The alignments repeat in a pattern known as a Saros cycle. But at least twice each year (sometimes as many as five times in a year), a new moon can align itself in just such a way to eclipse the sun. Partial eclipses happen much more often.Įclipses happen when the moon is in its new phase, but because of its 5-degree tilt relative to Earth's orbit around the sun, you won't see an eclipse every new moon. However, that situation happens only every 18 months. At times, the moon is close enough and in just the right position to completely cover the sun from Earth's perspective for up to 7.5 minutes. The sun is roughly 400 times bigger than the moon, but the moon orbits Earth roughly 400 times closer than Earth orbits the sun. Because the moon perfectly covers the sun only when the geometry is just right, partial solar eclipses like this one are much more common. Solar eclipses occur when the moon passes in front of the sun.
Visibility maps for the partial solar eclipseĪ solar eclipse (Image credit: Getty Images) Roughly every 18 months, the paths coincide in such a way to allow a total solar eclipse. The sun's diameter is 400 times greater than the moon's, but the moon orbits 400 times closer to Earth than Earth orbits the sun. When a total solar eclipse happens, that's due to a lucky coincidence. The greatest magnitude will be approximately at the tip of South America and the surrounding ocean, according to, so most landlubbers will need to make do with a rather smaller "bite."
The size of the "bite" you see depends on your location. You can imagine it very clearly when you think about solar system geometry: Because the moon is closer to Earth than the sun, it can pass in front of us. (Image credit: Alexander Hassenstein/Getty)Ī partial solar eclipse often looks like the moon has "bitten" or taken a piece out of the sun. A dove photobombed this picture of the partial solar eclipse of March 20, 2015, in this image taken from Munich, Germany.
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