In what phase of the moon is a lunar eclipse observed. How and why does a solar eclipse happen? How is a lunar eclipse different from a solar eclipse

A lunar eclipse occurs exclusively during the full moon phase and can only be observed over half of the earth's territory when the moon is above the horizon. The moon serves as a symbol of the soul, emotions, and the ability to adapt to external circumstances. That is why it is so important to know what to do and what not to do during the period of such a phenomenon.

Lunar eclipse - what is it?

A lunar eclipse is the period when the Moon completely enters the cone of the shadow cast by the Earth. The moon does not have its own light, but its surface is able to reflect the sun's rays, so at night it always illuminates the dark road. During a shadowy dimming, our satellite turns red, which is why this phenomenon is often called a blood moon. It can be complete, when the shadow completely covers the Moon, or partial, when the Moon partially enters the Earth's shadow, one part of it remains dark, and the other is illuminated by the rays of the sun.

How is a lunar eclipse different from a solar eclipse?

During solar eclipse, the satellite completely or partially covers the solar disk. During a lunar eclipse, the Moon falls partially or completely into the cone-shaped shadow cast by the Earth, and instead of a bright disk, people see a dull reddish cloud. From an astronomical point of view, during a solar eclipse, the satellite comes between the Earth and the Sun, blocking the Earth's sunlight, meaning the Earth receives all the power of the Moon. With a shadowy dimming, the Earth becomes between the Sun and the Moon, it weakens the energy of the satellite, blocks the flow of solar energy to it.

There are certain conditions for the occurrence of lunar eclipses:

  1. The Earth constantly casts a cone-shaped shadow from sunlight, this is because the Sun is larger in size than the Earth. The satellite must pass in the shadow part of the Earth.
  2. For a blackout to occur, the moon must be in the phase of the full moon; during the new moon, the phenomenon is impossible.

In one year, a total lunar eclipse can occur no more than three times. A full cycle of lunar eclipses repeats itself every eighteen years, and if the weather conditions are good, you will definitely be able to observe such a phenomenon. You can observe it with the naked eye, and the chances of seeing such a phenomenon are much greater than the solar one, because it repeats much more often.

How does a lunar eclipse happen?

During a lunar eclipse, the disk of the satellite begins to gradually darken. When the entire visible surface of the satellite is already engulfed in shadow, as numerous descriptions of a lunar eclipse show, the dark disk changes color from light yellow to red-brown. This color provides valuable scientific data on the state of the atmosphere. He often caused bad associations and influenced the course of historical events. For example, in 1504 he helped the expedition of Christopher Columbus to get provisions from the local Indians.


Causes of a lunar eclipse

Eastern sages learned why a lunar eclipse occurs. This phenomenon happens on a full moon. During this period, the Sun, the satellite and the Earth are in a certain order in this straight line. Even if the Earth completely blocks the light of the Sun from the surface of the satellite, it can still be seen. Earth's atmosphere refracts sunlight and indirectly illuminates the moon. And the Moon acquires such a mysterious shade, because the earth's atmosphere is permeable to the rays of the red spectrum. Clouds and dust particles can change the color of the satellite.

In what phase can a lunar eclipse be observed?

The phase of the moon is the illumination of the satellite by sunlight, which changes periodically. Depending on the conditions of illumination of the Moon by the Sun, there are several phases:

  • full moon;
  • waning moon;
  • new moon;
  • Waxing Crescent.

A lunar eclipse is only possible on a full moon. The longest duration of such a phenomenon can be 108 minutes. There are cases when the satellite is not visible at all, but the phenomenon can be observed wherever it is above the horizon. Shady dimming accompanies solar. So, for example, if there was a solar eclipse during the New Moon phase, expect a total lunar eclipse on one of the next full moons.

Types of lunar eclipses

There are three types of dimming of the night star:

  1. Complete. It can only occur on a full moon when the moon passes through the center of the Earth's total shadow.
  2. Partial lunar eclipse when the shadow from the Earth darkens a small part of the Moon.
  3. Penumbral. The full or partially illuminated part of the Moon passes through the penumbra of the Earth.

