Super blue blood moon: What to know about the rare celestial event
— -- ABC News will begin live streaming coverage of the Super Blue Blood Moon on Wednesday morning starting at 5:30 a.m. ET. Live reports from Southeast Asia, the Hawaiian islands and the western U.S., as well as footage from NASA and the Virtual Telescope Project will give viewers a front-row seat to the action.
Tune in on ABCNews.com and on the ABC News app!
This week, skywatchers will be able to glimpse a rare phenomenon: a super blue blood moon.
The event may sound like a complicated tongue twister, but it's really just the confluence of three celestial occurrences.
![](https://s.abcnews.com/images/International/supermoon-georgia-epa-thg-171204.jpg?w=992)
After the full moon on New Year’s Day, another is scheduled to light up the night sky on Wednesday, Jan. 31. This is considered a blue moon because it is the second full moon of a month. A super moon is when the full moon appears larger and brighter to the naked eye.
![](https://s.abcnews.com/images/International/supermoon-london-gty-thg-171204.jpg?w=992)
These two events will also coincide with a total lunar eclipse, or blood moon, on Wednesday, Jan. 31.
![](https://s.abcnews.com/images/International/supermoon-new-york-ap-thg-171204_4x5_992.jpg?w=992)
Most days the moon is nearly 238,855 miles from Earth, but during the super moon it will be approximately 223,068 miles away, according to NASA. During a super moon, the moon can appear up to 14 percent larger and 30 percent brighter than usual.
A total lunar eclipse occurs when a full moon passes into Earth's shadow, making the moon appear red -- hence the nickname blood moon.
Altogether, the three events -- a blue moon, a super moon and a blood moon -- will make for a spectacular show the last night of January.
![](https://s.abcnews.com/images/International/supermoon-myanmar-ap-thg-171204.jpg?w=992)