How to Watch Historic ‘Beaver Moon Eclipse’ in the Hudson Valley

The longest eclipse in nearly 600 years will be visible throughout the Hudson Valley early Friday morning.

A spectacular lunar eclipse will take place that hasn't happened for 580 years. The Friday event will take place for 3 hours and 28 minutes, making it the longest eclipse since the year 1441.

What's even more exciting about the Beaver Moon Lunar Eclipse is that it's perfectly safe to see with the naked eye.  A lunar eclipse happens when the earth gets between the sun and the moon. The earth's shadow is cast on the moon, creating the eclipse. This won't be a total eclipse but will last for such a long time that many people will have a good chance of seeing it

You may be wondering why this particular event is called a Beaver Moon" eclipse. According to Almanac.com, any full moon that takes place during his time of year is a Beaver Moon.

This is the time of year when beavers begin to take shelter in their lodges, having laid up sufficient stores of food for the long winter ahead. During the time of the fur trade in North America, it was also the season to trap beavers for their thick, winter-ready pelts.

Other names for full moons in November are the Digging Moon, Deer Rutting Moon, Whitefish Moon, Frost Moon or Freezing Moon. Whatever you call it, the eclipse will start early on Friday morning.

If you're in the Hudson Valley, the eclipse will begin at 1am and really start to show by 2:18am. The shadow on the moon will increase in size until the maximum eclipse is reached at 4:02am. The shadow will slowly shrink in size over the next couple of hours before it completely disappears before sunrise.

Unfortunately, it looks like the Hudson Valley may see some rain during this time, so if you have trouble viewing the partial eclipse from where you live, you can still see it online. Space.com has several links to broadcasts available of this once-in-a-lifetime event.