How does a lunar eclipse affect people?

Since the Moon is considered a symbol of his subconscious, a celestial phenomenon can cause mental imbalance and increased emotionality. During the period of such a phenomenon in society, an occurrence is possible. Most of all, people born on a lunar eclipse are susceptible to this, which is manifested by hysteria, crying, whims. Everything that a person has accumulated inside himself on a subconscious level breaks out. During a shadow blackout, a person is not guided by reason, but by feelings.

There are a number of people who are most susceptible to the harmful effects of blackout:

  1. Hypertension, increases the risk of diseases of the cardiovascular system. Eliminate physical activity.
  2. Mentally unhealthy people. This phenomenon is called "Eclipse of the Soul", all because the subconscious part triumphs over the conscious, which is why many become overly emotional.
  3. People who have previously been hypnotized.

Lunar eclipse - interesting facts

In ancient times, people did not know that blackouts were common and were very frightened when they saw a blood red spot. All because at that time science was not yet so developed, the heavenly body seemed to narrow-minded people something unusual, mythical. But although science has already figured out the cause of such a phenomenon, there are various interesting facts about the lunar eclipse:

  1. Earth is the only place in the solar system where you can see such a phenomenon.
  2. Although a penumbral lunar eclipse occurs every eighteen years, there are people who have never seen such an event, because of their bad luck. For example, Canadian astronomer J. Campbell was unable to see the phenomenon due to bad weather.
  3. Numerous studies by scientists have confirmed the fact that after 600 million years the satellite will move away from the Earth so much that it will no longer cover the Sun.
  4. The shadow from the satellite moves at a speed of 2 thousand kilometers per second.

The moon moves around the earth in the same direction as the earth rotates around its axis. The reflection of this movement, as we know, is the apparent movement of the Moon against the background of the stars towards the rotation of the sky. Every day, the Moon moves to the east relative to the stars by about 13 °, and after 27.3 days it returns to the same stars, having described a full circle on the celestial sphere.

Period of revolution of the moon around the earth relative to the stars(in inertial reference frame) called stellar or sidereal(from lat. sidus - star) month. It is 27.3 days.

The apparent movement of the moon is accompanied by a continuous change in its appearance - phase change. This happens because the Moon occupies different positions relative to the Sun and the Earth that illuminates it. A diagram explaining the change in the phases of the moon is shown in Figure 20.

When the Moon is visible to us as a narrow crescent, the rest of its disk is also slightly glowing. This phenomenon is called ashen light and is explained by the fact that the Earth illuminates the night side of the Moon by reflected sunlight.

The time interval between two successive identical phases of the moon is called the synodic month.(from Greek synodos - connection); is the period of revolution of the moon around the earth relative to the sun. It is (as observations show) 29.5 days.

Thus, the synodic month is longer than the sidereal month. This is easy to understand, knowing that the same phases of the Moon occur at the same positions relative to the Earth and the Sun. In Figure 21, the relative position of the Earth T and the Moon L corresponds to the moment of the new moon. Moon L after 27.3 days, having made a full revolution, will take its previous position relative to the stars. During this time, the Earth T, together with the Moon, will pass along its orbit relative to the Sun an arc TT 1 equal to almost 27 °, since every day it shifts by about 1 °. In order for the Moon L 1 to take its former position relative to the Sun and the Earth T 1 (came to the new moon), it will take another two days. Indeed, the Moon passes 360 ° in a day: 27.3 days = 13 ° / day, in order to pass an arc of 27 °, it needs. 27°: 13°/day=2 days. So it turns out that the synodic month of the Moon is about 29.5 Earth days.

We always see only one hemisphere of the Moon. This is sometimes perceived as the absence of its axial rotation. In fact, this is due to the equality of the periods of rotation of the Moon around its axis and its revolution around the Earth.

Check this by circling an object around you and at the same time o rotating it around an axis with a period equal to the period of the circle.

