How Do You Tell the Difference Between Total, Annular, Solar, and Lunar Eclipses?

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Rafferty</div> <div class="editor-description font-12 font-serif mt-5 clamp-description text-black">John P. Rafferty writes about Earth processes and the environment. He serves currently as the editor of Earth and life sciences, covering climatology, geology, zoology, and other topics that relate to...</div> </a> <div data-popper-arrow></div> </div> <span class="btn btn-link editor-link p-0 qa-byline-link gtm-byline font-12 byline-contributor text-decoration-underline"> John P. Rafferty</span></div> <div class="font-serif font-12 text-gray-700"> <span class="qa-fact-checked-by">Fact-checked by</span> <div class="editor-popover popover p-0"> <a class="d-block p-20 qa-editor-popup font-12" href="/editor/The-Editors-of-Encyclopaedia-Britannica/4419" > <div class="editor-title font-16 font-weight-bold">The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica</div> <div class="editor-description font-12 font-serif mt-5 text-black">Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.</div> </a> <div data-popper-arrow></div> </div> <span class="btn btn-link editor-link p-0 qa-byline-link font-12 "> The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica</span></div></div> </div> <article class="topic-content content mt-20"><figure class="md-assembly md-feature-assembly print-false" data-type="1" data-descid="1"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper card-media" data-type="image"><a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/41/196341-050-6B55B7E7/solar-eclipse-moon-sun-space-astronomy.jpg" target="_blank" class="gtm-assembly-link position-relative d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center " data-href="*"><img src="https://cdn.britannica.com/41/196341-050-6B55B7E7/solar-eclipse-moon-sun-space-astronomy.jpg?w=600&q=60" alt="solar eclipse, sun, moon, astronomy, space" data-width="1600" data-height="1131" loading="eager"><button class="magnifying-glass btn btn-circle position-absolute shadow btn-white top-10 right-10" aria-label="Zoom in"><em class="material-icons link-blue" data-icon="zoom_in"></em></button></a></div><figcaption class=""><div class="md-assembly-caption text-muted font-14 font-serif line-clamp"><span><button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-white js-content" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"><span class="link-blue">(more)</span></button></span></div><cite class="credit d-block mt-5">© solarseven/Dreamstime.com</cite></figcaption></figure><p class="topic-paragraph">Traditionally, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/eclipse" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">eclipses</a> are divided into two major types: <em><a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/solar-eclipse" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">solar</a></em> and <em><a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/lunar-eclipse" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">lunar</a></em>.  Solar eclipses occur when the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Moon" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Moon</a> passes between <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Earth" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Earth</a> and the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Sun" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Sun</a>, leaving a moving region of shadow on Earth’s surface. Lunar eclipses occur when Earth passes between the Sun and the Moon, casting a shadow on the Moon. </p><span class="MOD1"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">Solar eclipses may be classified as either <em>total</em>, in which the Moon completely covers the Sun, or <em>annular</em>, in which the Moon obscures all but an outer ring of the Sun. Whether an eclipse is total or annular depends on the distance between these three objects. Earth travels in an elliptical orbit around the Sun, and the Moon travels in an elliptical orbit around Earth, so the distance between these celestial bodies changes. When the Sun is nearest to Earth and the Moon is at or near its greatest distance, the Moon appears smaller than the Sun in the sky. When an eclipse of the Sun happens in this situation, the Moon will not appear large enough to cover the disk of the Sun completely, and a rim or ring of light will remain visible in the sky. This is an annular eclipse. </p><span class="MOD2"></span><p class="topic-paragraph"><figure class="md-assembly