If the weather cooperates, we could be in for another spectacular cosmic event tonight.

Tonight's partial lunar eclipse means that nearly the entirety of the moon's surface (96 percent, to be specific) will enter the Earth's shadow. This happens when Earth forms a line with the sun on one side and the moon on the other—and it also means that the moon will appear orange-red, a phenomenon known as a "blood moon."

There's no need to leave your home or purchase special equipment to watch the eclipse, but here's how to make the most of your viewing experience.

• Look toward the southeastern sky. 
• The eclipse will start at 9:23 p.m., but the changing color of the moon will become even more visible at 10:33 p.m.
• The show will peak at 12:12 on Friday morning, and the moon will appear high in the sky. 
• The eclipse officially ends at 1:51 a.m.; the last lingering shades of red will disappear by 3:01 a.m.

And cross your fingers that those clouds clear—while the forecast calls for partly cloudy to mostly cloudy skies for much of the evening and into the early hours of the morning, we're still hoping for at least a partial view of this partial eclipse. 

Happy moonwatching!