If you've been looking forward to another astronomical event, you're in luck. Tomorrow night, on August 27th, a lunar eclipse is expected to be visible across the majority of the Americas, and all you'll have to do is step out into your backyard to see it.

For a lunar eclipse to happen, the Earth needs to pass in between the Sun and the Moon. Depending on the angle at which this passage occurs, the shadow that the Earth casts on the Moon, and in turn the visual that is seen by the naked eye, can be very different. This is because Earth casts a hard shadow directly behind it and a softer shadow with a slightly larger diameter.

So, depending on the angle of the passage, a couple of types of eclipses can occur.

A total lunar eclipse would be when the Earth's hard shadow covers the entire surface of the Moon. This is also more commonly known as a blood moon.

On the other end of the spectrum, there is what is known as a penumbral eclipse. This happens when only the soft shadow of Earth passes over the Moon. The hard shadow never touches the surface, making the event much harder to see.

Finally, there is a partial lunar eclipse. Mid-Missouri and much of the Americas will be experiencing a very deep version of this, and it is when Earth's hard shadow covers a fraction of the Moon. This leads to the Moon appearing red, but not to the full extent that a total lunar eclipse would.

If you want to observe this for yourself, the partial eclipse will begin at 9:33 PM on Thursday, August 27th. The moon will move right to left through the penumbra first, then the umbra, but it won't be too noticeable at the beginning of the event.

This is due to the fact that the Moon will first be entering Earth's soft shadow, but by 10:15 PM, the Moon will be about 50% covered by Earth's hard shadow.

The maximum eclipse will occur at 11:13 PM, with 96% coverage of the Moon by Earth's shadow to be expected. After the peak, the Moon will gradually lose coverage from the Earth, and the eclipse will officially come to an end by 12:52 AM on Friday, August 28th.

If you want to get out to see this event for yourself, the conditions are looking more than ideal.

Temperature-wise, the timeframe during which this event is taking place will include the low 70s and upper 60s closer to midnight, with lower humidity in place. Of course, the most important factor is sky cover, and luckily, little to no clouds will be present.

So, all you need to do to get the best view of this deep partial lunar eclipse is to get away from any sort of light pollution, find an area where the skyline isn't too cluttered, and look up at the moon to watch the event unfold.