Archive for the ‘Questions and Answers’ Category

Three Most Commonly Asked Questions About Eclipses

What happens more often, solar or lunar eclipses?According to Fred Whipple’s book Earth, Moon and Planets, solar eclipses are fairly numerous, about 2-5 per year, but the area on the ground covered by totality is only a few miles wide. In any given location on Earth, a total eclipse happens only once every 360 years. Eclipses of the Moon by the Earth’s shadow are actually less numerous than solar eclipses; however, each eclipse covers about one half the surface of the Earth. At any given location, you can have up to three lunar eclipses per year, but some years there may be Read the rest of this entry »

What Are Shadow Bands?

Shadow bands are among the most ephemeral phenomena that observers see during the few minutes before and after a total solar eclipse.Simply stated, they are the wavy lines of alternating Read the rest of this entry »