Lunar Eclipse on World Geography

The lunar eclipse is also a celestial phenomenon where the sun, moon, and earth come in a straight line. But, lunar eclipse and solar eclipse are different from each other. In the Lunar eclipse, the earth arrives in between the sun and the moon. In this way, the shadow of the earth falls on the moon. Also, the lunar eclipse can only happen during the Full Moon. But, the orbits of the moon and earth are different. That’s why the lunar eclipse happens only up to 3-4 times a year. 

Difference between a solar and lunar eclipse

There are generally two types of eclipses- lunar and solar. The earth revolves around the sun, and the moon revolves around the earth. During the course of their revolution, the earth, sun, and the moon fall in a straight line. 

The moon arrives in the way of the sun and earth in a solar eclipse. Hence, its shadow falls on the earth. The lunar eclipse arises when the earth comes in the middle of the moon and sun. As a result, the shadow of the earth falls on the moon, and it appears dark. 

Also, the lunar eclipse is more visible than the solar eclipse because the earth has a wider shadow upon the moon. The following solar and lunar eclipse layout is helpful in understanding the difference between the two eclipses.                     

Types of lunar eclipse

There are mainly three different lunar eclipse types. They are partial, total, and penumbral. Hence, the explanation of these three types is given below. 

Partial Lunar Eclipse

Lunar eclipses are also partial. During the partial lunar eclipse, only a small part of the moon is hidden by the earth’s shadow. It means that the moon, earth, and the sun are not aligned perfectly. However, even the total eclipse also goes through the partial phase. As a result, the moon appears to have a unique colour of reddish-orange. 

Total Lunar Eclipse

The total lunar eclipse arises when the full shadow of the earth directly falls on the moon. However, the moon doesn’t disappear completely, but the darkness can confuse people if the moon is present or not. Also, some sunlight refracted from the earth’s surface gives the moon a dim glow. The total, as well as partial lunar eclipse diagram, is given below. 

Penumbral Lunar Eclipse

The penumbral lunar eclipse occurs when the moon stands in the penumbral shadow. Thus, it is not very visible. It is because the shadow of the earth very lightly shades the moon. That is why the penumbral lunar eclipse is very difficult to understand. 

Why does the moon appear red during the total lunar eclipse? 

The earth blocks the sunlight to reach the moon. However, being under the shadow of the earth, the refracted sunlight reflects from the earth to the moon. But, the sunlight goes deep inside the earth’s atmosphere and mostly filters blue-ray lights. 

Also, the remaining light is orange or deep red in colour and very light. That’s why the moon appears to be in the shade of brownish, red, and even yellow. 

What affects the duration of the lunar eclipse?

The duration of any type of eclipse happens due to two reasons. They are the orbital speed of the moon and near totality. 

The orbit of the moon as well as the earth is not a perfect circle. Due to this, the moon is sometimes far away and sometimes closer to the earth. The distance change also affects the orbital speed of the moon. 

It is because when the moon is near to the earth, it travels faster. On the other hand, the moon moves slowly when it is far away. Secondly, during the total lunar eclipse, the moon remains under the earth’s umbra rather than in the partial. 

How to watch the lunar eclipse?

There is no requirement for any equipment or a huge telescope to watch the lunar eclipse. But, for a detailed view, a telescope or binoculars are helpful in noticing the earth’s surface. Therefore, it is not harmful to see the lunar eclipse from the naked eye. 

Conclusion

In conclusion, a lunar eclipse arises when the sun, moon, and earth come into a straight line. The earth comes in the middle of the moon and the sun in this process. As a result, the shadow of the earth falls upon the moon. Due to this reason, the moon appears to be darker. There are three different types of lunar eclipses. They are penumbral eclipse, partial eclipse, and total lunar eclipse. Therefore, total and partial eclipses are common and easy to observe compared to the penumbral lunar eclipse.