At a Glance

Not everyone will be able to see the total lunar eclipse.A blue moon is the second full moon in a calendar month.

Editor's note:Join meteorologist Kait Parker and astronomer John Gianforte for a live look at the lunar eclipse on The Weather Channel app. The show begins 7:30 a.m. EST Wednesday.

Stargazers are in for a rare treat next week that hasn't been witnessed in more than 100 years.

A total lunar eclipse Jan. 31 should be quite the show because it will also be a blue moon and a supermoon.

For 77 minutes, the full moon will pass through the Earth's shadow, casting an orange hue over the moon.

It will also be a blue moon because it's the second full moon in the calendar month. The first occurred on Jan. 2.

The moon will also besupermoon because it willappearup to 30 percent brighterand up to 14 percent larger than normal, according to Space.com.

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Residents of the western United States, Alaska and Hawaii will have the best chance to see the full lunar eclipse.

For those in the eastern U.S., the eclipse will beginat 5:51 a.m. on Jan. 31. Because the sun rises just 16 minutes later, they'll only be able to see the beginnings of the eclipse.

Further west, stargazers will be able to see more of the eclipse. People in Hawaii, Alaska and on the West Coast will have the best chance to view the eclipse in its entirety, weather permitting. The partial eclipse will begin at 3:48 a.m. on the West Coast, with the total eclipse beginning at 4:51 a.m. and ending at 5:29 a.m.

Wednesday Morning's Forecast

(Forecast shown is for 5 a.m. Wednesday morning. White and grey contours on the map indicate where cloud cover is possible based on the American (GFS) computer model forecast.)

The moon will not be blue for people in Asia and easternAustraliabecause themoon will not be considered fulluntil Feb. 1.

Blue moons occur about , according to Space.com, so they aren't nearly as rare as one might think.

The best times to catch any full moon is just before it rises or sets whenmakes the moon and other celestial bodies appear larger than normal on the horizon, according to Sky and Telescope.

The explanation forthis optical illusion is still being debated, but many scientistsbelieve it has something to do with how our brain processes the objects in our visual field near the horizon, the report added.