Astronomers and stargazers across the world were mesmerised by the longest blood moon eclipse on Friday night, coinciding with Mars' closest approach in 15 years in a thrilling celestial spectacle.

The period of total eclipse, when earth's shadow covered the moon and it is at its reddest, lasted one hour, 42 minutes and 57 seconds, making it the longest viewable lunar eclipse of the century. The celestial show is the result of the sun, Earth, and Moon lining up perfectly for a lunar eclipse just as the Moon is near its closest orbit point to Earth, making it appear "super" large.