I saw a solar eclipse when I was 8. Have you seen one?
I saw the Great American Eclipse on August 21, 2017. That one was a total solar eclipse.
Oh I remember that! My parents drove to another state to see it. Why did they call it the Great American Eclipse?
It was the only eclipse visible across the entire region of the United States, since 1918.
I did not know that! Have you seen any other kinds of eclipses?
I've seen a partial eclipse, but i'm still waiting to see an annular eclipse.
What is an annular eclipse?
Solar eclipse
A solar eclipse occurs when a portion of the Earth is engulfed in a shadow cast by the Moon which fully or partially blocks ("occults") sunlight. This occurs when the Sun, Moon and Earth are aligned. Such alignment coincides with a new moon (syzygy) indicating the Moon is closest to the ecliptic plane. In a total eclipse, the disk of the Sun is fully obscured by the Moon. In partial and annular eclipses, only part of the Sun is obscured.
If the
American Eclipse
American Eclipse or Great American Eclipse may refer to:
- "American Eclipse" (book), the 2017 book about the 1878 solar eclipse by David Baron
- American Eclipse (racehorse), a 19th-century racehorse
- Solar eclipse of June 8, 1918, "Great American Eclipse", a total solar eclipse seen widely across the contiguous United States
- Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017, "Great American Eclipse", a total solar eclipse seen widely across the contiguous United