A SNOW moon, lunar eclipse and new year comet will delight stargazers TONIGHT - as long as cloud coverage does not hamper the view.

The triple celestial event will take place on Friday evening though a cloudy evening is forecast for Worcester by the Met Office.

February’s full moon is named the Snow moon, because in the US this is traditionally the snowiest time of year.

It coincides with a penumbral lunar eclipse which means it will be almost completely submerged in shade as the Earth comes between the sun and the moon.

A penumbral eclipse is when the moon crosses a peripheral region of the Earth’s shadow.

Usually a faint shadow will form on the moon’s surface, and the moon will appear less bright.

However February’s penumbral eclipse is unusual, because most of the moon's face will cross the Earth's shadow, making it appear much darker.

The best time to view the event will be mid-eclipse at 12.45am, though the eclipse will begin at 10.34pm on Friday and end at 2.53am on Saturday morning.

To top it off there will be a chance to see the New Year comet which has been visible around the world since December.

However, tonight it will make its closest approach to Earth, reaching 7.4 million miles from Earth.

It will be its closest approach to Earth since 2011, and we won’t see it again until 2022.

Look out for the comet from midnight on Friday - though you will probably need binoculars or a telescope to view it.