Total eclipse of the sun. Solar eclipse as a natural phenomenon

Several times a year, stargazers and romantics gather in the open air to see the mesmerizing spectacle of a solar eclipse. This unusual phenomenon, which affects the rhythm of the planet as a whole, makes a person break away from his routine and think about the eternal. For scientists, an eclipse is an incredible opportunity to study new phenomena of the planet, space, universe...

A solar eclipse occurs when the solar and lunar orbits intersect and the lunar disk obscures the sun. The picture is truly mesmerizing: a black disk appears in the sky, framed by a border of sun rays that look like the rays of a crown. It becomes dark all around, and during a total eclipse you can see stars in the sky... Why wouldn’t you like a plot for a romantic date? But a date during a solar eclipse will not last long, about 4-5 minutes, but we guarantee it will be unforgettable!

When and where will the next solar eclipse be?

In 2019, you can enjoy the stunning phenomenon three times: February 15, July 13 and August 11.

Eclipse February 15

The eclipse of February 15, unfortunately, has already passed. It was partial, the moon did not completely cover the sun, and complete darkness did not occur. The southern part of our planet has become a more favorable observation point. To be precise, the best place to view the solar eclipse was Antarctica. But not only there was the disk of the moon framed by the solar corona visible. Also lucky were the residents of Australia and partly the population of South America and Africa. Residents of Russia were not at all lucky; the eclipse was not visible at any point in the large and vast country. Many photographs of residents of Antarctica, Brazil, Chile, Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay can be found on various social networks. You can also watch a video that captures the entire eclipse on the YouTube video hosting site.

Eclipse July 13

For those who are too lazy to get out of a warm and cozy crib in winter, they have an amazing opportunity to see fascinating phenomena in summer. In 2019, another partial solar eclipse will take place on July 13, 2019. You can enjoy the phenomenon in Tasmania, Australia (in the southern part), and Antarctica (in the eastern part). Therefore, we book tickets, hotel rooms and countdown! The exact time of this partial solar eclipse: 06 hours 02 minutes before noon Moscow time.

Eclipse August 11

Well, if you don’t have the opportunity to go to another country, to another continent for a couple of days to look at the solar corona, don’t worry. On August 11, the solar eclipse can be observed in Russia, in Moscow. Of course, not only in Moscow, but also in the North-Eastern part of China, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, the Far East and Siberia. People located in the central part of Russia, Scandinavia, Greenland and Canada, in the northern part, will also be able to see the phenomenon.

In 2019 there will only be partial solar eclipses. It turns out that we will not have the opportunity to see the all-consuming darkness and the appearance of stars in the sky during the day? Maybe there have never been total solar eclipses at all?

History of eclipses

Let us dwell on this issue and remember the literature course in high school. After all, the most famous solar eclipse is the eclipse of May 1, 1185. It was on this day that Prince Igor Svyatoslavovich set off on an unsuccessful campaign against the Polovtsians. It is known about him thanks to the ancient Russian work “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign,” which we study at school at our desks.

The version that there was no total solar eclipse at all disappears. But now it’s not 1185, but the 21st century; has there really been no more total solar eclipse on Earth since the 12th century?

Let's clarify, and it turns out that the last total solar eclipse was not so long ago. He could be observed on March 20, 2015. The phenomenon occurred in the north Atlantic Ocean and Africa. More recently, a solar eclipse occurred on November 14, 2012 in Australia. The longest total solar eclipse occurred on July 22, 2009. The phenomenon lasted 6 minutes and 4 seconds. To see the longest eclipse of the sun by the moon, people traveled to central and northeastern India, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Myanmar, China and the Ryukyu.