Rotating around its axis, the Moon alternately turns its different sides towards the Sun. Therefore, on the Moon there is a change of day and night, and the solar day is equal to the synodic period (its revolution relative to the Sun). Thus, on the Moon, the length of a day is equal to two Earth weeks, and our two weeks make up a night there.

It is easy to understand that the phases of the Earth and the Moon are mutually opposite. When the Moon is almost full, the Earth is visible from the Moon as a narrow crescent. Figure 42 shows a photograph of the sky and the lunar horizon with the Earth, in which only its illuminated part is visible - less than a semicircle.

Exercise 5

1. The crescent of the Moon in the evening is bulging to the right and close to the horizon. On which side of the horizon is it?

2. Today the upper climax of the Moon occurred at midnight. When is the next upper climax of the moon?

3. At what time intervals do stars culminate on the Moon?

2. Lunar and solar eclipses

The Earth and the Moon, illuminated by the Sun (Fig. 22), cast cones of shadow (convergent) and cones of penumbra (divergent). When the Moon falls into the shadow of the Earth, in whole or in part, complete or partial eclipse of the moon. From the Earth, it can be seen simultaneously from everywhere where the Moon is above the horizon. The phase of a total eclipse of the Moon continues until the Moon begins to emerge from the Earth's shadow, and can last up to 1 hour 40 minutes. The sun's rays, refracted in the Earth's atmosphere, fall into the cone of the earth's shadow. In this case, the atmosphere strongly absorbs the blue and neighboring rays (see Fig. 40), and transmits mainly red ones into the cone, which are absorbed more weakly. That is why the Moon, during a large phase of the eclipse, turns reddish, and does not disappear altogether. In the old days, an eclipse of the moon was feared as a terrible omen, it was believed that "the month bleeds." Lunar eclipses occur up to three times a year, separated by almost half a year intervals, and, of course, only on a full moon.

A solar eclipse is only visible as a total eclipse where a spot of the moon's shadow falls on the Earth.. The spot diameter does not exceed 250 km, and therefore a total eclipse of the Sun is simultaneously visible only on a small part of the Earth. When the Moon moves in its orbit, its shadow moves across the Earth from west to east, drawing a successively narrow band of total eclipse (Fig. 23).

Where the Moon's penumbra falls on the Earth, there is a partial eclipse of the Sun.(Fig. 24).

Due to a small change in the distances of the Earth from the Moon and the Sun, the apparent angular diameter of the Moon is either slightly larger, or slightly less than the solar one, or equal to it. In the first case, the total eclipse of the Sun lasts up to 7 min 40 s, in the third - only one instant, and in the second case, the Moon does not completely cover the Sun at all, it is observed annular eclipse. Then, around the dark disk of the Moon, a shining rim of the solar disk is visible.

Based on an accurate knowledge of the laws of motion of the Earth and the Moon, the moments of eclipses and where and how they will be visible are calculated for hundreds of years ahead. Maps have been compiled showing the band of a total eclipse, lines (isophases) where the eclipse will be visible in the same phase, and lines relative to which for each locality one can count the moments of the beginning, end and middle of the eclipse.

Solar eclipses per year for the Earth can be from two to five, in the latter case, certainly private. On average, in the same place, a total solar eclipse is seen extremely rarely - only once in 200-300 years.

Of particular interest to science are total eclipses of the Sun, which previously inspired superstitious horror in ignorant people. Such eclipses were considered an omen of war, the end of the world.

Astronomers undertake expeditions to the total eclipse band in order to study the outer rarefied shells of the Sun, invisible directly outside the eclipse, for seconds, rarely minutes of the total phase. During a total solar eclipse, the sky darkens, a glowing ring burns along the horizon - the glow of the atmosphere illuminated by the rays of the Sun in areas where the eclipse is incomplete, the pearl rays of the so-called solar corona extend around the black solar disk (see Fig. 69).

If the plane of the lunar orbit coincided with the plane of the ecliptic, then on every new moon there would be a solar eclipse, and on every full moon a lunar eclipse. But the plane of the lunar orbit crosses the plane of the ecliptic at an angle of 5 ° 9 ". Therefore, the Moon usually passes north or south of the ecliptic plane, and eclipses do not occur. Only during two periods of the year, separated by almost half a year, when the Moon is near the ecliptic during the full moon and the new moon , an eclipse is possible.

