Your Guide to the 2017 Total Solar Eclipse
In this book Astronomy Magazine editor Michael Bakich presents all the information you’ll need to be ready for the total solar eclipse that will cross the United States on August 21, 2017. In this one resource you’ll find out where the eclipse w
- PDF / 26,431,006 Bytes
- 391 Pages / 439.43 x 666.14 pts Page_size
- 2 Downloads / 175 Views
Your Guide to the 2017 Total Solar Eclipse
The Patrick Moore
The Patrick Moore Practical Astronomy Series
More information about this series at http://www.springer.com/series/3192
Your Guide to the 2017 Total Solar Eclipse
Michael E. Bakich
Michael E. Bakich Astronomy Magazine Milwaukee, WI, USA
ISSN 1431-9756 ISSN 2197-6562 (electronic) The Patrick Moore Practical Astronomy Series ISBN 978-3-319-27630-4 ISBN 978-3-319-27632-8 (eBook) DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-27632-8 Library of Congress Control Number: 2016936671 © Springer International Publishing Switzerland 2016 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. Printed on acid-free paper This Springer imprint is published by Springer Nature The registered company is Springer International Publishing AG Switzerland
Preface
The original meaning of έκλειψη (the Greek word for “eclipse”) is a forsaking, quitting, or disappearance. Hence the covering over of one object by another or the immersion of something into something else represents precisely the facts of an eclipse. Earth and the Moon are solid bodies in space. Each casts a shadow as a result of the Sun’s illumination. To understand eclipses, all we need to know is what results from the existence of these shadows. Total eclipses, be they of the Sun or the Moon, are examples of sublime celestial geometry. Each one is an exact lineup of the Sun, the Moon, and Earth for a total solar eclipse, or the Sun, Earth, and the Moon for a total lunar eclipse. Our solar system is a group of a huge number of bodies, a few large and many small. The main one is the Sun. Its Latin name, sol, indicates why we call the collection a solar system. Now imagine a line between the Sun and any other body at a given time. Because everything in the solar system is in motion, that line will point in a different direction as time passes. Such a line shows the direction of the object’s shadow, precisely opposite the Sun’s position in space. Every so often, an additional body comes into alig