md-feature-assembly print-false" data-type="1" data-descid="2"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper card-media" data-type="image"><a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/29/129-050-68B817B9/eclipse-geometry-shadow-region-Earth-surface-Moon.jpg" target="_blank" class="gtm-assembly-link position-relative d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center " data-href="*1225"><img src="https://cdn.britannica.com/29/129-050-68B817B9/eclipse-geometry-shadow-region-Earth-surface-Moon.jpg" alt="Figure 3: Eclipse of the Sun. The shadow of the Moon sweeps over the surface of the Earth. In the darkly shaded region (umbra) the eclipse is total; in the lightly shaded region (penumbra) the eclipse is partial. The shaded region on the oppositeside of" data-width="1600" data-height="896" loading="eager"><button class="magnifying-glass btn btn-circle position-absolute shadow btn-white top-10 right-10" aria-label="Zoom in"><em class="material-icons link-blue" data-icon="zoom_in"></em></button></a></div><figcaption class=""><div class="md-assembly-caption text-muted font-14 font-serif line-clamp"><span><a class="gtm-assembly-link md-assembly-title font-weight-bold d-inline font-sans-serif mr-5 media-overlay-link" target="_blank" href="https://cdn.britannica.com/29/129-050-68B817B9/eclipse-geometry-shadow-region-Earth-surface-Moon.jpg" data-href="*1225">geometry of a total solar eclipse</a><span>The geometry of a total solar eclipse. The shadow of the Moon sweeps over the surface of Earth. In the darkly shaded region (umbra) the eclipse is total, and in the lightly shaded region (penumbra) the eclipse is partial. The shaded region on the opposite side of Earth indicates the darkness of night. (Dimensions of bodies and distances are not to scale.)</span><button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-white js-content" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"><span class="link-blue">(more)</span></button></span></div><cite class="credit d-block mt-5">Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.</cite></figcaption></figure></p><span class="MOD3"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">There are no annular lunar eclipses because Earth is much bigger than the Moon, and its shadow will never be small enough to leave a ring. However, the Moon does experience total eclipses. If the eclipse is a total lunar eclipse, the Moon will pass through the umbra (area of total shadow) created by Earth over the course of about two hours.  Viewers will notice that the Moon does not typically go completely dark; it often takes on a red color, because the redder parts of sunlight that penetrate Earth’s atmosphere are refracted into the umbra, and this light reaches the Moon. </p><span class="MOD4"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">Both solar and lunar eclipses may also occur as <em>partial</em> eclipses. For a solar eclipse this often depends upon where the viewer observes the event. A partial eclipse may be seen by viewers who stand outside of the region of shadow created by the umbra—the path of totality—but who remain within the large region of shadow covered by the penumbra, a region of lesser shadow where some light still penetrates. A partial eclipse of the Sun also results when the Moon’s penumbra falls on Earth but its umbra does not. A partial eclipse of the Moon occurs when the Moon passes through only part of Earth’s umbra or only its penumbra. (However, penumbral lunar eclipses are difficult to spot because Earth’s penumbra is very faint.) Since the Moon is much smaller than Earth, there is no path of totality in a lunar eclipse. The eclipse will be visible to any observer on the night side of Earth when the eclipse occurs.</p><span class="MOD5"></span><p class="topic-paragraph"><figure class="md-assembly md-feature-assembly print-false" data-type="1" data-descid="2"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper card-media" data-type="image"><a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/27/127-050-E002D8A2/Geometry-lunar-eclipse-Moon-shadow-orbit-Earth.jpg" target="_blank" class="gtm-assembly-link position-relative d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center " data-href="*1223"><img src="https://cdn.britannica.com/27/127-050-E002D8A2/Geometry-lunar-eclipse-Moon-shadow-orbit-Earth.jpg" alt="Figure 1: Eclipse of the Moon. The Moon revolving in its orbit around the Earth passes through the shadow of the Earth. Umbra is the total shadow, penumbra the partial shadow." data-width="1600" data-height="668" loading="eager"><button