The phenomenon of a total solar eclipse has been confirmed, but, unfortunately, it is not expected in 2019. The next one will happen on July 2, 2019, and to see what is happening with your own eyes you will need to move to the central parts of Argentina and Chile, or to the Tuamotu. But those who don't like to travel will have to wait to see the total solar eclipse in Russia. You will have to wait until March 30, 2033, it is in March that the phenomenon of the black lunar disk with the solar corona can be observed in the eastern part of Russia, and also in Alaska, maybe by the time of the total eclipse the territory of the peninsula will also become part of the Russian Federation...

We remind you that in 2019 you will be able to watch 2 more partial solar eclipses: July 13 and August 11. Take a pen, go to the calendar and circle the above dates, then you will definitely not miss these events and will be able to enjoy the beauty and uniqueness of a short moment.

If you do not delve into the essence of the phenomenon, then we can say that an eclipse is a temporary disappearance of the Sun or Moon from the sky. How does this happen?

Solar and Lunar Eclipse

For example, the Moon, passing between the Earth and the Sun, completely or partially blocks the Sun from an earthly observer. This is a solar eclipse. Or the Moon, making its way around the Earth, finds itself in such a position that the Earth appears on a straight line connecting the Moon and the Sun.

The shadow of the Earth falls on the Moon, and it disappears from the sky. This is a lunar eclipse. Eclipses happen because celestial bodies constantly change location. The Earth revolves around the Sun, and the Moon revolves around the Earth. Both of these processes occur simultaneously. If for a few minutes the Moon, Earth and Sun are on the same line, an eclipse begins. A total solar eclipse is a very rare and dramatic event.

During a total solar eclipse, it seems as if some huge monster is devouring the Sun piece by piece. When the Sun disappears, the sky darkens and stars are visible in the sky. The air is rapidly cooling. Soon there is nothing left of the Sun except a thin luminous ring, as if hanging in the sky, this is what we see as part of the blazing solar corona.

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Interesting fact : During a total solar eclipse, the air temperature decreases, the sky darkens and stars appear on it.

What happens during a solar eclipse

Ancient Chinese artists depicted a solar eclipse as a dragon devouring the Sun. In fact, after a few minutes the Sun comes out of its “shelter” and the night turns into a clear day again. This dragon turns out to be the Moon, passing between the Earth and the Sun. To finally understand what happens during an eclipse, carry out a simple experiment. Turn on the desk lamp and look at it.

Now take a piece of cardboard and slowly move it in front of your eyes so that at the end of the movement the cardboard is between your eyes and the lamp. The moment when the cardboard covers the lamp from your eyes corresponds to the moment the solar eclipse begins. The cardboard is far from the lamp, but once in front of your eyes, it blocks the light of the lamp from you. If you move the cardboard further, the lamp will again open to your view.

Total and partial solar eclipse

The same can be said about the Moon. You see a solar eclipse when the Moon, crossing the daytime sky, comes between the Sun and the illuminated face of the Earth, blocking the light of the Sun from it. If the Moon blocks only part of the Sun, then a partial solar eclipse occurs.

An eclipse is an astronomical situation in which one celestial body completely blocks the light of another celestial body. The most famous are the eclipses of the Moon and the Sun. Eclipses are considered interesting natural phenomena, familiar to humanity since ancient times. They occur relatively often, but are not visible from every point on the earth. For this reason, eclipses seem to be a rare event to many. As everyone knows, planets and their satellites do not stand in one place. The Earth revolves around the Sun, and the Moon moves around the Earth. Periodically, moments arise when the Moon completely or partially covers the Sun. So why do solar and lunar eclipses occur?

Moon eclipse

During its full phase, the moon appears coppery red, especially as it approaches the center of the shadow region. This shade is due to the fact that the rays of the sun, tangent to the surface of the earth, passing through the atmosphere, are scattered and fall into the shadow of the Earth through a thick layer of air. This works best with rays of red and orange shades. Therefore, only they paint the lunar disk this color, based on the state of the earth’s atmosphere.

