Annular Solar Eclipse September 1
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| Here's the path of annularity across central Africa for the solar eclipse on September 1, 2016. Xavier Jubier |
Any list of nature's grandest spectacles would certainly include
eclipses of the Sun and Moon. Up to seven of them can take place in one
year, though the last time that happened was 1982. The fewest possible
is four, as will be the case in 2016. Neither of the solar eclipses —
one total and one annular — is observable from the Americas. And both
lunar eclipses will involve extreme grazes of Earth's shadow that will
be challenging to notice at all.
Why Do Eclipses Happen?
A solar eclipse, such as the one pictured at right, occurs only at new Moon, when the lunar disk passes directly between us and the Sun. Conversely, a lunar eclipse takes place during full Moon, when our satellite passes through Earth's shadow.These alignments don't happen at every new and full Moon because the lunar orbit is tipped about 5° to Earth's orbital plane — only occasionally do the Sun, Earth, and Moon line up exactly enough for an eclipse to occur. (The technical name for that, by the way, is syzygy.)
Three types of lunar eclipse are possible (total, partial, and penumbral) depending on how deeply the full Moon plunges into or near the umbra, our planet's dark, central shadow.
If it goes all the way in, we see a total lunar eclipse that's preceded and followed by partial phases. That was the case during the widely viewed event in September 2015, which marked the conclusion of a series of four consecutive total lunar eclipses in 2014–15! Such eclipse tetrads are not common — the last one occurred during 2003–04, but the next won't begin until 2032.
This is a chance to whitness first hand the magnificent view in the Gates to Eden. Welcome and Tour in Tanzania.
To read Further, Here is the story
