Salina residents have a pretty good reason to stay up a little later tonight — the Moon is about to lose a fight with Earth’s shadow.

A deep partial lunar eclipse will be visible from Salina tonight, Thursday, August 27, into early Friday morning. NASA confirms the eclipse will be visible across much of the Americas, including Kansas.

And this one should be worth walking outside for.

When to Look Up

The eclipse begins subtly at 8:23 p.m., when the Moon starts entering the lighter outer portion of Earth's shadow.

Things get much more interesting at 9:33 p.m., when the partial eclipse begins and Earth's darker shadow starts visibly moving across the Moon.

The big moment comes at approximately 11:12 p.m., when the eclipse reaches its maximum as viewed from Salina. The partial phase ends around 12:51 a.m., with the entire eclipse wrapping up around 2:01 a.m. Friday.

So, if you're not interested in turning this into an all-night astronomy expedition, somewhere around 11 p.m. is your best bet.

Almost a Total Eclipse

Calling this one "partial" doesn't quite convey how dramatic it could look.

NASA calculations show that at maximum eclipse, 96.3% of the Moon's disk will be inside Earth's dark central shadow, known as the umbra. That leaves only a thin portion of the Moon outside the darkest shadow.

The shadowed portion may also take on a rusty or copper-colored appearance as sunlight filters through Earth's atmosphere.

No Special Equipment Required

Unlike a solar eclipse, you can stare directly at this one without special glasses.

Your eyes are perfectly fine, although binoculars or a telescope can provide an even better look at Earth's curved shadow moving across the lunar surface.

So tonight's Salina entertainment requires:

A lawn chair, a reasonably clear view of the sky, maybe something cold to drink — and the willingness to stay awake until 11:12 p.m.

The universe is handling the rest.