Eclipse of the sun

A solar eclipse is the lunar shadow on the surface of the Earth. The diameter of the shadow spot is about two hundred kilometers, which is several times smaller than the earth. For this reason, an eclipse of the sun can only be seen in a narrow strip along the path of the moon's shadow. An eclipse of the Sun occurs when the Moon comes between the observer and the Sun, blocking it.

Since the Moon on the eve of an eclipse is turned towards us with the side that does not receive light, a new moon always occurs on the eve of an eclipse of the Sun. Simply put, the Moon becomes invisible. It seems that the Sun is covered by a black disk.

Why do solar and lunar eclipses occur?

The phenomena of solar and lunar eclipses are clearly observed through. Observers were able to achieve great achievements by confirming the effect of gravity of large space objects on light rays.

In ancient times, solar and lunar eclipses caused superstitious horror among people. It was believed that eclipses foreshadow wars, famine, ruin, and mass diseases. The occultation of the Sun by the Moon is called a solar eclipse. This is a very beautiful and rare phenomenon. A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon crosses the ecliptic plane at the time of the new moon.

Solar eclipse.

Annular solar eclipse. If the disk of the Sun is completely covered by the disk of the Moon, then the eclipse is called total. At perigee, the Moon is closer to Earth by 21,000 km from the average distance, at apogee - further by 21,000 km. This changes the angular dimensions of the Moon. If the angular diameter of the Moon's disk (about 0.5°) turns out to be slightly smaller than the angular diameter of the Sun's disk (about 0.5°), then at the moment of the maximum phase of the eclipse a bright narrow ring remains visible from the Sun. This type of eclipse is called an annular eclipse. And finally, the Sun may not be completely hidden behind the disk of the Moon due to the mismatch of their centers in the sky. Such an eclipse is called a partial eclipse. You can observe such a beautiful formation as the solar corona only during total eclipses. Such observations, even in our time, can give a lot to science, so astronomers from many countries come to the country where there will be a solar eclipse.

A solar eclipse begins at sunrise in the western regions of the earth's surface and ends in the eastern regions at sunset. Typically, a total solar eclipse lasts several minutes (the longest duration of a total solar eclipse, 7 minutes 29 seconds, will be on July 16, 2186).

There are also solar eclipses on the Moon. Lunar eclipses occur on Earth at this time. The moon moves from west to east, so a solar eclipse begins from the western edge of the solar disk. The degree of coverage of the Sun by the Moon is called the phase of the solar eclipse. Total solar eclipses can only be seen in those areas of the Earth through which the Moon's shadow passes. The diameter of the shadow does not exceed 270 km, so a total eclipse of the Sun is visible only on a small area of ​​the earth's surface. Total solar eclipse on March 7, 1970.

The lunar shadow is clearly visible on the Earth's surface. Although solar eclipses occur more often than lunar eclipses, in any given place on Earth solar eclipses are observed much less frequently than lunar eclipses.

Causes of solar eclipses.

The plane of the lunar orbit at the intersection with the sky forms a large circle - the lunar path. The plane of the earth's orbit intersects with the celestial sphere along the ecliptic. The plane of the lunar orbit is inclined to the plane of the ecliptic at an angle of 5°09?. The period of revolution of the Moon around the Earth (stellar, or sidereal period) P = 27.32166 Earth days or 27 days 7 hours 43 minutes.

The plane of the ecliptic and the lunar path intersect each other in a straight line called the line of nodes. The points of intersection of the line of nodes with the ecliptic are called the ascending and descending nodes of the lunar orbit. The lunar nodes continuously move towards the movement of the Moon itself, that is, to the west, making a full revolution in 18.6 years. Every year the longitude of the ascending node decreases by about 20°. Since the plane of the lunar orbit is inclined to the ecliptic plane at an angle of 5°09?, the Moon during a new moon or full moon may be far from the ecliptic plane, and the lunar disk will pass above or below the solar disk. In this case, no eclipse occurs. For a solar or lunar eclipse to occur, the Moon must be near the ascending or descending node of its orbit during the new or full moon, i.e. close to the ecliptic. In astronomy, many signs introduced in ancient times have been preserved. The symbol of the ascending node means the head of the dragon Rahu, which attacks the Sun and, according to Indian legends, causes its eclipse.