The plane of the lunar orbit rotates in space (this is one of the types of perturbations in the motion of the Moon produced by the attraction of the Sun) * and makes a complete turn in 18 years. Therefore, the periods of possible eclipses are shifted according to the dates of the year. Scientists of antiquity noticed the periodicity in eclipses associated with this 18-year period, and could therefore approximately predict the onset of eclipses. Now the errors in the prediction of the eclipse moments are less than 1 s.

Information about upcoming eclipses and the conditions of their visibility are given in the "School Astronomical Calendar".

Exercise 6

1. There was a full moon yesterday. Could there be a solar eclipse tomorrow? a week later?

2. The day after tomorrow there will be a solar eclipse. Will there be a moonlit night tonight?

3. Is it possible to observe the solar eclipse on November 15 from the North Pole of the Earth? April 15? Explain the answer.

4. Is it possible to see lunar eclipses in June and November from the North Pole of the Earth? Explain the answer.

5. How to distinguish the phase of the eclipse of the Moon from one of its usual phases?

6. What is the duration of solar eclipses on the Moon compared to their duration on Earth?

Once, after during one of the expeditions of Christopher Columbus all food supplies and water on the ship came to an end, and attempts to negotiate with the Indians did not bring success, knowledge of the approaching lunar eclipse rendered the navigator a tremendous service.

He told the locals that if they did not send him food before evening, he would take away the night luminary from them. They only laughed in response, but when the moon began to darken and turned purple at night, they were simply horrified. Water and food supplies were immediately delivered to the ship, and the Indians on their knees asked Columbus to return the luminary to the sky. The navigator could not refuse their request - and a few minutes later the moon again shone in the sky.

A lunar eclipse can be seen on a full moon when its shadow falls on the Earth's satellite (for this, the planet must be between the Sun and the Moon). Since the night luminary is at least 363 thousand km from the Earth, and the diameter of the shadow cast by the planet is two and a half times the diameter of the satellite, when the Moon is covered by the Earth's shadow, it turns out to be completely darkened.

This does not always happen: sometimes the shadow partially covers the satellite, and sometimes it does not reach the shadow and ends up near its cone, in partial shade, when only a slight darkening of one of the edges of the satellite is noticeable. Therefore, in lunar calendars, the degree of obscuration is measured in values ​​from 0 and Ф:

  • Beginning and end of a partial (partial) eclipse period - 0;
  • The beginning and end of the private phase - from 0.25 to 0.75;
  • Beginning and end of the total eclipse period - 1;
  • The period of the highest phase is 1.005.

Lunar nodes

One of the indispensable conditions necessary for the onset of a total lunar eclipse is the proximity of the Moon to the node (at this point the lunar orbit intersects with the ecliptic).

Since the orbital plane of the night star is inclined to the plane of the earth's orbit at an angle of five degrees, the satellite, crossing the ecliptic, moves towards the North Pole, reaching which it turns in the opposite direction and moves down to the South. The points where the satellite's orbit intersects with the points of the ecliptic are called the lunar nodes.


When the Moon is near a node, a total lunar eclipse can be seen (usually once every six months). It is interesting that the lunar nodes are uncharacteristic of a constant stay at one point of the ecliptic, since they are constantly shifting along the line of the constellations of the Zodiac against the course of the Sun and Moon, making one revolution in 18 years and 6 months. Therefore, it is best to determine when the next total lunar eclipse will be on the calendar. For example, if they were in November and May, then next year they will occur in October and April, then in September and March.

When the miraculous happens

If the orbit of the Moon coincided with the line of the ecliptic all the time, eclipses would take place every month and would be an absolutely common occurrence. Since the satellite is mostly above or below the earth's orbit, the shadow of our planet covers it two, maximum three times a year.

