One of the Best Astronomy Events of the Year Happens in November

The night skies were active for meteor watchers in October, as two annual showers arrived last month. But both a full moon and cloud cover kept most of us from really seeing anything worthwhile. Now, the top astronomical event of all of 2021 comes in the third week of November. And while it will occur late in the night, you might want to set your alarms to have a look. It's not every night we get to witness something like this. Of course, this all comes during a time when skies are often cloudy over the Northeast, so that could become a factor again.

A partial Lunar eclipse will occur on the night of November 19, according to AccuWeather. And while it's only considered a partial eclipse, 97% of the Moon will pass through Earth's shadow, so it should be an impressive sight. AccuWeather says that the eclipse will start at 1:02 AM, and peak at 4:03 that morning. By 7:04 AM it will be all over. The last total lunar eclipse was January 21, 2019. The next total lunar eclipse will happen May 22 over the Eastern U.S. There was another partial lunar eclipse in May of 2021, though that was better visible for those on the west coast.

Predicting the weather forecast that far out is often tricky and fully reliable. Who's to really know how much cloud cover we'll have over the Hudson Valley that morning? The Weather Channel currently has preliminary forecasts up through Monday, November 15, but that is all. In the past, we've experienced quite a few nights of cloudy skies when these sort of astronomical events are taking place. So it can be frustrating for sky watchers here in the Hudson Valley.