Lunar eclipses.

During a total lunar eclipse, the Moon completely moves into the Earth's shadow. The total phase of a lunar eclipse lasts much longer than the total phase of a solar eclipse. The shape of the edge of the earth's shadow during lunar eclipses served the ancient Greek philosopher and scientist Aristotle as one of the strongest proofs of the sphericity of the Earth. Philosophers of Ancient Greece calculated that the Earth was about three times larger than the Moon, simply based on the duration of eclipses (the exact value of this coefficient was 3.66).

During a total lunar eclipse, the moon is actually deprived of sunlight, so a total lunar eclipse is visible from anywhere in the Earth's hemisphere. The eclipse begins and ends simultaneously for all geographic locations. However, the local time of this phenomenon will be different. Since the Moon moves from west to east, the left edge of the Moon enters the earth's shadow first. An eclipse can be total or partial, depending on whether the Moon enters the Earth's shadow completely or passes near its edge. The closer to the lunar node a lunar eclipse occurs, the greater its phase. Finally, when the disk of the Moon is covered not by a shadow, but by a penumbra, penumbral eclipses occur. It is difficult to notice them with the naked eye. During an eclipse, the Moon hides in the shadow of the Earth and, it would seem, should disappear from view every time, because The earth is opaque. However, the earth's atmosphere scatters the sun's rays, which fall on the eclipsed surface of the Moon, "bypassing" the Earth. The reddish color of the disk is due to the fact that red and orange rays pass through the atmosphere best.

The reddish color of the disk during a total lunar eclipse is due to the scattering of solar rays in the Earth's atmosphere.

Each lunar eclipse is different in the distribution of brightness and color in the Earth's shadow. The color of the eclipsed Moon is often assessed using a special scale proposed by the French astronomer André Danjon:

0 points - the eclipse is very dark, in the middle of the eclipse the Moon is almost or not visible at all.

1 point - the eclipse is dark, gray, details of the lunar surface are completely invisible.

2 points - the eclipse is dark red or reddish, a darker part is observed near the center of the shadow.

3 points - a brick-red eclipse, the shadow is surrounded by a grayish or yellowish border.

4 points - a copper-red eclipse, very bright, the outer zone is light, bluish.

If the plane of the Moon's orbit coincided with the plane of the ecliptic, then lunar eclipses would be repeated every month. But the angle between these planes is 5° and the Moon only crosses the ecliptic twice a month at two points called the nodes of the lunar orbit. Ancient astronomers knew about these nodes, calling them the Head and Tail of the Dragon (Rahu and Ketu). In order for a lunar eclipse to occur, the Moon must be near the node of its orbit during a full moon. There are usually 1-2 lunar eclipses per year. Some years there may be none at all, and sometimes a third thing happens. In the rarest cases, a fourth eclipse occurs, but only a partial penumbral one.

Prediction of eclipses.

The period of time after which the Moon returns to its node is called a draconic month, which is equal to 27.21 days. After such a time, the Moon crosses the ecliptic at a point shifted relative to the previous intersection by 1.5° to the west. The phases of the Moon repeat on average every 29.53 days (synodic month). The period of time of 346.62 days during which the center of the solar disk passes through the same node of the lunar orbit is called the draconic year. The recurrence period of eclipses - saros - will be equal to the period of time after which the beginnings of these three periods will coincide. Saros means "repetition" in ancient Egyptian. Long before our era, even in ancient times, it was established that saros lasts 18 years 11 days 7 hours. Saros includes: 242 draconic months or 223 synodic months or 19 draconic years. During each Saros there are 70 to 85 eclipses; Of these, there are usually about 43 solar and 28 lunar. Over the course of a year, a maximum of seven eclipses can occur - either five solar and two lunar, or four solar and three lunar. The minimum number of eclipses in a year is two solar eclipses. Solar eclipses occur more often than lunar eclipses, but they are rarely observed in the same area, since these eclipses are visible only in a narrow strip of the Moon's shadow. At any specific point on the surface, a total solar eclipse is observed on average once every 200-300 years.

