Asia and the Middle East have enjoyed good views of a total lunar eclipse but for many skywatchers around the world the spectacle was best observed online, with live coverage available from Google.

Google has a live doodle of the 100-minute-long eclipse. The real-time footage, which comes from cameras in South Africa, Dubai and the Canary Islands, will update every two minutes.

Google has teamed up with astronomy site Slooh to live-stream the eclipse, which can also be watched on YouTube or via an Android app for Google phones.

Slooh's coverage is also sponsored by Paramount Pictures, which is using the eclipse to promote the next Transformers film, Dark of the Moon.

Tweeter Claire Lim was unimpressed by the commercialisation of the astronomical event: "The #lunareclipse live sponsored by Transformers... Can't even watch the skies without being sold something!"

Other sites are showing the eclipse, such as the Sky Watchers' Association of North Bengal, although their coverage was interrupted by cloud.

Fortunately, the event still managed to inspire more than marketing opportunities. Observers in India, Singapore and Egypt have already posted observations and photographs of the moon on blogs and Twitter as it was gradually shrouded in the Earth's shadow and turned red.

Jordanian photograher Ehab Othman posted a set capturing the different phases of the eclipse, including the reddening of the moon.

Tweeter Prasanto K Roy, from New Dehli, posted an image of "the full sequence, from midnight to 0045 from Gurgaon".

A total lunar eclipse happens when the moon, Earth and sun line up, and our home planet casts a vast shadow that engulfs the moon.

When the moon moves into the darkest part of the Earth's shadow, the umbra, it will turn a slate grey or brick red colour.

The moon changes colour because blue light – and other short wavelengths – scatter more in the Earth's atmosphere, with more red light getting through.

Clear skies permitting, the event should be visible in Australasia, southern Japan, a large area of Asia, India, Africa, Europe and the eastern part of South America.

In the final stage of the eclipse, the moon moves into the lighter part of Earth's shadow, the penumbra, and will likely take on a yellowish hue.