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 Q: Why do we not have eclipses every month?

Solar Eclipse

Lunar Eclipse

 
 A: A lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon enters the Earth's shadow. A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon's shadow falls on the Earth. They do not happen every month because the Earth's orbit around the sun is not in the same plane as the Moon's orbit around the Earth.

 

 

If you were to draw a little Earth in orbit around a little sun on a piece of paper, then you would not be able to accurately draw the Moon's orbit on that same piece of paper. Sometimes the Moon will be above the paper, other times below it. Only when the Moon is crossing the plane of the Earth's orbit (the paper) just as it is lining up with the Earth and Sun will an eclipse occur.

 
  
  

Q: Why is the sky blue?
   A: A clear cloudless day-time sky is blue because molecules in the air scatter blue light from the sun more than they scatter red light.  When we look towards the sun at sunset, we see red and orange colours because the blue light has been scattered out and away from the line of sight.


Q: WHY IS THE SUNSET RED?
   A: As the sun begins to set, the light must travel farther through the atmosphere before it gets to you. More of the light is reflected and scattered. As less reaches you directly, the sun appears less bright. The color of the sun itself appears to change, first to orange and then to red. This is because even more of the short wavelength blues and greens are now scattered. Only the longer wavelengths are left in the direct beam that reaches your eyes.

    The sky around the setting sun may take on many colors. The most spectacular shows occur when the air contains many small particles of dust or water. These particles reflect light in all directions. Then, as some of the light heads towards you, different amounts of the shorter wavelength colors are scattered out. You see the longer wavelengths, and the sky appears red, pink or orange.

 

Q: What are the dark spots on the moon?

 A: The dark areas are the maria (singular mare, pronounced mah ray). The dark is from a rock called basalt, basically a cooled off and hardened lava. These areas were caused when very large chunks impacted the Moon between 4.2 and 3.9 billion years ago, breaking through the crust and allowing the hot interior lva to flow across the surface. The light colored parts of the lunar surface are the highlands, mostly a rock called anorthosite, which is rich in such elements as magnesium and aluminum.

Q: Does the Sun move?
   A: Yes, the Sun - in fact, our whole solar system - orbits around the center of the Milky Way Galaxy. We are moving at an average velocity of 828,000 km/hr. But even at that high rate, it still takes us about 230 million years to make one complete orbit around the Milky Way!