When Earth passes through the Moon's shadow, it is called a solar eclipse. When the Moon passes through Earth's shadow, we are treated to a lunar eclipse.
When we get to enjoy a total lunar eclipse, it is quite an event. In order for the Moon to pass through the Earth's shadow, it must be during the Full Moon phase. At the start of the eclipse, the Moon looks like a normal bright full Moon and then it seems to get just a little bit darker. The change is so small that you can just barely see it happening. As time goes by, you will see the Moon get darker and darker until it all of a sudden changes colors, usually to a dark purple or apricot color and finally gets completely dark and almost disappears. After a few minutes, the whole process reverses and the Moon gets lighter and lighter until it finally goes back to being a normal Full Moon.