What time did the lunar eclipse peak last tonight and can I still see the February 2017 New Year comet and Snow Moon?
STARGAZERS are enjoying a very special weekend in the celestial calendar - and you'll only need to look up to see why.
From 10.30pm last night, space lovers might have been able to catch a glimpse of a rare penumbral lunar eclipse.
And on the same weekend we're also being treated to February's Snow Moon and possibly catching a peak of the New Year comet.
But what is the extra-terrestrial lunar event and how can you spot it?
What is a penumbral lunar eclipse?
When the Sun, Earth and Moon all align almost one-behind-another, a prenumbral lunar eclipse occurs.
As the Earth blocks the Sun, sunlight fails to illuminate the Moon’s surface properly.
In this instance, stargazers will notice a slight shadow cast over the surface of the full Moon, which is known as the penumbra.
What time did the lunar eclipse start?
As the astronomical occurrence can only be seen when the Moon is full and when all of the celestial bodies are aligned, it's a rare sight.
Last night's spectacle was the first of two lunar eclipses in 2017.
From 10:30pm on February 10, Brits may have been able to notice subtle shading over the Moon.
The eclipse was be at its most visible at around 12.43am on February 11, and the event ended at approximately 2.52am.
For most of us sadly it was too cloudy to see much.
How could you watch the penumbral lunar eclipse?
Brits would have been able to spot the rare eclipse with the naked eye on February 10, if the night had been clear.
Provided that clouds didn’t obstruct the view, you may have noticed a subtle difference just with the naked eye.
It’s not the first extra-terrestrial event to get space geeks excited in recent months.
Last September, stunning pictures showed a brilliant harvest moon lunar eclipse – the last of its kind in the UK for eight years.
In January, stargazers also captured incredible images of Venus and Mars appearing alongside a crescent moon.
Where could the penumbral lunar eclipse be seen?
The natural phenomenon will visible in Europe and most of Asia, Africa and North America.
If the sky had been clear, those in the UK could have watched from their window - although as it was not a total eclipse, you would really have had to squint.
Stargazers should have been able to see subtle shading over one part of the moon's surface.
What about the Snow Moon and the New Year comet?
Three major celestial events on one night doesn't happen very often.
Comet 45P is known as the New Year comet because it started its journey towards Earth at the end of 2016.
Also known as the blue comet, on February 10 and 11 it is close enough to Earth that it should be visible to the naked eye.
February's Snow Moon rose at 4:44pm last night and set at 07:30am on Saturday morning.
It will rise again at 5:56pm on February 11.
READ MORE
NASA to explore asteroid 16 Psyche which is so valuable it could CRASH the world’s economy
Weird lifeforms lived on Earth BILLIONS of years before our earliest ancestors evolved
NASA reveals pics of Jupiter’s Great Spot amid claims an alien ‘MOTHERSHIP’ is in massive storm
Earth’s atmosphere can be turned into massive surveillance system using LASERS
Conspiracy theorists claim to have spotted ‘ancient martian soldier’ left frozen on Mars