Bowl of moons," lunar scientist Noah Petro said on Monday from NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.

Others prefer "super blue blood moon."

A blue moon is the second full moon in a month. A supermoon is a particularly close full or new moon, appearing somewhat brighter and bigger. A total lunar eclipse – or blood moon for its reddish tinge – has the moon completely bathed in Earth's shadow. [Balboa Park California Tower, San Diego, California, US.]
A blue moon is the second full moon in a month. A supermoon is a particularly close full or new moon, appearing somewhat brighter and bigger. A total lunar eclipse – or blood moon for its reddish tinge – has the moon completely bathed in Earth's shadow. [Balboa Park California Tower, San Diego, California, US.] (Reuters)

The moon was actually closest to Earth on Tuesday – just over 359,000 kilometers (223,000 miles). That's about 2,400 kilometers (1,500 miles) farther than the supermoon on January 1. Midway through Wednesday's eclipse, the moon will be even farther away  360,200 kilometers (223,820 miles) – but still within unofficial supermoon guidelines.

As the sun lines up perfectly with the Earth and then moon for the eclipse, scientists will make observations from a telescope in Hawaii, while also collecting data from NASA's moon-circling Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, launched in 2009. The
As the sun lines up perfectly with the Earth and then moon for the eclipse, scientists will make observations from a telescope in Hawaii, while also collecting data from NASA's moon-circling Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, launched in 2009. The "super moon" is seen rising in the sky of Marseille, France, January 1, 2018. (AFP)

Just like the total solar eclipse in the US last August cooled the Earth's surface, a lunar eclipse cools the moon's surface. It's this abrupt cooling – from the heat of direct sunlight to essentially a deep freeze – that researchers will be studying.

Totality will last more than an hour.

NASA plans to provide a live stream of the moon from telescopes in California and Arizona, beginning at 5:30am. 

Source: AP