One hundred years ago this month, observations performed during a total solar eclipse proved for the first time the gravitational bending of light predicted by Albert Einstein's new theory of gravity, general relativity. ...
Astronomy
May 24, 2019
1
8
A team of researchers with Cornell University and the University of Oxford has found that birds and insects reacted in some surprising ways to the 2017 U.S. total solar eclipse. In their paper published in the journal Biology ...
An observational technique first proposed more than four decades ago to measure the physical parameters of the corona that determine the formation of the solar wind—the source of disturbances in Earth's upper atmosphere—will ...
Space Exploration
Nov 06, 2018
4
14
While millions of Americans took a break from their daily routines on August 21, 2017, to witness a total solar eclipse, they might not have noticed a similar phenomenon happening nearby: In the path of totality, bees took ...
Plants & Animals
Oct 10, 2018
0
206
It was Aug. 14, 2017, just one week before the Moon would cross paths with the Sun and Earth, casting its shadow across the United States. The entire country buzzed with anticipation for the fleeting chance to see the corona, ...
Space Exploration
Aug 27, 2018
0
139
The 2017 total solar eclipse spurred a flurry of interest about solar eclipses, according to the final report of a survey led by the University of Michigan.
Space Exploration
Aug 13, 2018
1
13
Thanks to a quirk of our cosmos, the Moon's average distance from Earth is just right for it to appear as the same size in the sky as the significantly larger Sun. Once in a while the Moon slides directly between Earth and ...
Space Exploration
Aug 13, 2018
0
21
The longest "blood moon" eclipse this century dazzled skygazers across the globe Friday, coinciding with Mars' closest approach in 15 years in a thrilling celestial spectacle.
Space Exploration
Jul 28, 2018
0
308
Solar eclipses will occur at opposite ends of the Earth this summer, 2018. Both will be merely partial solar eclipses as seen from the Earth's surface, not as dramatic as last summer's total solar eclipse whose path of totality ...
Space Exploration
Jul 09, 2018
0
13
"During the August 21, 2017, solar eclipse, our dozens of telescopes and electronic cameras collected data during the rare two minutes at which we could see and study the sun's outer atmosphere, the corona," reported solar-astronomer ...
Space Exploration
Jun 07, 2018
0
9
A solar eclipse occurs when the moon passes between the Sun and the Earth so that the Sun is fully or partially covered. This can only happen during a new moon, when the Sun and Moon are in conjunction as seen from the Earth. At least two and up to five solar eclipses can occur each year on Earth, with between zero and two of them being total eclipses. Total solar eclipses are nevertheless rare at any location because during each eclipse totality exists only along a narrow corridor in the relatively tiny area of the Moon's umbra.
A total solar eclipse is a spectacular natural phenomenon and many people travel to remote locations to observe one. The 1999 total eclipse in Europe helped to increase public awareness of the phenomenon, as illustrated by the number of journeys made specifically to witness the 2005 annular eclipse and the 2006 total eclipse. The recent solar eclipse of January 26, 2009 was an annular eclipse (see below), while the solar eclipse of July 22, 2009 was a total solar eclipse.
In ancient times, and in some cultures today, solar eclipses have been attributed to supernatural causes. Total solar eclipses can be frightening for people who are unaware of their astronomical explanation, as the Sun seems to disappear in the middle of the day and the sky darkens in a matter of minutes.
This text uses material from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA
