This Tuesday morning, there will be a full moon and total lunar eclipse.  If you are up early enough and have a nice clear view of your western sky – you may just see the full moon turn red. This full moon is known as the Beaver Moon and it will also be the last lunar eclipse for the year.  The next time we see a total lunar eclipse will be on March 14, 2025.

The timing on this isn’t the best for us along the East Coast because by the time the eclipse starts, the moon will be on it’s way to setting in the west.  The part of the eclipse that we can easily see, or the umbra, starts at 4:09 am.  The moon will be entirely covered by 5:16 am and turn a reddish hue. At this point, the moon will only be about 13 degrees above the horizon, so if your view is blocked by buildings or trees, it may be harder to see. By the time the moon starts to emerge from the Earth’s shadow, it will have set.  Keep in mind too that the sun will be rising at 6:35 a.m.

One thing to note is that when the moon is low on the horizon, it also tends to look larger. If you happen to have a nice clear open view to the west, this may be a pretty sight in the morning twilight.

Either way, this is still a full moon and the weather should cooperate to see it rise high in the sky late Monday night.