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Interesting Facts about Solar Eclipses

Solar eclipses happen when the moon gets in between the sun and the earth. The moon casts its shadow on parts of the earth's surface and in these areas viewers experience a solar eclipse. Solar eclipses of all types occur on average two to five times a year. Throughout history solar eclipses have been observed and various beliefs have resulted from them. Many ancient cultures interpreted them as bad omens while other people in ancient times were simply terrified at the sudden and seemingly random disappearance of the sun.

Total Eclipses
- A total eclipse is the most spectacular type, as at certain parts on the earth's surface the sun is completely blocked from view by the moon. Like all types of solar eclipses a total solar eclipse can only occur in a new moon, and will only be visible from a narrow band of the earth's surface that will stretch right across the hemisphere facing the sun. Total eclipses begin with small sliver of the sun being obscured and in totality the entire surface is blocked. During this time daylight on earth becomes like twilight. Total solar eclipses happen somewhere on the planet about every five years but at any fixed point a total eclipse will likely be a once in a lifetime event.
Partial Eclipses
- Partial solar eclipses occur where the orbit of the moon is not quite on the right trajectory to completely block out the sun. In a partial eclipse only some of the sun is blocked. This may be anything from the majority of it to just a tiny sliver. Partial eclipses are much more frequent than total eclipses but far less spectacular. However they are visible over a much wider band of the earth than a total eclipse.
Annular
- The moon's distance from the Earth is not constant, as it orbits in an elliptical path. When the moon is furthest away from the sun and it passes between the sun and the Earth it causes an annular eclipse. Because the moon is so far away it is smaller in the sky and not able to completely obscure the entire sun. As a result the sun's edges are visible around the moon and shine like a ring around the shadow of the moon. This very bright ring is known as the sun's annulus.
Hybrid
- The rarest type of eclipse is a hybrid eclipse. This is an eclipse that is in between a total eclipse and an annular eclipse. In this event the eclipse is visible as a total eclipse at some points on the earth's surface and at other points it is observed as a partial eclipse.

Astronomy