This graphic shows the major stages of the total lunar eclipse on October 8, 2014, labeled in Universal Time (GMT). The lunar eclipse will be visible from North America and much of the Pacific Ocean. This image was released by Sky & Telescope M

The moon will pass through Earth's shadow early Wednesday morning (Oct. 8) and no enthusiastic skywatcher should ever miss a total eclipse of the moon. The spectacle is often more beautiful and interesting than one would think. During the time when the moon is entering, and later emerging from, Earth's shadow, some secondary phenomena may be overlooked.

Wednesday's total lunar eclipse will be visible, weather permitting, from much of North America, as well as to observers in Australia, western Asia and across the Pacific Ocean. As a veteran of 14 eclipses of the moon, I know that to get the best out of a lunar eclipse, you should know the major stages of the event. To help you prepare for the eclipse, here is a step-by-step chronology of some of the things you can expect to see, weather permitting.

If you can't see the total eclipse from your own backyard, you can catch it live online via two webcasts from NASA and the Slooh Community Observatory. The NASA webcast — which will feature a chat with the space agency's moon experts — begins at 3 a.m. EDT (0700 GMT) on Oct. 8, with Slooh's starting at 5 a.m. EDT (0900 GMT). You can watch both lunar eclipse webcasts on Space.com, or directly through Slooh and NASA.[How to See the Total Lunar Eclipse (Visibility Maps)]

Wednesday's lunar eclipse will be followed closely by sunrise for some observers, leading to a rare "selenelion" event. It is also the second of four consecutive total eclipse of the moon (the first occurred last April), and is part of a so-called lunar eclipse tetrad.

Since not every eclipse is the same, it's possible that not all of these events will occur, but many will. Those who know what to look for have a better chance of seeing it! The chart here lists the times to see the major stages of Wednesday's eclipse, based on different time zones for North America. The dashes in the chart indicate that the moon has dropped below the horizon and is no longer visible for observers in the designated time zone.

Stages of the total lunar eclipse in Pacific Time:

Stage 1 @ 1:15 a.m. PDT: Moon enters penumbra — The shadow cone of the Earth has two parts: a dark, inner umbra, surrounded by a lighter penumbra. The penumbra is the pale outer portion of the Earth's shadow. Although the lunar eclipse begins officially at this moment, this is, in essence, an academic event. You won't see anything unusual happening to the moon — at least not just yet. The Earth's penumbral shadow is so faint that it remains invisible until the moon is deeply immersed in it. We must wait until the penumbra has reached roughly 70 percent across the moon's disc to be able to discern the Earth's shadow. For about the next 40 minutes, the full moon will continue to appear to shine normally, although with each passing minute, it will be progressing ever deeper into the Earth's outer shadow.

Stage 2 @ 1:56 a.m. PDT: Penumbral shadow begins to appear — Now, the moon has progressed far enough into the penumbra so that it should be evident on the moon's disc. Start looking for a very light shading to appear on the moon's upper-left portion. This will become increasingly evident as the minutes pass; the shading will appear to spread and deepen. Just before the moon begins to enter the Earth's dark umbral shadow, the penumbra should appear as an obvious smudge or tarnishing of the moon's left portion.

Stage 3 @ 2:14 a.m. PDT: Moon enters the umbra — The moon now begins to cross into the Earth's dark central shadow, called the umbra. A small, dark scallop shape begins to appear on the moon's upper-left-hand limb. The partial phases of the eclipse begin, the pace quickens and the change is dramatic. The umbra is much darker than the penumbra and fairly sharp-edged. [Oct. 8 Total Lunar Eclipse Explained (Video)]

As the minutes pass, the dark shadow appears to slowly creep across the moon's face. At first, the moon's limb may seem to vanish completely inside of the umbra, but much later, as it moves in deeper, you'll probably notice it glowing dimly orange, red or brown. Notice also that the edge of the Earth's shadow projected on the moon is curved. Here is visible evidence that the Earth is a sphere, as deduced by Aristotle from Iunar eclipses he observed in the 4th century B.C. It's almost as if a dimmer switch were slowly being turned down on the surrounding landscape, as deep shadows of a brilliant moonlit night begin to fade away.