Actually... August 21, 2017, swaths of the USA will experience a few hours of a TOTAL Solar Eclipse.That's where the size (of the disk or medallion) of the Moon crosses the size of Sun (from earth perspective) and BLOCKS OUT light for moments of time (for people in the path of the eclipse shadow).
This is a TOTAL eclipse, where the relative size of the moon fits over the sun, completely blocking -- the size of disks match (align) completely.
In an Annular eclipse, the size of Moon is slightly smaller, so that when it crosses the face of the Sun (as it causes darkness), you see the Beautiful mystifying apparition of a "Ring of Fire" (Bedes) around (behind) the dark Moon.
When these things happen, sometimes sky scientists make discoveries of other bodies that were only theoretically calculated and not tangibly proved to exist.
Should be fascinating.
- http://www.eclipse2017.org/2017/path_through_the_US.htm
- http://eclipse2017.nasa.gov/
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_eclipse_of_August_21,_2017
(topic) 2017 Total Solar Eclipse: Skywatchers to Get Special Treat--4 Visible Planets during Totality (nemesis maturity) [3:26] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=psatbmwKLJM
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More on the 2017 August Eclipses here--
- http://www.linda-goodman.com/ubb/Forum25/HTML/005458.html