Harvest Moon eclipse: How to watch the rare phenomenon that won't be visible again until 2024

The eclipse occurs when the earth's shadow crosses the moon's path

The UK will experience an unusual eclipse at sundown today when the Earth's shadow crosses a Harvest Moon's path - an event that will not occur again until 2024.

The penumbral eclipse will cause the moon to be partially overshadowed and its brightness to dim.

It will be visible to the naked eye from Europe, Africa, Australia and Asia (though not North and South America) for around four hours on Friday night.

As winter draws in and the nights get shorter, the sun rises later and sets earlier every day.

A Harvest Moon, which markes the Autumnal Equinox, occurs when the full moon appears to rise at the exact same time as the sun sets, making it appear fuller for longer than usual.

It is known as the Harvest Moon because the extra moonlight traditionally gave farmers more time to gather in their crops for the winter.

The Harvest Moon is typically associated with an orange glow, although this is dictated by its proximity to the horizon and the amount of dust in the atmosphere and is not actually specific to the phenonmenon.

If you don’t have binoculars handy or won’t be able to get outside to take a look, Slooh.com is running a live webcast.