eclipses - quia
TRANSCRIPT
Eclipses
A penny will hide the biggest star in the
universe if you hold it close enough to your
eye.
-- Samuel Grafton
Solar Eclipses
The Sun is vanishing! The Sun is going out! The daylight is retreating!
Bad Omens All! The Gods are MAD!
The Moon is just close enough, and just big enough, to block our
view of the sun = SOLAR ECLIPSE.
Only the sun’s CORONA is visible
If the Moon was A)
smaller, or B) farther
from us, would we
experience TOTAL
solar eclipses?
ANNULAR ECLIPSE – when moon is
farthest from Earth – some sun visible
The Modern View
The answer lies hidden among the shadows.
Earth
Moon
Shadow Structure
Penumbra
Penumbra
Umbra
South
Pole
North
Pole
Solar Eclipse Details
Sun Moon
What is the phase of the moon?
New Moon!
Total Solar Eclipse
A Total Solar
Eclipse from
beginning to end
Why not a solar eclipse every month then?
Sun
Ecliptic
Moon
Moon’s
Orbit
Earth 5o
Moon's orbit is tilted about 5o with respect
to the Earth's orbit (ecliptic), so the
shadows usually miss!
But, the Moon passes through the ecliptic, and
is found along the line of nodes, twice a month.
*IF* at new moon - SOLAR ECLIPSE
probability.
*IF* at FULL moon - LUNAR ECLIPSE
probability.
If line of nodes points to the sun during new or full moon phases; ECPLIPSE!!!
A Lunar Eclipse
Moon
Sun Earth
Moon’s
Path A lunar eclipse occurs when the
Earth lies between the Sun and
Moon, so that Earth's shadow
darkens the Moon.
The moon becomes a blood red color during a total lunar
eclipse. No wonder that ancient cultures feared the appearance
of the moon during a lunar eclipse.
Earth’s Atmosphere
Sunlight
Moon
Earth
The Blood Moon
The moon often does not totally disappear during a total lunar eclipse.
Instead it can be seen as a very dark red color because of the refraction of
sunlight through the Earth's atmosphere.
The End