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The length of a lunar eclipse depends on how close the Moon is to the Earth, and how exactly the Moon and Earth are lined up with the Sun. Some lunar eclipses only last 20 minutes or so; most last under an hour of "totality", when the Moon is entirely dark.
The next good total lunar eclipse will be on December 31, 2010, and the period of totality will last 36 minutes. That eclipse will be clearly visible in most of North America.
After than, the next total lunar eclipses will be June 15, 2011, visible from India and eastern Africa, and then on December 10, 2011, visible from Australia, Japan and most of Asia.
What else can I help you with?
How long does lunar eclipse come?
A lunar eclipse can occur multiple times a year, but the frequency can vary. On average, there are about two to four lunar eclipses each year. Lunar eclipses can be partial, total, or penumbral, with total eclipses being less common.
How long is the time in between lunar eclipses?
It changes. There are three lunar eclipses on December 10, 2011, June 4 and November 28, 2012. Over a period of several years, solar and lunar eclipses both average about 2.3 per year, but anything up to 5 in a year is possible.
Do lunar eclipeses occur only every three years?
No. During the 5000-year period 2000 BCE to 3000 CE, there have been / will be a total of 12,064 lunar eclipses ... an average of about 2.4 per year. During the 10-year period 2001 to 2010, there are 24 lunar eclipses ... also 2.4 per year. There were 3 lunar eclipses in 2001, and 4 lunar eclipses in 2009. December 21, 2010 is/was the second lunar eclipse of 2010. So over the long term, you're looking at between 2 and 3 lunar eclipses every year.
How often are lunar eclipses in the northern hemisphere?
The hemisphere is irrelevant. Lunar eclipses happen, over the long run, about one and a half times a year or so for partial or total lunar eclipses. (if we add penumbral eclipses also, they're a bit more common, but you need special equipment to detect a penumbral eclipse... you can't really tell visually). Lunar eclipses are visible from the entire dark half of the Earth, while solar eclipses are visible only along a narrow path. This makes it SEEM as if solar eclipses are rare, but they are only rare for a specific location. The NASA Eclipse Web Page has a listing of all eclipses from 2000 BCE to 3000 AD. Because a lunar eclipse lasts for some time, a bit over half the Earth gets to see any given one. You can reasonably expect to see slightly under one lunar eclipse per year.
Does a lunar eclipse happen more often than a solar eclipse?
Globally, solar eclipses are slightly more frequent. But a lunar eclipse can be seen from any place where the Moon is above the horizon, whereas a solar eclipse can only be seen from a narrow strip of land. So, for any particular fixed observer, solar eclipses - and especially total solar eclipses - are quite rare. During the 100 years of the 20th Century, there were 228 solar eclipses and 229 lunar ones. So over the long term, you can figure on equal numbers, at the rate of around 7 of each every 3 years.
Is it true that a lunar eclipse happen every 400 years?
No. There are generally two solar eclipses and two lunar eclipses each year. This year, 2013, has two solar eclipses and three lunar eclipses. However, the area of the Earth affected during a solar eclipse is pretty small, so there are long periods between two eclipses in the same location. But it isn't a uniform period. For example, there will be total eclipses of the Sun twice in 7 years, in 2017 and 2024, in an area around Carbondale, Illinois. For other locations, there haven't been any total solar eclipses in a couple of hundred years. You can see the 5,000 year catalog of all eclipses between 2000 BCE and 3000 AD on the NASA Eclipse web page at the link below.
How often do lunar and solar eclipses happen?
During the 100 years of the 20th Century, there were 228 solar eclipses and 229 lunar ones. So over the long term, you can figure on equal numbers, at the rate of around 7 of each every 3 years.
How long have lunar eclipses been happening?
We don't know. Whenever they started, there were no people here yet to mark it down.
How many years is it between a lunar eclipse?
In the 100 years from 1901 to 2000, there were 228 solar eclipses and 229 lunar ones.So over a long period of time, that's an average of roughly 2.3 of each kind every year.There are typically 2 or 3 of each kind every year. But some years have only one, andoccasionally there can be a year with as many as five.There are generally two lunar eclipses each year. Of those, about half are partial or penumbral, and a lunar eclipse is visible from about one-half of the world. So wherever you live, you can expect to experience one total lunar eclipse about every other year.Depending on the precise alignment of the Sun, Moon and Earth, a lunar eclipse can take anywhere from a few minutes (for a partial eclipse) to three or four hours, from beginning to end.
When was the last time you saw a solar eclipses?
a long time ago
How often does a eclipse occur?
There's no regular schedule. Here are a few facts: -- The closest together that two eclipses can possibly be is about 2 weeks. -- On the average over a period of many years, there are about 2.3 lunar eclipses and 2.3 solar ones every year. But that's a long-term average. -- There can be anywhere from one to five eclipses in one year ... lunar, solar, or mixed.
How old is the lunar eclipse?
The Moon has been ducking into Earth's shadow about twice a year since the Moon was formed, probably about 4 billion years ago.
