It's gonna be lit.
Not only is the Moon gonna be a blue moon (what they call the second of two full moons in the same month) at the end of January, but it's also going to be a supermoon (when it's the closest to Earth). And (oh we're not done yet), the Moon will be passing through the Earth's shadow for a total lunar eclipse.
It's gonna be called a "Super Blue Blood Moon."
The "blood" part comes from the reddish tint when the Moon is in the Earth's shadow.
Sadly, Pittsburghers won't be able to catch it. The best viewing will happen in western North America, Alaska and Hawaii before sunrise on Jan. 31.
(NASA)
"For the (continental) U.S., the viewing will be best in the West," said Gordon Johnston, program executive and lunar blogger at NASA Headquarters in Washington. "Set your alarm early and go out and take a look."
For us, the eclipse viewing will be more of a challenged. The eclipse begins at 5:51 a.m., as the Moon is about to set in the western sky. But that's when the sky begins getting lighter around here.
Johnson says, "Your best opportunity if you live in the East is to head outside about 6:45 a.m. and get to a high place to watch the start of the eclipse — make sure you have a clear line of sight to the horizon in the west-northwest, opposite from where the Sun will rise."
Other site spots on will be for those in the Middle East, Asia, eastern Russia, Australia and New Zealand. They'll be able to see "super blue blood moon" during moonrise in the morning on the 31st.
Here's a primer from NASA on supermoons.