The Chicago area experienced a partial lunar eclipse on Tuesday, and although it coincided with a supermoon, the next eclipse in the area could be even more spectacular.

In fact, the next lunar eclipse that will be visible in the sky over the Chicago area will be a total lunar eclipse, and it’s coming sooner than you might think.

Here’s what you should know:

What is a total lunar eclipse?

During a total lunar eclipse, the moon moves into Earth’s shadow, its umbra. Some sunlight that penetrates the atmosphere still reaches the moon’s surface, but only colors with longer wavelengths remain visible, according to NASA.

As a result, the Moon appears reddish during a lunar eclipse, with the amount of dust in the Earth’s atmosphere determining how red the Moon’s surface appears.

When will the solar eclipse occur?

On the night of March 14, 2025, there will be a total lunar eclipse that will be visible across much of the world, including the United States.

If you want to see it, you’ll either have to stay up late or get up super early. The partial solar eclipse will begin at about 12:09 a.m. on March 14, according to TimeandDate, and will become a total lunar eclipse around 1:26 a.m., peaking just before 2 a.m.

What else will be unique about this solar eclipse?

While the partial lunar eclipse that occurred in the Chicago area on Tuesday occurred during a “supermoon,” meaning the moon was at one of its closest points to Earth, the total lunar eclipse in March 2025 will actually occur during a “micromoon,” meaning the moon will be at one of its farthest points in its orbit from Earth.

This means that the moon will appear slightly smaller than normal in the sky, but will still take on the characteristic red hue that accompanies a lunar eclipse.

When is the next solar eclipse?

Just two weeks later, on March 29, there will also be a partial solar eclipse, but it will only be visible in the far northeastern United States. The main effects will be seen over the Atlantic and in parts of eastern Canada, the United Kingdom and Ireland.

There will be another total lunar eclipse in the fall of 2025, but it will only be visible over parts of Asia, Africa and Australia.