Why do lunar eclipses only occur at full moon?

Answer 1

For the eclipse to occur the Earth, Sun and Moon have all got to be on the same line. For lunar eclipse, Moon has to be behind Earth, looking from Sun, so Earth's shadow could cover it. Also, Moon has to be behind Earth for full moon - that's when we see the biggest part of it lit.

Moon can't be possibly eclipsed during new moon, because it's then located between Earth and Sun and therefore Earth cannot cast on it a shadow.

Also, solar eclipses can only occur when Moon is located between Earth and Sun, ie. in new moon phase.
In order for a lunar eclipse to occur, the Moon must be directly 'behind' the Earth,

exactly opposite the Sun and in Earth's shadow. It's behind the Earth, opposite

the sun, once every month, and that's the position for a Full Moon. But it's usually

above or below the shadow, which is why we don't have a lunar eclipse at every

Full Moon.

Answer 2

Lunar Eclipses always happen at the full moon because the moon is always the farthest from the sun when there is a full moon. If you go into a dark room and have a light bulb turned on in the middle of the room, and a small ball, here's an experiment to try. Hold the ball up so you have to look up a little to see it. Put the ball in front of the glowing light bulb and close one eye. Doesn't it look like a solar eclipse? Now turn slowly until the ball looks like a full moon. Now spin fast and you will see the ball doing the moon phases very fast. Now to your question. The moon does not orbit the Earth straight. It tilts. So sometimes during what would be a full moon, the moon will be in the Earths shadow. And when its in the Earths shadow, it looks red because of the Earths atmosphere changing the blackness into red. That is why a Lunar Eclipse always happen during a full moon.

Answer 3

It is because of eclipse all the three bodies must be in a line.
A full moon happens when the Moon gets into Earth's shadow. This can only happen when the Moon is opposite to the Sun in the sky.

Answer 4

A lunar eclipse can only occur during a full moon because in order for Earth's shadow to be cast over the moon, the moon and sun must be perfectly opposite each other in the sky. Thus the side of the moon that's being fully illuminated would be the side that's facing us.

Answer 5

A lunar eclipse can only occur on the night of a full moon because of the position that the moon is in during a full moon. During a lunar eclipse, the Earth is positioned in between the moon and the sun exactly so that the Earth casts its shadow on the moon. During a full moon, the sun, Earth, and moon are lined up in the same way as a lunar eclipse, but the Earth is either too high or too low to cast its shadow on the moon. The only position at which the moon is a full moon is at that position since we can only see part of the lit face of the moon when the moon is at a different position around the Earth.

Answer 6

Lunar eclipses only occur at full moon because that is when the Earth is positioned directly between the sun and the moon, casting a shadow on the moon. This alignment creates the conditions necessary for a lunar eclipse to happen, when the Earth's shadow falls on the surface of the moon.

Answer 7

Lunar eclipses happen when the Moon moves into the shadow of the Sun. This can only happen at the full moon.

Answer 8

Lunar eclipses can ONLY occur during a full moon. They don't happen every month because the Moon's orbit has tilt in respect to the Earth's orbit.