![]() The Earth’s shadowĪs the Sun shines light on Earth, Earth casts a shadow behind itself. If this happens during a full moon, the Sun, Earth and Moon will form a straight line and the Moon will pass through the Earth’s shadow, resulting in a lunar eclipse. Because of this small tilt, most of the time a full moon ends up a little above or below the shadow cast by the Earth.īut twice in each monthlong lunar orbit, the Moon crosses through the same horizontal plane as the Earth and the Sun. But the Moon’s orbit is tilted by about 5 degrees relative to Earth’s orbit of the Sun. If the Moon had a totally flat orbit, every full moon would be a lunar eclipse. When the Moon and the Sun are perfectly opposite each other, people on Earth can see the entire lit-up side, which looks like a round disc in the night sky. Like the Earth, half of the Moon is illuminated by the Sun at any one time. ![]() ![]() This can only happen when the Moon is directly on the opposite side of the Earth from Sun, which is also when full moons occur. A lunar eclipse occurs when the Earth’s shadow covers all or part of the Moon. ![]() More: May's full moon is coming soon: When to see the 'flower' moon How do eclipses work?īoth lunar and solar eclipses depend on particular orientations of the Earth, Sun and Moon. While the upcoming event will not be the most stunning celestial display, it is just the first of a number of eclipses occurring over the next year, and they all work in similar ways. I am the director of the Abrams Planetarium at Michigan State University and it is part of my job to get people outside and looking up, and eclipses are some of the easiest to see. Instead, the Moon will dim slightly as it passes through a lighter part of the Earth’s shadow – called the penumbra. This eclipse is not what some call a “blood moon,” as it will not turn red. The eclipse will be visible in Africa, Asia, Australia and large portions of Europe, though not in the U.S. On May 5, 2023, people around the world will witness a a lunar eclipse when the Earth gets between the Sun and the Moon and casts part of its shadow on the Moon. ![]()
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