Alaska is the place to be to witness the last eclipse of 2012. The penumbral lunar eclipse will be visible across the state, weather permitting, early Wednesday morning.
The moon will pass into the outer shadow cast by the Earth - known as the penumbra - around 3:15 a.m., and will fully surface again around 7:50 a.m. However, the eclipse will only be visible to the naked eye from around 5 – 6 a.m. on Wednesday. That's because the shading of the moon is only visible when around two-thirds of the Moon is in the penumbra.
The eclipse will appear as a "dusky shading" in the northern half of the Moon, according to NASA.
To witness Wednesday's eclipse in its entirety, one must be in Alaska, Hawaii, Australia or East Asia.
Folks in Western Canada and the U.S. will also have good views, as the eclipse will cover the moon while it sets. The Eastern U.S. will miss the event.
For Alaskans, this is the last chance to catch an eclipse for a while. None of the eclipses in 2013 will be visible in the Last Frontier, except for in Southeast Alaska, which can catch glimpse of a penumbral lunar eclipse on Oct. 18, 2013.
Photography buffs can also check out this handy guide to photographing lunar eclipses.
As of Tuesday morning, skies are looking clear on Tuesday night and Wednesday morning in Anchorage and Fairbanks, with cloud cover in Juneau. Check out the most current weather for your location at the National Weather Service.
But if you are not such an early riser, look to the skies on Tuesday night, as the aurora borealis should be dancing overhead; the Aurora Forecast at the University of Alaska Fairbanks shows an active aurora borealis at level "4". Or you could pull an all-nighter and see both celestial offerings in one go, weather permitting of course.
Contact Laurel Andrews at laurel(at)alaskadispatch.com