At this time, the new or full Moon is just near one of its nodes (within twelve degrees on either side), and the Sun, Earth and Moon are located on the same line. In this case, you can first see the eclipse of the Sun, and two weeks later, during the full phase of the Moon - the lunar one (these two types of eclipse always come in pairs).

It happens that a lunar eclipse does not occur at all: it happens when the Sun, Earth and Moon are not on the same line at the right time, and the earth's shadow either passes by the satellite or touches it with penumbra. True, the event is practically indistinguishable from the Earth, since the brightness of the satellite at this time decreases only slightly and can only be seen through telescopes (if the Moon, being in a penumbral eclipse, passes very close to the shadow cone, you can see a slight darkening on one side) . If the satellite is only partially in the shadow, a partial lunar eclipse occurs: part of the celestial body darkens, the other remains in partial shade and is illuminated by the rays of the Sun.

How does an eclipse happen?

Since the shadow of the Earth is much larger than the satellite, it sometimes takes a lot of time for the night luminary to pass it, so a total lunar eclipse can last either a very short period of time, about four to five minutes, or more than an hour (for example, the maximum recorded duration of the phase on the night of the lunar eclipse was 108 minutes).

The duration of this phenomenon will largely depend on the location of the three heavenly bodies to each other.

If you watch the moon from the northern hemisphere, you can see that the earth's penumbra covers the moon on the left side. Half an hour later, the satellite of our planet is completely in shadow - and on the night of the lunar eclipse, the luminary acquires a dark red or brown hue. The sun's rays illuminate the satellite even during a total eclipse and, passing along a tangent line relative to the earth's surface, are scattered in the atmosphere, reaching the night star.



Since red has the longest wavelength, it, unlike other colors, does not disappear and reaches the lunar surface, highlighting it in red, the shade of which largely depends on the state of the earth's atmosphere at the moment. The brightness of a satellite on the night of a lunar eclipse is determined by a special Danjon scale:

  • 0 - total lunar eclipse, the satellite will be almost invisible;
  • 1 - The moon is dark gray;
  • 2 - earth satellite of gray-brown color;
  • 3 - the moon is characterized by a reddish-brown hue;
  • 4 - the satellite is copper-red in color, it is visible very clearly and all the details of the lunar surface are clearly distinguished.

If we compare photos that were taken on the night of a lunar eclipse in a different period, you can see that the color of the moon is different. For example, the Earth's satellite during the summer eclipse of 1982 was red, while in the winter of 2000 the Moon was brown.

History of the lunar calendar

People have long understood how important the Moon plays in the life of the planet, and therefore they planned all their activities, focusing on its phases (new moons, full moons, waning, eclipses), since they were the most observed celestial phenomena.

It is not surprising that the lunar calendar is considered the most ancient calendar in the world: it was according to it that people in the early stages of their development determined when to start and finish sowing work, observed the influence of the moon on the growth of vegetation, the ebb and flow of tides, and even how the night the luminary affects the human body, which, as you know, contains a large amount of fluids.


It is impossible to determine which people first created the lunar calendar. The first objects that were used as lunar calendars were found in France and Germany and were created thirty thousand years ago. These were applied signs in the form of a crescent or winding lines on the walls of caves, stones or animal bones.

Lunar calendars were also found, created eighteen thousand years ago in Russia near the city of Achinsk in the Krasnoyarsk Territory. A calendar was also found in Scotland, whose age is at least ten thousand years.

The modern form of the lunar calendar was given by the Chinese, who already in the II millennium BC. formed the basic provisions, and used it until the XX century. Also an important role in the development of the lunar calendar belongs to the Hindus, who for the first time gave the basic descriptions of the phases, lunar days and the positions of the Moon relative to the Earth and the Sun.

The lunar calendar was replaced by the solar one, because during the formation of a settled way of life, it became obvious that agricultural work was still more tied to the seasons, that is, to the Sun. The lunar calendar turned out to be inconvenient due to the fact that the lunar month does not have a stable time and constantly shifts by 12 hours. For every 34 solar years, there is one extra lunar year.

