Tonight's Lunar Eclipse Comes With a Rare Twist

The lunar eclipse of August 28, 2007, was visible from Wrightwood, CA. (Image credit: James W. Young)

A rare event not seen in 372 years will occur early Tuesday

And if that's not enough, a minor meteor shower is expected

Weather permitting, viewers in North and South America, as

On the East Coast of North America, the lunar eclipse begins

How it works

During a total lunar eclipse, the Earth gets between

Monday's eclipse is particularly special because it also aligns

Winter solstice is also the shortest day of the year, with

Winter solstice has not coincided with a total lunar eclipse

What to look for

Watching an eclipse is simple. Just go out and look up. The

Depending on how much particulate matter is in our atmosphere, the moon may turn a deep

No telescopes

Furthermore, the eclipse is falling during the Ursids meteor shower. These underappreciated shooting

Lunar lore

Lunar eclipses have fueled much lore and hype and have generated

Christopher Columbus, knowing an eclipse would occur in 1504,

Nowadays science tells us that eclipses are a simple result

Many researchers have tried for decades to find statistical

The full moon is beautiful, and a total lunar eclipse is

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Space.com Staff
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Space.com is the premier source of space exploration, innovation and astronomy news, chronicling (and celebrating) humanity's ongoing expansion across the final frontier. Originally founded in 1999, Space.com is, and always has been, the passion of writers and editors who are space fans and also trained journalists. Our current news team consists of Editor-in-Chief Tariq Malik; Editor Hanneke Weitering, Senior Space Writer Mike Wall; Senior Writer Meghan Bartels; Senior Writer Chelsea Gohd, Senior Writer Tereza Pultarova and Staff Writer Alexander Cox, focusing on e-commerce. Senior Producer Steve Spaleta oversees our space videos, with Diana Whitcroft as our Social Media Editor.