Forget about "The dog ate my homework." Try this instead: "I did it because my emotional defense system crashed during the Lunar Eclipse." Or, "I'm sorry I said that, but the Eclipse blocked my self-awareness and over-sensitized my emotional reactions."

Mark Wednesday, Feb. 20, on your calendar as Lunar Eclipse Night. If the weather is fair you should be able to observe a total eclipse of the moon. This is the third total lunar eclipse within the past twelve months. The last two were viewable from North America, but this one will be visible from start to finish across most of the continent.

According to astronomers, you can view the eclipse wherever the moon is above the horizon during the time the eclipse is taking place. People in North and South America will both be in perfect positions for viewing. The total phase will last 51-minutes and begins at 10:01 p.m. EST.

Because some of the sunlight striking the Earth is diffused and scattered by our atmosphere, the Earth's shadow is not completely dark. Typically there are coppery red and orange hues cast over the moon at and near totality from sunlight refracted from our atmosphere around the edge of the Earth, giving the moon the appearance of an eerie glowing ball.

Just how dark the Moon gets during a lunar eclipse depends on the amount of dust in our planet's atmosphere. If there are a lot of volcanic activity or forest fires recently, the increased dust can cause the Moon to appear very dark, like an old copper penny.

If there's very little dust in the atmosphere, the Moon will appear brighter and more orange in color. The exact color and darkness of any eclipse is unpredictable. There's no way to know ahead of time what the Moon will look like when our planet's shadow blankets the lunar surface.

As a bonus, during the eclipse the moon will be situated, in the sky, near the planet Saturn and the bright bluish star Regulus in the constellation of Leo. The effect will be to create a beautiful triangle in the sky consisting of the totally eclipsed moon, a bright naked-eye planet and one of the 21 brightest stars in the sky.

Plus, on Feb. 24, Saturn's orbit takes it directly opposite the sun and closest to Earth. The planet is high in the sky and at its biggest and brightest all night long.

The Feb. 20 eclipse will be the last total lunar eclipse until December 21, 2010 although there will be three partial lunar eclipses between now and then. So, if you need a good excuse for having an emotional break down sometime in the next six months or are just looking for a reason for your hair being frizzier than usual, remember the eclipse.

Better yet, take this opportunity to spend an evening with friends or family celebrating yet another glorious moment in our universe.