Nevertheless, the moon had enough influence. For example, the modern Gregorian calendar, adopted about five hundred years ago, contains such statements drawn from lunar calendars as the number of days in a week and even the term "month".

The sun is shining, but not as bright as it used to be, the temperature is slowly dropping. The dimensions of the resulting crescent are reduced, and as a result, the black disk has ceased to let in the slightest rays of light. Instead of a bright and warm day, an unusual night surrounds you, and there is no Sun in the sky, only a large black circle shining with unusual silvery rays.

The noise of nature subsides almost immediately, and the plants begin to fold their leaves. After a few minutes, everything will return to its place and the streets of the city will come to life. Many years ago, such phenomena inspired wild horror in people, instilling panic and fear of the inevitable in their hearts.

What is a lunar eclipse?

This is the moment when the Moon enters the shadow area of ​​the Earth. During this period, all three components: the Sun, the Earth and the Moon are located on the same line in such a way that the Earth does not transmit sunlight to its satellite. Therefore, this phenomenon occurs only on the full moon.

During the period, when it happens, you will be able to see the moon in a completely darkened form or in partially darkened. Half the population of the Earth can observe the phenomenon, from which the moon is visible at the time of the eclipse.

Since the diameter of the shadow of the Moon is more than 2 times smaller than the diameter of the Earth, it can completely cover the disk of the Moon. That's what it is full eclipse. If the moon is partially immersed in the shadow of the Earth, then this phenomenon is called private.

In the presence of a curved line created by the arrangement of the three main objects, people may not see a total eclipse at all. If the earth's shadow covers only a small part of the lunar disk, then as a result of this, one can see the covering of the lunar disk with penumbra. Their location will affect the duration of the eclipse phases.

A total lunar eclipse doesn't mean she's out of sight. It's just that the lunar disk takes on a different color - dark red. The scientific explanation for the change in color lies in the refraction of the sun's rays going to the moon. Passing along a tangent path to the globe, the rays are scattered and only red rays remain (blue and cyan color spectra are absorbed by our atmosphere).

Just these rays reach the surface during an eclipse. The nature of the "focus" is exactly the same as during sunset, when a delicate pink or orange color is observed far beyond the horizon.

How does solar happen?

Planets with their satellites, as everyone knows, are constantly moving: The moon is around the globe, and the earth is around the solar disk. In the process of constant movement, specific moments may arise when the Sun can be obscured by the lunar disk. This can happen in full or in part.

A solar eclipse is the shadow from the lunar disk that falls on the Earth. Its radius reaches the mark of 100 kilometers, which is several times less than the radius of the globe. Because of this, it is possible to observe a natural phenomenon only on a small strip of the Earth.

If you are in this band of shadow, you will be able to see a total eclipse, during which the solar orb will be completely covered by the Moon. At this point, the lighting disappears and people can observe the stars.

The inhabitants of the planet, who are near the strip, will be able to admire this phenomenon only in private. A partial eclipse is characterized by the passage of the Moon not in the central part of the Sun, covering only a small part of it.

At the same time, the onset of gloomy darkness around is not so strong, and you will not be able to see it during the day. About 2,000 kilometers is the distance from the site of the total eclipse at which you can observe a partial eclipse.

A solar eclipse is a truly unique phenomenon. which we can observe. This is possible only for the reason that the sizes of the Sun and the Moon are almost the same when viewed from the Earth, despite the enormous difference in their sizes (the Sun is almost 400 times larger than the Moon). The difference in size is compensated by the location of the solar disk, which is located at a great distance.

A total solar eclipse is sometimes accompanied by such an effect as a solar corona - people can see layers of the atmosphere of the solar disk that cannot be seen at normal times. A very mesmerizing sight that everyone needs to see.

Which total eclipse is longer and why?

About 1.5 hours is the maximum duration of a total lunar eclipse.

The brightness of the moon can be of different levels (at the beginning of the eclipse). In some cases, the lunar disk is not visible at all, and sometimes, on the contrary, it may seem that there was no eclipse at all - the Moon can be so bright.

