NASA’s astronomical models confirm a partial lunar eclipse (“blood moon”) visible in Jerusalem on Friday, April 3, 33 AD, the date many scholars believe Jesus was crucified.
NASA's long-standing astronomical models, developed over decades to track the precise positions of the Earth, Moon, and Sun throughout history, confirm that a partial lunar eclipse occurred on Friday, April 3, 33 AD. This event turned the Moon a striking reddish hue, often called a "blood moon," and it was visible from Jerusalem shortly after sunset.
Scholars, including Oxford researchers Colin Humphreys and W. Graeme Waddington who drew on NASA's eclipse data in the 1980s, have long pointed to this date as one of the most likely for Jesus' crucifixion.
The timing aligns remarkably with New Testament descriptions: darkness covering the land from noon until 3 p.m. during the crucifixion (as recorded in Matthew 27:45, Mark 15:33, and Luke 23:44–45), followed by Peter's reference in Acts 2:20 to the prophecy of Joel 2:31, where "the sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood."
NASA notes that Christian texts mentioning the Moon turning to blood after the crucifixion could refer to such a lunar eclipse, during which Earth's atmosphere scatters sunlight and bathes the Moon in a deep red glow. Their sky-tracking calculations pinpoint this rare phenomenon occurring that very evening in Jerusalem, providing an intriguing scientific echo to these ancient scriptural events.
For many, this intersection of faith, history, and cutting-edge astronomy feels profoundly affirming, a reminder that the cosmos itself may bear witness to pivotal moments in human story.
Interestingly, this year's Good Friday fell on April 3!