class="magnifying-glass btn btn-circle position-absolute shadow btn-white top-10 right-10" aria-label="Zoom in"><em class="material-icons link-blue" data-icon="zoom_in"></em></button></a></div><figcaption class=""><div class="md-assembly-caption text-muted font-14 font-serif line-clamp"><span><a class="gtm-assembly-link md-assembly-title font-weight-bold d-inline font-sans-serif mr-5 media-overlay-link" target="_blank" href="https://cdn.britannica.com/27/127-050-E002D8A2/Geometry-lunar-eclipse-Moon-shadow-orbit-Earth.jpg" data-href="*1223">geometry of a lunar eclipse</a><span>Geometry of a lunar eclipse. The Moon revolving in its orbit around Earth passes through Earth's shadow. The umbra is the total shadow, and the penumbra is the partial shadow. (Dimensions of bodies and distances are not to scale.)</span><button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-white js-content" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"><span class="link-blue">(more)</span></button></span></div><cite class="credit d-block mt-5">Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.</cite></figcaption></figure></p><span class="MOD6"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">Total solar eclipses take place somewhere on the planet about every 18 months or so, but the average frequency of the event for any random point on the planet is roughly once in almost 400 years. Across the planet, however, solar eclipses are actually more frequent than lunar ones. For example, total and annular eclipses occur every five or six months. Lunar eclipses, by contrast, happen about once per year at any given location on the planet. Nevertheless, since solar eclipses can be seen from only a very limited region of Earth at a time and lunar eclipses can be seen by an entire hemisphere, solar eclipses may seem less frequent.</p><span class="MOD7"></span><span class="AM-END-OF-ARTICLE am-inline"></span></article> </div> </div> </div> <aside class="cm-rightrail d-none d-md-block ad-rail"></aside> </div> </div> </div> </div> </main> <div class="grid gx-0"> <div class="col"> <div class="md-loading hidden display-4 font-weight-normal"></div> <div class="text-center my-20 mb-100"> <button class="md-infinite-load-next btn btn-blue" data-value="next-page">Load More</button> </div> </div> <div class="col-md-da-320 hidden-xs"> </div> </div> </div> </div> </main> <div id="md-footer"></div> <noscript><iframe src="//www.googletagmanager.com/ns.html?id=GTM-5W6NC8" height="0" width="0" style="display:none;visibility:hidden"></iframe></noscript>  <script> window.ap3c = window.ap3c || {}; var ap3c = window.ap3c; ap3c.cmd = ap3c.cmd || []; ap3c.cmd.push(function() { ap3c.init('ZO4siT4cLwnykPnzZWJtd3Byb2Q', 'https://engage.email.britannica.com/'); ap3c.track({v: 0}); }); ap3c.activity = function(act) { ap3c.act = (ap3c.act || []); ap3c.act.push(act); }; var s, t; s = document.createElement('script'); s.type = 'text/javascript'; s.src = "https://engage.email.britannica.com/app.js"; t = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; t.parentNode.insertBefore(s, t); </script> <script class="marketing-page-info" type="application/json"> {"pageType":"Story","templateName":"DEMYSTIFIED","pageNumber":1,"pagesTotal":11,"pageId":6325,"pageLength":null,"initialLoad":true,"lastPageOfScroll":false} </script> <script class="marketing-content-info" type="application/json"> [] </script> <script src="https://cdn.britannica.com/mendel-resources/3-133/js/libs/jquery-3.5.0.min.js?v=3.133.48"></script> <script type="text/javascript" data-type="Init Mendel Code Splitting"> (function() { $.ajax({ dataType: 'script', cache: true, url: 'https://cdn.britannica.com/mendel-resources/3-133/dist/story-page.js?v=3.133.48' }); })(); </script> <script class="analytics-metadata" type="application/json"> {"leg":"B","adLeg":"B","userType":"ANONYMOUS","pageType":"Story","pageSubtype":"DEMYSTIFIED","articleTemplateType":null,"gisted":false,"pageNumber":1,"hasSummarizeButton":false,"hasAskButton":false,"hasAiTopQuestions":false,"hasSimplifyButton":false} </script> <script type="text/javascript"> EBStat={accountId:-1,hostnameOverride:'webstats.eb.com',domain:'www.britannica.com', json:''}; </script> <script type="text/javascript"> ( function() { $.ajax( { dataType: 'script', cache: true, url: '//www.britannica.com/webstats/mendelstats.js?v=1' } ) .done( function() { try {writeStat(null,EBStat);} catch(err){} } ); })(); </script> <div id="bc-fixed-dialogue"></div> </body> </html>

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How Do You Tell the Difference Between Total, Annular, Solar, and Lunar Eclipses? | Britannica