A partial Solar Eclipse will occur on Thursday 23 October 2014,
visible from most of North America as well as parts of the Russian Far East.
The eclipse will occur between 7.35 pm and 11.15 pm GMT, and be visible from
most of Canada, the United States and Mexico, and parts of Guatemala, Belize,
Cuba, the Bahamas and the Russian Far East.
The area over which the 23 October 2014 partial Solar
Eclipse will be visible. Areas in darker grey will be able to observe the
entire eclipse, in the lighter grey areas the eclipse will either begin before
sunrise or end after sunset, so only part of the event will be visible. HMNautical Almanac Office.
Eclipses are a product of the way the Earth, Moon and Sun move about
one-another. The Moon orbits the Earth every 28 days, while the Earth orbits
the Sun every 365 days, and because the two Sun and Moon appear roughly the
same size when seen from Earth, it is quite possible for the Moon to block out
the light of the Sun. At first sight this would seem likely to happen every
month at the New Moon, when the Moon is on the same side of the Earth as the
Sun, and therefore invisible (the Moon produced no light of its own, when we
see the Moon we are seeing reflected sunlight, but this can only happen when we
can see parts of the Moon illuminated by the Sun). However the Moon does not
orbit in quite the same plane as the Earth orbits the Sun, so the Eclipses only
occur when the two orbital planes cross one-another; this typically happens two
or three times a year, and always at the New Moon. During Total Eclipses the
Moon entirely blocks the light of the Sun, however most Eclipses are Partial,
the Moon only partially blocks the light of the Sun.
Although the light of the Sun is reduced during an Eclipse, it is
still extremely dangerous to look directly at the Sun.
See also…
A total Lunar Eclipse will occur on 8 October 2014, starting at
about 9.15 am GMT. It will be visible across much of the Pacific, as well as
eastern parts of the United States and Canada, northeastern Asia and eastern
Australia. Part of the eclipse will be visible from remaining areas of the
Americas as well as the rest of Australia most of Asia, although in these areas
the Moon will either rise part way through the eclipse, or set...
The September Equinox will fall on 23 September 2014, when the day and
night will be of equal length in both of the Earth's hemispheres. The
Earth spins on its axis at an angle to the plain of the Solar System.
This means that the poles of the Earth do not remain at 90° to the Sun,
but rather the northern pole is tilted towards the...
At 5.44 pm GMT on Sunday 10 August 2014 the Moon will be at its closest point to the Earth in 2014, at a distance of 356 896 km. 27 minutes later it will officially...
At 5.44 pm GMT on Sunday 10 August 2014 the Moon will be at its closest point to the Earth in 2014, at a distance of 356 896 km. 27 minutes later it will officially...
Follow Sciency Thoughts on Facebook.
