The University of North Texas Rafes Urban Astronomy Center will open its doors to the public for this weekend's lunar eclipse. Telescopes will be available to the public, and a special telescope will be set up tor participants to take pictures of the eclipse with a smart phone. Rafes will open its gates at 8 p.m. on Jan. 20 (Sunday) and the watch party will last until 1 a.m. the next day (Monday).

On Jan. 20, three astronomical events will occur simultaneously in the night sky over the Americas: a wolf moon, a blood moon and a super moon.

The wolf moon is the first full moon of the year, and its name can be traced back to Native American legend that claims villages would be surrounded by howling wolves at that time of year. A super moon occurs when the moon is at perigee, when it is closest to Earth. A blood moon is a full lunar eclipse. It is called a blood moon because when the moon passes into the Earth's shadow it can appear an eerie shade of red.

Super Blood Wolf Moons will only occur twice more during the 21st century.

Tickets can be purchased at the gate (cash only) for $5 per person or free for children ages four and under. UNT students are admitted free with student ID. The Rafes Urban Astronomy Center is located at 2350 Tom Cole Rd. in Ponder, Texas. For directions to the Rafes Center, visit the UNT Astronomy website at http://astronomy.unt.edu/bloodmoon