A solar eclipse can only be seen on a new moon., when the lunar disk cannot be seen from the Earth due to its location in the solar system. This creates the illusion that during an eclipse, the solar disk is covered by something else that cannot be connected with the Moon in any way.

The shadow cast by the moon on the surface of the globe is cone-shaped. Its tip is located a little further from the Earth, which leads to the formation of a black spot when a shadow hits the earth's surface.

The spot diameter is approximately 150-250 kilometers. The speed of its movement on the surface of the Earth is 1 km per second, which is why any one place on the planet cannot be closed for a long time.

The total phase of a solar eclipse lasts no more than 7.5 minutes, partial 1.5-2 hours.

What's the difference between them?

The main difference between a solar and a lunar eclipse is that the former is considered more external, affecting the events taking place around a person. Therefore, lunar eclipses are considered more internal, having a connection with the emotional side of a person (life problems, reflections, and so on).

In some cases, internal reflections lead to new events that have a direct connection with the external part. Arguing on a psychological level, one can come to a logical conclusion: events that are not consciously caused by a person will be brought along with the appearance of solar eclipses, and conscious events that have come into being due to our feelings and will be associated with lunar eclipses.

Moon and omens

If a solar eclipse, according to many superstitions, does not bring anything good, then the lunar eclipse carries another symbol - a new beginning.

During a lunar eclipse, it is recommended to get rid of your bad habits, since it will become much easier to do this during this period. It is believed that if you quit smoking during a lunar eclipse, you will not return to this harmful process.

Speaking of conception during a lunar eclipse, this is highly discouraged.. As the signs say, a child conceived at this time will receive all the bad qualities of his parents.

Our grandmothers also said that you can’t borrow money during a lunar eclipse. Now, of course, it is impossible to hear this without an ironic smile, but you should not be such a skeptic, because we all know how a lunar eclipse affects the human body. Some and beliefs have a certain meaning.

What to avoid during a lunar eclipse, according to ancient beliefs:

  • lend money and borrow yourself
  • get married and get married
  • dissolve the bonds of marriage
  • conduct operations
  • move to another habitat
  • buy expensive goods
  • make big deals.

Superstition and heavenly body

“In 15 minutes, residents of Yekaterinburg will also be able to watch the solar eclipse,” the phrase was said in the news release. But this is not only an excuse for local residents to run out into the street with tinted windows in the hope of seeing a unique process. Very often, this natural phenomenon causes anxiety or even panic in people.

Even despite the great progress in the field of astronomy, genetic memory sometimes loudly reminds of itself. Most residents experience extreme stress or fear during eclipses., therefore, it is undesirable for too impressionable citizens to start any business or make serious decisions.

Couples in love have one tradition - to offer their heart and hand during solar eclipses. Well, it's more romantic. At the time of the proposal, the closed Sun is shaped a bit like an engagement ring with a large diamond. It is believed that no girl is able to refuse such a romantic gesture.

If during this period you managed to twist your leg or break your heel, then this means that the path you have chosen is wrong.

A popular sign says that the year in which this phenomenon is observed will be unfavorable for the crop., and what you still manage to collect will not be stored for a long time.

But not all omens are bad. For example, if you spilled water during an eclipse or got caught in the rain, then this is considered a good sign and awaits you.

If you listen to all folk signs, then for the period of a solar eclipse you cannot:

  • travel
  • drink alcoholic beverages
  • drive a car
  • make expensive purchases
  • to make friends or just get to know
  • to risk.

For especially superstitious people, there is one solution: during a solar eclipse, they simply close all the windows, thereby blocking themselves from the “light”.

The recommendations of most astrologers are that 2 weeks before the solar eclipse it is necessary to solve all the problems that have accumulated before this time, and complete all the work that has been started. As the interpreters of the stars note, the period of a solar eclipse is very favorable so that you can successfully say goodbye to unnecessary connections, bad habits and pieces of furniture or clothing that you are tired of.

The period is not very long - only a week after the eclipse and 2 weeks before - try not to show weakness and not succumb to temptations, control yourself (do not show aggression, greed and ambition). During this period, only kindness, generosity and nobility should radiate from you. Only in this way can you find peace in this life.

