Prepared by:
Ms. Namrata Singh
What is an eclipse?
 An eclipse occurs when one object in space blocks an
observer from seeing another object in space.
 From Earth there are two main types of eclipses: solar
eclipse and lunar eclipse.
Types of shadow in Eclipse:
 The Moon and the Earth cast 3 shadows namely –
umbra, penumbra and antumbra.
 An umbra: It is the dark center area of a shadow.
The Moon’s umbra produces total solar eclipses, and
the Earth’s umbra produces total and partial lunar
eclipses.
 Penumbra: It is the lighter outer portion of the
shadow. Earth’s penumbra causes a penumbral
lunar eclipse.
 An antumbra: The lighter portion of a shadow that
forms at a certain distance from the object that
causes the shadow.
Solar Eclipse
 Also known as the eclipse of the sun, it occurs when the
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moon comes in between the sun and the earth.
As a result, the moon blocks the light of the sun from
reaching the earth’s surface and casts a shadow on it.
This occurs in a new moon phase.
At this point, the Moon cannot be seen because its lighted
half is facing the Sun and its dark side faces Earth.
Solar eclipses occur because the Moon is about 400 times
closer to Earth than the Sun and about 400 times smaller.
We can observe up to five solar eclipses per year.
 Depending on the distance of the moon from the earth
during the event, different types of solar concealment
can be observed. They can be categorized as:
 Partial
 Annular
 Total
Partial solar eclipse:
 When the moon does not align completely with the
sun, and so only a portion of the sunlight is blocked
from reaching the earth.
 The Moon covers only a part of the Sun.
 Usually, the Moon and the Sun do not come in an exact
straight line, so in such a situation, the Sun’s disk is
only partially blocked.
Annular solar eclipse:
 When the moon covers the sun, but the sun can be
seen around the edges of the moon, giving an
impression that the sun is a bright ring surrounding
the dark disc of the moon.
 The Moon covers only a part of the Sun.
Total solar eclipse:
 The moon’s dark shadow, or umbra, is small. The
moon produces its shadow over a very small area of the
Earth’s surface; hence only observers present inside the
umbra region will be able to see a total solar eclipse.
 In the course of a total solar eclipse, the Moon covers
the complete disk of the Sun; hence the body of the
sun looks completely dark.
 The sun rays are very strong, and they can burn
our eyes and damage the retina. So, always wear
protective glasses to see the sun and the total
solar eclipse.
Lunar Eclipse
 Also known as the eclipse of the moon, it occurs when
the earth comes in between the sun and the moon.
 As a result, the earth blocks the light of the sun from
reaching the moon’s surface and casts its shadow on
the moon.
 It occurs on a full moon phase.
 We can observe up to three lunar eclipses per year.
Types of Lunar Eclipse:
 A lunar eclipse is determined by the position of the
Earth, Moon, and Sun.
 There are three types of eclipses, depending on the
Moon's position and how the light from the Sun strikes
its surface.
 Lunar eclipse types include total eclipse, partial
eclipse, and penumbral eclipse.
1. Total lunar eclipse takes place when the moon is
completely blocked of the rays from the sun by the
earth's umbral shadow.
2. Penumbral lunar eclipse takes place when the
complete moon is partially blocked of the rays from
the sun under the earth's penumbral shadow.
3. Partial lunar eclipse takes place when a part of the
moon is under the earth's umbral shadow.
This diagram shows paths of different types of lunar eclipse
Earth casting its shadow on the Moon.
Sun, Earth, and Moon are not perfectly aligned
during a penumbral eclipse
Part of the Moon dips into the Earth's umbra during a
partial lunar eclipse.
Wonder how to see a lunar
eclipse??
 Lunar eclipses are some of the most easy-to-watch
astronomical events.
 All you need to see them are clear skies and a pair
of eyes.
Earth and Sun
Summary
 The amount of gravitational force between the sun and
the planet depends on the mass.
 The Earth revolves around the Sun, whereas the Moon
revolves around the Earth.
 The Moon does not have its own light; it reflects the
light that falls on it from the Sun.
 When the Earth blocks sunlight that reaches the
Moon, it causes a total lunar eclipse.
 Partial lunar eclipse occurs when, the Moon passes
through a part of the Earth’s shadow.
 The Moon and the Earth cast three shadows namely –
umbra, penumbra and antumbra.
 A total solar eclipse occurs when, the Earth passes
through the Moon’s shadow.