Anywhere from four to seven times a year, these three astronomical bodies line up just right to create these dramatic shadow shows. In this case, we see the Moon appear to cover the Sun from our perspective here on Earth or see the effect of the Earth covering the Sun on the Moon.ĭue to the Moon’s slight 5-degree tilt relative to its axis and the plane of orbit and the 23.5-degree axial tilt of the Earth, an eclipse does not occur each month as the Moon orbits the Earth. The motions of the Moon orbiting the Earth as it orbits the Sun create interesting interactions, the most dramatic of which are known as eclipses.Įclipses occur when one astronomical body appears to cover another body from the observation of a third body. The Moon orbits the Earth at an average of 238,855 miles (384,399 km) away in an elliptical orbit once every 27.322 days, creating phases in our night sky as its illuminated side points toward us and away from us at different angles in different parts of its orbit.
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