Here’s Exactly When You Can See The Lunar Eclipse Tomorrow

Forget about Saturday morning cartoons — tomorrow, it’s all about the Saturday morning eclipse. Lasting a mere five minutes, this lunar eclipse will be the shortest of the century, so if you've been meaning to finally see one, at least this eclipse won't occupy too much of your time. The difference between a lunar eclipse and a solar eclipse is simple. As seen in the handy emoji graphic below, a lunar eclipse occurs when the Earth is between the sun and the moon, blocking the sun’s light from reaching the moon. A solar eclipse happens when the moon comes between the sun and Earth, blocking the sun partially.

Tomorrow's lunar eclipse will happen at 6:16 a.m. EDT. You should probably check the weather before setting your alarm, though. Cloudy skies could hide the whole thing. Of course, visibility will be different depending on your location — regardless of the weather — but the eclipse will be visible for most of the U.S. As for other parts of the world, NASA explains, “Eastern North America and western South America can see beginning stages of the partial umbral eclipse low in the west before sunrise. In Asia, India, western China, and Russia, the ending stages of the partial umbral eclipse can be viewed low in the east after sunset.” You can see a full map of eclipse visibility here. If you've ever wondered about the moon's magical powers — like its affect on menstrual cycles or its control of your dreams — we broke down some of the most interesting beliefs about the moon here.