People across the European part of Russia observed a nearly total partial lunar eclipse during the night of August 28, 2026. The astronomical event marked the final lunar eclipse of 2026.
At peak alignment, Earth shadowed 93 percent of the diameter of the lunar disc. Specialists from the Solar Astronomy Laboratory at the Space Research Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences reported that the best vantage point within Russia was located in Kaliningrad Oblast.
The specialists noted, however, that even in Kaliningrad, the moon sank below the horizon before the eclipse reached its maximum phase. Penumbral and minor umbral phases were visible exclusively in the European regions of Russia, leaving observers in Siberia and the Far East unable to view the event. Kaliningrad Oblast is a Russian exclave situated on the Baltic coast between Poland and Lithuania.
The Space Research Institute, known as IKI RAN and headquartered in Moscow, serves as the main research facility for the Russian Academy of Sciences dedicated to space exploration and solar astronomy.
Global visibility of the Sturgeon Moon
The August full moon is traditionally referred to as the Sturgeon Moon. Beyond European Russia, the partial eclipse was observable across vast areas of the world, including Europe, western Asia, Africa, North America, and South America.
Skygazers across the Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian Oceans could also track the eclipse, which was visible as far south as Antarctica. Lunar eclipses occur when Earth moves directly between the sun and the moon, blocking direct sunlight and projecting a shadow onto the moon. In a partial eclipse, only a portion of the moon enters Earth's dark central shadow, known as the umbra.
The designation Sturgeon Moon stems from traditional naming conventions, named after the large sturgeon fish that were historically caught in abundance in the North American Great Lakes during late August.
Atmospheric phenomena in Russia
The eclipse coincided with reports of another rare atmospheric display in northwestern Russia. Observers near Saint Petersburg previously reported seeing a white rainbow close to the settlement of Imeni Sverdlova.
Unlike standard rainbows created by falling raindrops, a colorless or white rainbow forms when sunlight or moonlight passes through a thin fog, mist, or cloud containing tiny water droplets. Saint Petersburg, Russia's second largest city, is situated along the Neva River at the Baltic Sea, where coastal fog regularly creates conditions for unusual optical events.