It is rare that any natural or astronomical phenomenon can surpass a solar eclipse in terms of its dramatic impact and impact on humans. Understanding its internal processes and hidden mechanisms will allow you to broaden your horizons and take a step into the world of stellar science.

Solar eclipses past and present

For many thousands of years of human history, eclipses were considered exclusively harbingers of great misfortunes and catastrophes. But times changed, knowledge increased, and in an insignificant period from a historical perspective, from a harbinger of catastrophes, short-term disappearances of the sun turned for people into a grandiose show staged by nature itself.

Predicting the exact time of the beginning of astronomical events was also once the lot of dedicated priests. By the way, they used this knowledge based on considerations of benefits and assertion of their power in society.

Today's scientists, on the contrary, willingly share such information. For decades in advance, the years of solar eclipses and the places in which they will be observed are known. After all, the more people participate in observations, the more information flows into astronomical centers.

Below is a chart of solar eclipses for the near future:

• September, 01, 2016. It will be observed in the Indian Ocean, Madagascar, and partly in Africa.
• February 26, 2017. Southern Africa, Antarctica, Chile and Argentina.
• August 21, 2017. Most US states, northern Europe, Portugal.
• February 15, 2018. Antarctica, Chile and Argentina.
• July 13, 2018. Southern coast of the Australian continent, Tasmania Peninsula, part of the Indian Ocean.
• August, 11, 2018. Most countries of the Northern Hemisphere, incl. territory of Russia, the Arctic, part of Northern Asia.

Conditions and causes of solar eclipses

Most of these planets have their own satellite planets, called satellites. The presence of satellites, their constant movement around their planets and the existence of certain patterns in the ratios of the sizes of these celestial bodies and the distances between them explain the causes of solar eclipses.

Each of the celestial bodies included in our system is illuminated by the sun's rays and every second casts a long shadow into the surrounding space. The same cone-shaped shadow is cast by the Moon on the surface of our planet when, when moving along its orbit, it finds itself between the Earth and the Sun. In the place where the lunar shadow falls, an eclipse occurs.

Under normal conditions, the apparent diameters of the Sun and Moon are almost the same. Being at a distance 400 times less than the distance from the Earth to the only star in our system, the Moon is 400 times smaller in size than the Sun. Thanks to this amazingly accurate ratio, humanity has the opportunity to periodically observe a total solar eclipse.

This event can only occur during periods when several conditions are met simultaneously:

1. New Moon - The Moon faces the Sun.
2. The moon is on the line of nodes: this is the name of the imaginary line of intersection of the lunar and earth's orbits.
3. The Moon is at a fairly close distance to the Earth.
4. The line of nodes is directed towards the Sun.

Mechanism and timing of a solar eclipse

The more the surface of the star is covered by the Moon, the darker the sky becomes, on which bright stars appear. The shadows lose their usual outlines and become blurry.

The air is getting significantly colder. Its temperature, depending on the latitude through which the eclipse passes, can decrease by up to 5 degrees Celsius. Animals at this time become anxious and often rush around in search of shelter. The birds fall silent, some go to bed.

The dark disk of the Moon is creeping further and further onto the Sun, leaving behind an increasingly thin crescent. Finally, the Sun disappears completely. Around the black circle that covered it, you can see the sun's corona - a silvery glow with blurred edges. Some illumination is provided by the dawn, an unusual lemon-orange hue, flashing across the entire horizon around the observer.

The moment of complete disappearance of the solar disk usually lasts no more than three to four minutes. The maximum possible time of a solar eclipse, calculated using a special formula based on the ratio of the angular diameters of the Sun and the Moon, is 481 seconds (a little less than 8 minutes).

