a lunar eclipse happens when the earth
blocks some or all of the sun’s direct
light from reaching the moon this cosmic
event only takes place during a full
moon which happens once every 29 and a
half days or the length of one full
orbit of the moon around the earth so
why don’t we have any clips every month
the moon’s orbit is tilted a few degrees
in relation to the earth so the Earth
Moon and Sun don’t always align when the
earth does eclipse the Sun it casts two
types of shadows on the moon a larger
shadow known as the penumbra and a
smaller darker shadow known as the Umbra
there are three types of lunar eclipses
the first is a total lunar eclipse when
the Sun Moon and Earth are in perfect
alignment and the moon falls within the
Earth’s umbral shadow total lunar
eclipses are the most striking of the
three types because they turn the moon a
sunset red while shorter blue
wavelengths of light are scattered
outward by the Earth’s atmosphere longer
red wavelengths are refracted or bent
inward toward the moon making it appear
red the brightness of the moon’s red
glow depends upon how much dust and
clouds are in the Earth’s atmosphere
following volcanic activity Ash can
block out enough light to render the
moon a darker red or even mere black a
partial lunar eclipse the second type
occurs when the Earth Moon and Sun don’t
perfectly align so only part of the moon
passes into Earth’s Umbra Earth’s shadow
appears very dark on the side of the
moon facing earth
last a penumbral lunar eclipse occurs
when the moon passes through earth’s
penumbral shadow the event is so subtle
that most people don’t even notice the
moon will appear just slightly darker
than normal
lunar eclipses occur up to three times a
year and can be observed from the entire
night time half of the earth unlike
during a solar eclipse it’s safe to look
at the moon with the naked eye
during a lunar eclipse it is only
because of the distances of the sun and
moon from the earth that we are able to
witness total lunar eclipses as the moon
inches away from the earth each year one
day billions of years from now the moon
will be too far away to fall completely
within Earth’s humble shadow until then
we can occasionally enjoy seeing our own
planet shadow cast upon the largest
object in the night sky
[Music]
blocks some or all of the sun’s direct
light from reaching the moon this cosmic
event only takes place during a full
moon which happens once every 29 and a
half days or the length of one full
orbit of the moon around the earth so
why don’t we have any clips every month
the moon’s orbit is tilted a few degrees
in relation to the earth so the Earth
Moon and Sun don’t always align when the
earth does eclipse the Sun it casts two
types of shadows on the moon a larger
shadow known as the penumbra and a
smaller darker shadow known as the Umbra
there are three types of lunar eclipses
the first is a total lunar eclipse when
the Sun Moon and Earth are in perfect
alignment and the moon falls within the
Earth’s umbral shadow total lunar
eclipses are the most striking of the
three types because they turn the moon a
sunset red while shorter blue
wavelengths of light are scattered
outward by the Earth’s atmosphere longer
red wavelengths are refracted or bent
inward toward the moon making it appear
red the brightness of the moon’s red
glow depends upon how much dust and
clouds are in the Earth’s atmosphere
following volcanic activity Ash can
block out enough light to render the
moon a darker red or even mere black a
partial lunar eclipse the second type
occurs when the Earth Moon and Sun don’t
perfectly align so only part of the moon
passes into Earth’s Umbra Earth’s shadow
appears very dark on the side of the
moon facing earth
last a penumbral lunar eclipse occurs
when the moon passes through earth’s
penumbral shadow the event is so subtle
that most people don’t even notice the
moon will appear just slightly darker
than normal
lunar eclipses occur up to three times a
year and can be observed from the entire
night time half of the earth unlike
during a solar eclipse it’s safe to look
at the moon with the naked eye
during a lunar eclipse it is only
because of the distances of the sun and
moon from the earth that we are able to
witness total lunar eclipses as the moon
inches away from the earth each year one
day billions of years from now the moon
will be too far away to fall completely
within Earth’s humble shadow until then
we can occasionally enjoy seeing our own
planet shadow cast upon the largest
object in the night sky
[Music]
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