Cloud threatens to spoil lunar party in much of the country

IT WON’T happen again in our lifetimes but the weather gods have decided they’re not going to make it easy for some of us to see tonight’s rare lunar event.

Each of the three lunar events have their own life cycle but tonight they all happen at the same time creating what’s been dubbed the super blue blood moon.

MUCH of the nation could be covered in patches of thick cloud this evening, threatening to spoil viewing parties for tonight’s rare super blue blood moon event.

The genuinely rare cosmic event is set to dazzle Australian stargazers from about 10pm AEST tonight but we just need the clouds to stay away. Sadly, it’s not looking good.

Here’s what the Bureau of Meteorology is saying you can expect in your area.

NEW SOUTH WALES

The outlook isn’t looking particularly promising for NSW.

“Currently Sydney is sitting under a think amount of cloud. There is the possibility of some of that clearing out but it’s not going to be a clear sky altogether into the evening unfortunately,” said Jordan Notara from the NSW Bureau of Meteorology.

Parts of the Hunter to the north of Sydney are also likely to be blanketed in cloud. “It’s going to be quite hard viewing generally north of Newcastle, along the coast and over the ranges,” he said. Viewers in northern inland parts of the state will also be battling cloud to get the best view.

However it’s not all bad news for the state as parts of the south coast and southern ranges will be the most likely areas to see clearer skies, Mr Notara said.

Parts of northwest NSW are also likely to experience some patchy showers.

QUEENSLAND

The outlook for Queensland stargazers isn’t much better.

Brisbane has had a sunny day but clouds are expected to form over the state’s capital as well as much of the state’s northeast coast later tonight, possibly making visibility difficult at times.

“Basically sunny day becoming cloudy in the evening. So it’s not going to be ideal,” said state forecaster Mark Trenorden.

“We’ve got a south-easterly surge coming up the coast so with that there’ll be increasing cloud and a few showers around. So it might be a bit hit and miss on trying to see anything in the sky” around Brisbane, the Sunshine Coast and the Gold Coast, he said.

Each of the three lunar events have their own life cycle but tonight they all happen at the same time creating what’s been dubbed the super blue blood moon.

VICTORIA

Victorians are facing a much rosier outlook in terms of cloud coverage tonight, particularly in the north of the state. The eastern suburbs of Melbourne should also be fine.

“The best place to view the eclipse tonight will be across northern Victoria, places like Bendigo, Shepparton, Wangaratta and other places in the northeast,” said Rod Dickson from the state’s weather bureau. “Areas north of the divide will generally see clear conditions.”

However patchy high cloud over the Mallee region could hamper visibility at times.

In the south it is forecast to be a partly cloudy evening. “I think areas of southwestern Victoria will see a fair bit of cloud cover overnight and also parts of Gippsland.”

There is better news for Melbourne as well. Mr Dickson said: “The early part of the evening we’ll see some cloud around but that will tend to break up first over eastern suburbs tonight and I think we’ll see clear conditions there by the time the eclipse starts.” He expects clouds to disappear over the city by about midnight “but western suburbs of Melbourne and the Geelong area, they’re still likely to see partly cloudy conditions”.

WESTERN AUSTRALIA

While those on the eastern seaboard were due to have a better vantage point to watch the super blue blood moon, those on the west coast may end up being the celestial winners.

While northern parts of the state have rain warnings in place, Perth and Freemantle are forecast to have clear skies, so a good glimpse should be possible from 7.48pm to 11.11pm.

If the weather gods do spoil the party, news.com.au will be streaming the rare lunar event from 10pm.