As you know, the Earth is orbiting the Sun, and the Moon is orbiting the Earth. Every once and a while, the Sun, Moon, and Earth all line up and something very special happens. A solar eclipse happens when the Moon passes between the Earth and the Sun. During a solar eclipse, the Moon totally or partially blocks out the Sun during the daytime. There are three main types of eclipses: total solar eclipse, annular solar eclipses, and partial solar eclipses.
If you are viewing a solar eclipse soon, make sure to try out building your own solar eclipse viewer box and learn how to identify the different stages of a solar eclipse!
Total Eclipse
There are a few different types of solar eclipses. The most dramatic type of eclipse is a total eclipse. A total eclipse happens when the Moon passes directly between the Earth and the Sun and blocks the Sun from our view on the ground. Totality is the phase of the eclipse when the Moon fully covers the Sun. When this happens, part of the Earth is totally in the moon’s shadow. If you are in the shadow, it becomes dark during the daytime. The Sun’s corona is seen behind the Moon during totality.
Annular Eclipse
The second type is an annular eclipse. During both annular and total solar eclipses, the Moon passes directly between the Earth and the Sun. However, in an annular eclipse, the moon cannot fully cover the sun because the moon is at its furthest distance from Earth on its elliptical orbit.
Partial Eclipse
The third type of solar eclipse is a partial eclipse. Partial eclipses are the most common. During a partial eclipse, the Moon passes between the Earth and the Sun, but is not perfectly lined up. Consequently, the Moon only blocks part of the Sun.
Learn about the solar eclipse with Wild Earth Lab
Are you viewing a solar eclipse soon with your students or family? Try out my solar eclipse learning materials!
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References and Further Reading
- Lea, R. (2023). The 5 main stages of October’s annular solar eclipse explained. Space.com. Available: https://www.space.com/annular-solar-eclipse-2023-main-stages-explained
- NASA (n.d.). Types of Solar Eclipses. Available: https://science.nasa.gov/eclipses/types/
- NCAR & UCAR Science Education (2017). 2017 Great North American Eclipse and the HAO Connection (video). Available: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rBxymVkpMl8
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[…] view a solar eclipse using a homemade eclipse viewer box. You can use this viewer box to watch a partial or annular solar eclipse, or track the progress of a total solar eclipse before and after […]