Supermoon total lunar eclipse offers rare sky event

Stargazers are about to get a double celestial treat when a total lunar eclipse coincides with asupermoon.

Those inCanada, the United States, Europe, Africa and western Asia can view the rare coupling, weather permitting, Sunday night or early Monday.

CBC is carryingNASA's live video stream of the event from the Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles.

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NASA's solar physicist MitziAdams will also discuss the eclipse and answer questions from Twitter with the hashtag #askNASA.

It's the first time the events have made a twin appearance since 1982, and they won't meet again until 2033.

When a full moon makes its closest approach to Earth, it appears bigger and brighter than usual and is known as a supermoon.

That will coincide with a full lunar eclipse where the moon, Earth and sun will be lined up, with Earth's shadow totally obscuring the moon.

NASA released some helpful animations to explain the event.

When you cansee Sunday night's eclipse across Canada

The following times are averagesfor the listed regions and will vary somewhat depending on exact location.

Halifax/East Coast: At9:11 p.m.ATon Sunday, the penumbral eclipse begins, when the Earth's partial shadow starts to touch the moon's face. At10:07, the partial eclipse starts and the moon will begin to becomered. Total eclipse starts at11:11 p.m., peaks at11:47 p.m.and ends at12:23 a.m.The whole show will be over by2:22 a.m.Look for the moon between about23 and 45degrees up from the horizon.

Montreal/Toronto/Ottawa: The penumbral eclipse begins at8:11 p.m.ET. At9:07,the partial eclipse starts. Total eclipse starts at10:11, peaks at10:47and ends at11:23 p.m.The whole show will be over by1:22 a.m.The spectacle will begin fairly low on the horizon, at about 12 to 15 degrees depending on location, while during its peak the eclipse will be between 36 and 38 degreesdegrees above the horizon.

Prairies: Viewers in the Prairieswill miss some of the preshow because the moon will still be below the horizon for the early penumbral stage. The partial eclipse, when the moon will start turning red, begins at8:07 p.m.CT in Winnipeg and7:07 p.m.CST in Regina and Saskatoon, where it will be particularly close to the eastern horizon. Total eclipse starts at9:11in Winnipeg and8:11in Regina and Saskatoon, peaks at9:47and8:47,respectively, and ends at10:23CTand9:23CST. Try to watch from an area without tall buildings or trees to the east and southeast, because the eclipsewon't behigh in the sky.

Calgary/Edmonton: The sun won't set, and the moon won't rise, until after the eclipse has begun, so viewers in Alberta will miss the early part of the show. Moonrise is around7:20p.m. MT, when the moon will already be partially eclipsed. Total eclipse starts at8:11, peaks at8:47and ends at9:23 p.m.The whole thing will be over by11:22 p.m.Be sure to find a viewing spot with a clear sightline, because at its peak, theeclipse will appear only about 12 degrees above the southeastern horizon.

Vancouver: Don't expect to see any of the preliminaries on the West Coast.The celestial showwill only barely be visible just above the eastern horizon as thetotal eclipse is already beginning, around7:11 p.m.PT.It will peak at7:47when it will be justseven degrees above the horizonand end at8:23, with the closing penumbral stages over by10:22 p.m.