Main content
Course: Middle school Earth and space science - NGSS > Unit 2
Lesson 2: The moon and its motionsLunar eclipses
A lunar eclipse occurs when Earth casts a shadow on the moon. When the shadow fully covers the moon, the eclipse is total. When the shadow partially covers the moon, the eclipse is partial. Lunar eclipses can occur only during a full moon, when the moon and the sun are on opposite sides of Earth. Created by Khan Academy.
Want to join the conversation?
- What if an astronaut was standing on the moon during a full Lunar eclipse? what would happen then?(11 votes)
- From the moon's perspective, a full lunar eclipse would look like a solar eclipse, with Earth blocking the sun and casting its shadow on the lunar surface. From Earth, observers would see the lunar surface darken in a circular shape, while from the moon it would appear as if Earth is surrounded by a ring of fire with its sunset and sunrise connected in a loop.(8 votes)
- Wait, are you aloud to look at a lunar eclipse with a Naked eye because at2:04of the video is shows a person with no protection? And also, can a cat or dog or any animal look at a solar eclipse or will that hurt their eyes just like humans do?(10 votes)
- I think you can look at a Lunar Eclipse with only a Naked eye. It is just you cannot look at a Solar Eclipse with a Naked Eye because you are partially looking at the sun and it's disk which can be really bright. In conclusion you can look at a lunar eclipse because it is only reflected light that is already dimmed down to red light from the Earth's reflection. P.S. all animals can look at it too. It will not hurt/affect them badly.(5 votes)
- if asturnats would stay on the moon would they feel the moon rotate or would they see it(8 votes)
- The astronauts would not feel or probably see it because it is very slow.(2 votes)
- what would happen to the moon during a lunar eclipes(7 votes)
- will the moon be suitable to live without spacesuits in 10 years?(5 votes)
- It's impossible that we terraform the Moon 10 years from now. To get oxygen on the Moon, we would need to make an artificial atmosphere, and it would take more than a century to create such technology.(5 votes)
- 1:41Does the moon's orbit really tilted to the left and right like the animation?(7 votes)
- Yes, this is why not every full moon is a lunar eclipse. Hope this helps!(1 vote)
- If the earth stopped and also the moon what would happen?(4 votes)
- the moon will start to move towards Earth, and it would eventually cause Earth to start rotating again(3 votes)
- What would happen if that it was Christmas when this happened? If someone hade a bright enough light like Disney land if the light reached the moon would the moon change color?(3 votes)
- Would astronauts be blind when a solar eclipse happens?(3 votes)
- Astronauts in space would not be at risk of going blind during a solar eclipse because they are not looking directly at the sun. They are typically inside their spacecraft or wearing specialized helmets with visors that protect their eyes from the intense sunlight. Additionally, the windows of the spacecraft are designed to block out harmful solar radiation. Therefore, astronauts are able to safely observe solar eclipses from space without risking damage to their eyes.(3 votes)
- how why does the moon spin and go aroud the earth(3 votes)
Video transcript
- [Narrator] Have you
ever seen the full moon appear to change from this, to this, to this all in a couple hours? If so, you've witnessed a lunar eclipse. The word eclipse comes from a Greek word meaning "to leave." For centuries, people have marveled at how the full moon appears to leave during a lunar eclipse. The Incas believed that
lunar eclipses happened when a giant jaguar ate the full moon. It turns out, lunar eclipses happen when the moon is covered
by Earth's shadow. We can only see the moon because it reflects light from the sun. The moon doesn't generate
any light of its own. The sun lights up half of
the sphere of the moon. When Earth is between
the sun and the moon, we can see the entire
lit part of the moon. We call this the full moon. But sometimes during a full moon, Earth, the moon, and the sun all line up in such a way that Earth
casts a shadow onto the moon. This creates a lunar eclipse. Lunar eclipses can be seen from anywhere on the night side of Earth. The two most dramatic
types of lunar eclipses are total and partial. During a total lunar eclipse, Earth's shadow completely covers the moon. This means that no direct
sunlight is reaching the moon. However, the moon is still
visible during the eclipse. Why is this? As sunlight passes through our atmosphere, some of it gets bent slightly allowing it to reach the moon as indirect sunlight. Most of the light that
gets bent is red or orange, meaning that the moon
appears reddish orange during the eclipse. During a partial lunar eclipse, Earth's shadow only
partially covers the moon. So some direct sunlight is
still reaching the moon. Lunar eclipses only
happen during a full moon since it's the only
time in the moon's orbit where Earth is between
the sun and the moon. And you might be wondering,
"why isn't there a lunar eclipse during every full moon?" Well, the moon's orbit around Earth is tilted relative to
Earth's orbit around the sun. This means that the moon often passes just above or
just below Earth's shadow. Partial lunar eclipses
happen when the sun, the moon, and Earth almost,
but not quite exactly, line up so that the moon
is only partially covered by Earth's shadow. Total lunar eclipses
happen only when the sun, the moon, and Earth all line up precisely. So if you ever get to see a lunar eclipse, you can thank our planet for
blocking the moon's sunlight and letting us enjoy
the celestial spectacle.