In the early morning hours of November 8, North America will witness the last total lunar eclipse of the year. This amazing sky show will play with the Eastern, Atlantic and Newfoundland time zones seeing most of the event until moonset. The rest of North America will enjoy the belated but impressive show. This is a very safe event, as the Beaver full moon (full moon for November) will pass through Earth’s shadow for a maximum of three hours and forty minutes. Eclipses do not occur every month, due to the slight tilt of the moon’s orbit around the Earth. Some months the full moon or new moon is placed above or below the Earth’s shadow cast in space. There are a few times each year when the Sun, Earth and Moon line up to give us a solar or lunar eclipse. Each can be partially or fully covered. Throughout antiquity, the “Blood Moon” was an omen of the impending destruction of war or even demons. Superstition ruled the skies in the early days. The reddish or brownish-orange hue of the lunar surface seen during totality is caused by the sun’s rays refracting through Earth’s atmosphere, just as we see spectacular red sunsets at night. The next lunar eclipse will be only a slight 12 percent partial on October 28, 2023, visible from the Atlantic provinces. The next total eclipse visible to all of North America will be on March 14, 2025. In the Pacific time zone, the partial umbilical eclipse begins at 1:09 am. The moon will rise as the eclipse begins. The total lunar eclipse begins at 2:16 AM. and the moon will turn dark orange or red. The greatest eclipse, or midpoint, will occur at 2:59 AM The total lunar eclipse ends at 3:41 a.m., when the moon begins to leave the shadow. The partial umbilical eclipse ends at 4:49 a.m., when the moon exits Earth’s shadow. Known as “The Backyard Astronomer”, Gary Boyle is an astronomy educator, guest speaker and monthly columnist for the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada, as well as a STEM educator. In recognition of his public prominence in astronomy, the International Astronomical Union named him Asteroid (22406) Garyboyle. Follow him on Twitter @astroeducator, on Facebook at Gary Boyle (The Backyard Astronomer) and on his website at www.wondersofastronomy.com. [email protected] Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter Astronomy