Here’s another kind of diagram:
– revived thanks to Madeline, who on her first birthday witnessed the total eclipse of August 2017. And for where she lives:
– farther along the eclipse’s journey, therefore seeing it later after noon, and south of the central path, thus seeing only a partial eclipse, the Sun up to 80 percent covered.
The stages shown are at intervals of half an hour around mid eclipse, which is noted in Universal Time and local clock time.
Sun and Moon appear to travel across our sky westward because Earth rotates eastward. But the Moon’s apparent travel is slower because it is revolving eastward, as if striving not to set. And its route slants relative to the Sun’s because its orbit is 5° tilted. So they can happen to arrive at the same point together, and – pow!
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This weblog maintains its right to be about astronomy or anything under the sun.
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