Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of
our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief
explanation written by a professional astronomer. 2012 December
10 Explanation: Have you ever experienced a total eclipse of the
Sun? The above time-lapse movie depicts such an eclipse in
dramatic detail as visible from Australia last month. As the
video begins, a slight dimming of the Sun and the surrounding
Earth is barely perceptible. Suddenly, as the Moon moves to
cover nearly the entire Sun, darkness sweeps in from the left --
the fully blocked part of the Sun. At totality, only the bright
solar corona extends past the edges of the Moon, and darkness
surrounds you. Distant horizons are still bright, though, as
they are not in the darkest part of the shadow. At mid-totality
the darkness dips to the horizon below the eclipsed Sun, created
by the shadow cone -- a corridor of shadow that traces back to
the Moon. As the total solar eclipse ends -- usually after a few
minutes -- the process