Probably everyone in his life at least once heard or even saw such a phenomenon as a solar eclipse. Have you asked yourself the question, where does it come from, what are the reasons for its occurrence, in general, what kind of natural phenomenon is this?

The first such phenomena were noticed by mankind in ancient times. Previously, people at the sight of a solar eclipse were lost and felt wild horror before this mysterious phenomenon. As a rule, among ordinary people there was an opinion that at this moment some terrible dragon is trying to destroy the sun and it must be protected. Since the solar eclipse does not last long, the plan of the locals always worked. They armed themselves with military weapons and went to the "war", after it got light on the street, people returned to their home calm and satisfied that they had driven away the evil spirits and saved the sun. It is also known that the first eclipse in the history of mankind was during the reign of Chung-Kang, the fourth emperor from the Hena dynasty. It is to this period that the entry in one of the books of ancient China, "Shujing" ("Book of History"), is dated. The date of the solar eclipse was set only in the nineteenth century - October 22, 2137 BC. e.

By the way, each solar eclipse is connected in one way or another with historical events. So, it happened on August 3, 431 BC. e. during the Peloponnesian War in Greece. Establishing the exact date of the eclipse helped to restore some moments of the war, including the date. The solar eclipse that happened during that period of time was not total.

Today it is already established that there is a solar eclipse. This is such a natural phenomenon, the essence of which is that the moon eclipses the sun. The appearance of a solar eclipse is associated with the fact that when the Moon, the Earth and the Sun line up, and a new moon occurs.

So this astronomical phenomenon does not occur at every new moon. Depending on how much the Moon covers the Sun, a total or partial eclipse is distinguished. Of course, it's all about the lunar shadow, which can be of various sizes, and a person who is on the surface of the Earth and falls into the shadow zone will be able to see a total solar eclipse.

The duration of such an astronomical phenomenon is only a few minutes, since the speed of the Moon's shadow is 1 km / s, at least. The full cycle of the eclipse is 6 hours, and it starts in the western part of the earth at sunrise, and ends in the eastern part at sunset.

Naturally, with a partial eclipse, you will not see the same effect as with a total eclipse. Astronomers also distinguish an annular solar eclipse, the essence of which is that the Moon passes by the Sun and is smaller in diameter than the latter, it turns out that during the eclipse you can see the Sun in a circle.

The frequency of a solar eclipse is usually 2-5 eclipses per year. And not always all these phenomena will be exactly a total solar eclipse. Astrologers predict that the longest total solar eclipse will occur on July 16, 2186, and its time will be 7 minutes 29 seconds.

I would like to give a chronology of solar eclipses over the past 10 years. Of course, not all cases of this phenomenon will be given here, but the most basic ones.

June 21, 2001 - a total solar eclipse. The phenomenon was best seen by those people who were at that moment in the equatorial part of the southern hemisphere. The width of the lunar shadow during the eclipse was 200 kilometers, and the length was 373320 km. Time: 12:04:46;

3. June 10, 2002 - an annular solar eclipse. The best visibility was in the northern hemisphere zone. The duration was approximately 23 seconds. The width of the beam shadow was only 13 kilometers, and the length was 373320 km. Event time: 23:45:22.

5. October 3, 2005 - an annular eclipse. The maximum phases could be observed in areas south of Europe (Portugal and Spain) and Africa.

6. On March 29, 2006, a total solar eclipse occurred, which was well observed in the western part of Russia.

7. March 19, 2007 - a partial solar eclipse that could be seen in North America.

8. August 1, 2008 - a total solar eclipse, the active phase of which fell on Novosibirsk. The start time is 17:44:02. Duration - 2 minutes 18 seconds.

9. July 22, 2009 - total solar eclipse. It was clearly visible in many countries of the world - India, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar, Bangladesh and others.

11. January 4, 2011 - partial solar eclipse. The location is the northern hemisphere. Start at 10:38. Such a phenomenon humanity will be able to observe only in 2015.

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