See It Again: Why The Super Wolf Blood Moon Was So Rare

BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- It took braving a very cold night to see the super blood wolf moon.

If you missed it, WJZ offers a look from the warmth of your own home.

Sunday night's total lunar eclipse was considered a super moon because of distance:

"The super part is somewhat rare. The moon needs to be within a day or so of it's closest position," said astronomer David Reitzel.

The moon's elliptical orbit puts it farthest away at apogee, and closest to the earth at perigee.

That's about 25,000 miles closer.

Enough to make the moon 14-percent bigger and 30-percent brighter than normal full moons.

The blood coloring is sunlight passing through the earth's atmosphere reflecting off the moon's surface.

And the wolf in super blood wolf moon, it relates to native american lore of the wolves howling at full moons in January.

"I think it's very beautiful. It's something kind of mesmerizing to see," said one viewer.

This total eclipse was visible across the U.S., something that doesn't always happen.

"And it eclipses only a couple of times a year, and you have to be on the right side of the earth to see it. So tonight is a little bit of a rare event," Reitzel said.

It won't repeat until 2021.

Follow @WJZ on Twitter and like WJZ-TV | CBS Baltimore on Facebook