Eclipse Science

An eclipse is simply the shadow cast by one body upon another, when it passes in front of a source of light. There are two categories of eclipse of interest to observers on the Earth, both of which owe their existance to the fact that the Moon orbits around the Earth: Lunar and Solar eclipses.

A Solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between the Earth and Sun; this happens at the New Moon, and the effect is that observers on the side of the Earth facing the Sun (i.e. the side which is in daytime) have their view of it cut off, either partly or completely.

A Lunar eclipse occurs when the Earth passes between the Full Moon and Sun (or, to look at it another way, when the Moon passes "behind" the Earth), and is visible at night as a shadow cast on the Moon. A lunar eclipse can be quite beautiful; the full moon is seen in shadow, and often appears a deep red colour.

The following pages provide more detail on the workings of eclipses:

	The Earth and Moon In order to help you understand how eclipses occur, we take a little look at how the Earth, Sun and Moon are related to each other, and how the phases of the Moon happen.
	Mechanics of Solar Eclipses Solar eclipses come in several types; this page explains the types of solar eclipses, and why they occur.
	Mechanics of Lunar Eclipses A look at the mechanics of lunar eclipses, why they occur, and the types of lunar eclipse.
	Eclipse Cycles This page looks at how often and when eclipses occur, and why they happen when they do (and not more often!).
	Lunar Months A different look at eclipse prediction, showing how the cycles of the Moon dictate when eclipses occur.
	The Sun The Sun is at the heart of all eclipses, but can be seen in a whole new way during a total solar eclipse; this page explains a little of the Sun's structure, to help you understand what can be seen during an eclipse.

Bad Science

Ever wondered why the Moon is bigger when it's near the horizon? (Atmospheric refraction, right?) Or why water swirls round sinks clockwise in the northern hemisphere (or is that anti-clockwise)? Or why you can stand an egg on end during an equinox? Check out my Bad Science page!

The diagrams in this section were produced using PovRay, using the KPovModeler front-end.