Why are solar eclipses only visible in some areas of the planet?
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The width of the track of a central eclipse varies according to the relative apparent diameters of the Sun and Moon. In the most favourable circumstances, when a total eclipse occurs very close to perigee, the track can be over 250 km wide and the duration of totality may be over 7 minutes. Outside of the central track, a partial eclipse can usually be seen over a much larger area of the Earth. Have a look at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/solar_eclip... for a good explanation and diagram
They can happen only near the equator because the earth's axis is facing on the equator so not antartica will have a solar eclipse. The next solar eclipse in the USA will be in 2017.
Earth's tilt and rotation, that makes it face the moon
Quite true, but not sure you have the whole idea.
Think about the earth, moon (smaller) and sun being in a straight line. only those who are directly on the line with the three will see the eclipse. Different parts of the world will see eclipse at different times. Some people will see a partial eclipse because they are not directly on the line of three, they observe it "from the sides"
Because the exact geometry of the sun and the moon depends on where you are looking from. An eclipse happens because the moon is just the right size to fully cover the sun, but this allignment will only hold true for part of the earth.
Try this, block out a light by holding a small ball between yourself and the light. This is the geometry of the eclipse. Now move your head just a little bit, your will start to see the light again, just like a partial eclipse.
It depends on where the moon is in relation to the sun and the earth. Sometimes if the orbit of the moon carries it to the top of the line between the earth and the sun the shadow will go across the upper part of the earth, also if it goes across
the lower part,the moons shadow goes across the southern part
of the earth or anywhere in between.
The Earth, Sun and Moon first of all must line up just right for a solar eclipse to occur. The Sun and Earth are on the same plane, but the earth is tilted 23 1/2 degrees on it's axis and the angle of the sun is different every day of the year with the exception of the eqinoxes and the sun hits at different angles, at different latitudes north and south of the equator. The Moon is not exactly on the same plane as the earth and sun, as it is 5 degrees off of the ecliptic, which is the apparent path of the sun and the planets follow (the plane I spoke of), through the night sky in the constellations that make up the zodiac. So the 3 have to line up perfectly and all 3 are moving in space at the same time, but at different speeds, so the earth's rotation on it's axis comes into play, so the path that the eclipse takes in usually a wierd path accross the face of the earth. Also, due to all of these different factors coming into the equation, an eclipse came last a few seconds up to about 7-8 minutes in length, on a fixed point on earth in the path of totality (area of the total eclipse). If you have an airplane, you can follow the path of totality and can view it longer than that. NASA has a web-site devoted to eclipses, check it out, really cool stuff. Next one in the US will be in 2017, out in California, and then you have to hope the weather is clear to view it.
the moon is smaller than the sun and the earth, its like putting a little ball in between a huge flashlight and a surface at a distance, the shadow is smaller than the original size of the ball, the light that is unblocked off to the far side keeps goin on to the surface and spreads over the area that the ball originally covers..imagine this, direct thin light barely larger than the ball in between, the shadow is bigger, but when there is light around it, taking up the shadow, shadow becomes smaller
depending on the location and when then eclipes happen it is rare thing so we have to make sure that when they are in our area if you get a chacne check it out.
There is probably no area of the planet that cannot experience a total solar eclipse, from the poles to the equator. The key is being in the right place at the right time, as the path of totality is very narrow.
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