Then the black lunar disk moves further to the left, exposing the blinding edge of the Sun. At this moment, the solar corona and glow ring disappear, the sky brightens, the stars go out. The gradually freeing Sun gives off more and more light and heat, nature returns to its normal appearance.

It is important to note that in the northern hemisphere the Moon moves along the solar disk from right to left, and in the southern hemisphere, on the contrary, from left to right.

Main types of solar eclipses

The orbits of the Earth around the Sun and the Moon around the Earth are an ellipse, so the distances between these celestial bodies are not constant values ​​and can fluctuate within certain limits. Thanks to this principle of natural mechanics, solar eclipses are different.

At a much greater distance from the total eclipse band, one can observe partial solar eclipse, which in common parlance is often also called partial. In this case, for an observer located in a place outside the shadow band, the orbits of the night and daylight bodies intersect in such a way that the solar disk is only partially covered. Such phenomena are observed much more often and over a much larger area, while the area of ​​a solar eclipse can be several million square kilometers.

Partial eclipses occur annually in almost every part of the globe, but for most people outside the professional astronomical community, they go unnoticed. A person who rarely looks at the sky will see such a phenomenon only when the Moon covers the Sun halfway, i.e. if its phase value approaches 0.5.

Calculation of the phase of a solar eclipse in astronomy can be done using formulas of varying degrees of complexity. In the simplest version, it is determined through the ratio of the diameters of the part covered by the Moon and the total diameter of the solar disk. The phase value is always expressed only as a decimal fraction.

Sometimes the Moon passes from the Earth at a distance slightly greater than usual, and its angular (apparent) size is less than the apparent size of the solar disk. In this case there is annular or annular eclipse: The sparkling ring of the Sun around the black circle of the Moon. At the same time, observing the solar corona, stars and dawn is impossible, since the sky practically does not darken.

The width of the observation band with a similar length is significantly higher - up to 350 kilometers. The width of the penumbra is also greater - up to 7340 kilometers in diameter. If during a total eclipse the phase is equal to one or maybe even greater, then during an annular eclipse the phase value will always be greater than 0.95, but less than 1.

It is worth noting an interesting fact that the observed diversity of eclipses occurs precisely during the period of existence of human civilization. Since the formation of the Earth and the Moon as celestial bodies, the distance between them has been slowly but continuously increasing. When distances change, the pattern of a solar eclipse generally remains the same, similar to that described above.

More than a billion years ago, the distance between our planet and its satellite was smaller than it is now. Accordingly, the apparent size of the lunar disk was much larger than the size of the solar one. Only total eclipses with a much wider shadow band occurred; observation of the corona was practically impossible, as was the formation of annular eclipses.

In the distant future, millions of years from now, the distance between the Earth and the Moon will become even greater. The distant descendants of modern humanity will only be able to observe annular eclipses.

Scientific experiments for amateurs

Over time, research methods and instruments made it possible to draw conclusions about the chemical composition of our star and the physical processes occurring in it. The well-known chemical element helium was also discovered during an eclipse observed by the French scientist Jansen in India in 1868.

Solar eclipses are one of the few astronomical phenomena that can be observed by amateurs. And not only for observations: anyone can make a feasible contribution to science and record the circumstances of a rare natural phenomenon.

What can an amateur astronomer do:

• Mark the moments of contact of the solar and lunar disks;
• Record the duration of what is happening;
• Sketch or photograph the solar corona;
• Participate in an experiment to clarify data on the diameter of the Sun;
• In some cases or when using instruments, prominences can be seen;
• Take a photograph of the circular glow on the horizon line;
• Make simple observations of environmental changes.

Hence the main rule for observing the sun: be sure to wear eye protection. These can include special light filters for telescopes and binoculars, and chameleon masks for welding work. As a last resort, simple smoked glass will do.

What a solar eclipse looks like - watch the video: