WATCH LIVE | Longest lunar eclipse of the century graces SA's skies

The longest “blood moon” eclipse this century.

That is what South Africans will see with the naked eye on Friday night when they gaze up at the stars on Friday night.

According to the Astronomical Society of Southern Africa (Assa)‚ it will be the longest lunar eclipse this century – and will last from 8.24pm to just after midnight the following morning.

The moon will start changing shape when it enters the shadow of the Earth 8.24pm before it is fully eclipsed from 9.30pm to 11.13pm. 

The moon will be faintly lit by light that is refracted from the Earth’s atmosphere that will give it a pale reddish colour.