Why do so few people see the eclipse of the moon?

Answer 1

Solar eclipses don't happen all that often, but more importantly at any given location on earth they can be incredibly rare events, separated by hundreds or thousands of years. They are not like lunar eclipses which are visible for long periods of time and observable by essentially half the earth. Solar eclipses only cover a narrow path of earth and last only minutes at a specific location. So even if they do happen many times during a person's life, it's not as if you can hop on a plane and fly to, say, Australia to see one. I had the opportunity to see one in Virginia around 1969 or 1970. It really was the most beautiful thing. Birds acted as if it were sunset, and then minutes later as if it were dawn. We had a crystal-clear sky. I will witness one again if I have the chance.

Answer 2

• Because it can only be seen and lasts a few minutes.
• Only few people relatively see it.
• The lunar orbit is tilted 5 degrees to the ecliptic.
• There is no solar eclipse each month.
• Maximum width of the shadow of totally is 170 miles.
• Faint outer layer of the sun's atmosphere (corona) can be studied during a total solar solar eclipse.
• Chance of seeing a total eclipse of the sun at any location is once every 400 years, partial eclipse can be seen over a much larger part of the Earth (4,000 miles across)

Answer 3

I doubt that assertion. But if it's true, then the reason is because the rest

haven't been looking. Total lunar eclipses are not rare. There are always a

few of them in the space of a few years. And when one occurs, it's visible

to everyone on the night-time half of the Earth whose sky is clear and who

takes the trouble to go outside and glance at the sky.

Answer 4

It lasts for hours.

Can be seen by half the Earth, depends which side of the Earth you are on.

Answer 5

Because.