THE ECLIPSE IS LIKELY TO BE ECLIPSED OVER CENTRAL AND WESTERN STATES;Editor's Note: Avid eclipse watchers are known to fly or drive at the last minute to avoid the disappointment of bad weather. If you plan to watch Saturday night's eclipse, check your local weather forecast for the latest, as weather predictions can change rapidly. Meanwhile, Joe Rao, SPACE.com's Night Sky columnist and an on-air meteorologist for News 12 Westchester, in New York, offers this advance outlook for Saturday night's weather across the United States.
For those across the United States who hope to get a good view of Saturday nights total lunar eclipse, the best views look to be the northern and eastern sections of the country, while locations across much of the central and western states are likely to plagued by clouds.
There will be exceptions to the general expectations.
A huge Canadian high-pressure system is expected to be centered over the western and central Great Lakes at eclipse time. It is expected to bring mostly clear skies to a large part of the Northern Great Plains and Great Lakes region, as well as much of New England and New York State. Clear weather may also extend down along the Middle Atlantic Coastal region, perhaps as far south as North Carolina.
Another zone of generally clear skies is expected over the southern Rockies and Desert Southwest -- outstanding exceptions in an otherwise unsettled weather region.
On the opposite side of the weather coin, a potent storm system moving inland from the Pacific Ocean near the Oregon/California border is expected to bring a widespread swath of cloud cover to much of the western United States. In fact, most of the northern and central Rockies, Pacific Northwest and California have little or no hope of seeing Saturday evenings Moon show.
Clouds are expected to prevail with even some rain falling over northern California, much of Oregon and parts of Nevada.
Over the nations midsection, a broad sweep of moist east-southeast winds will likely translate into considerable cloudiness over much of the central Great Plains, Texas and Oklahoma, as well as much of the Deep South. Some showery/thundery weather may occur over parts of northern Texas and Oklahoma as well as parts of the Tennessee and lower Ohio River Valley.
Clouds and widely scattered showers and thunderstorms may also occur over parts of central and south Florida.
It should be stressed that this is a generalized forecast and that local weather conditions can suddenly change very quickly. To stay abreast of the latest forecasts, you can check with your local National Weather Center forecast office.
For an overview weather map of forecast conditions expected across the country, visit the Hydrometeorological Prediction Center.
And for the latest satellite imagery, visit the National Center for Atmospheric Research.
| 
| Map the Moon Starry Night software
brings the universe to your desktop. Map the Moon, planets and stars from your location, or just sit back and let the cosmos come to you. LEARN MORE! | |
Joe Rao -- a veteran of eleven total lunar eclipses -- serves as an instructor and guest lecturer at New York's Hayden Planetarium. He writes about astronomy for The New York Times and other publications, and he is also an on-camera meteorologist for News 12 Westchester, New York.
advertisement
