China misses rare blood moon

"Blood moon" in December 2011. (File photo)

Most people in China will not be able to see the first of four consecutive total lunar eclipses between April 2014 and September 2015, in what scientists call a lunar eclipse "tetrad" series, CCTV reported on its official Weibo account.

The eclipse will occur on Tuesday afternoon Beijing Time, but it will only be visible in some northeastern and eastern coastal areas.

In a rare celestial event, a total lunar eclipse is expected to turn the moon a burnt reddish orange - a phenomenon astronomers call "blood moon," which occurs when the Earth, sun and moon are in perfect alignment, with the moon out of view in the Earth's shadow.

NASA has confirmed that the Tetrad has only happened three times in more than 500 years.