SOLAR ECLIPSE

A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between the Sun and the Earth, and the Moon fully or partially covers the Sun as viewed from some location on Earth. This can only happen during a new moon, when the Sun and Moon are in conjunction as seen from Earth. At least two, and up to five, solar eclipses occur each year; no more than two can be total eclipses. Total solar eclipses are nevertheless rare at any particular location because totality exists only along a narrow path traced by the Moon's umbra.

A total solar eclipse is a natural phenomenon. Nevertheless, in ancient times, and in some cultures today, solar eclipses have been attributed to supernatural causes or regarded as bad omens. A total solar eclipse can be frightening to people who are unaware of their astronomical explanation, as the Sun seems to disappear in the middle of the day and the sky darkens in a matter of minutes.

The first solar eclipse of 2010 occurred on January 15th. This was a rare solar eclipse because it was the longest partial solar eclipse in the last 1,000 years. The solar eclipse was seen in India, China and Sri Lanka. This was an annular eclipse. The next annular eclipse will occur on the solar eclipse of May 20, 2012.

Upcoming Solar Eclipse

The next total solar eclipse will be on July 11, 2010. This Eclipse will be visible from the Cook Islands, French Polynesia, southern Chile and southern Argentina.

LUNAR ECLIPSE

A lunar eclipse occurs when the Earth's shadow falls on the moon. Lunar eclipses occur, on average, about every 6 months.

A total Lunar Eclipse occurs when the entire moon enters the Earth's umbra (the darkest part of its shadow), this is called a total eclipse. A partial Eclipse is when only part of the moon enters the Earth's umbra, this is called a partial eclipse. During an average total lunar eclipse, the moon is within the Earth's umbra for about an hour. This is called totality.

Since the plane of the moon's orbit is inclined about 5° from the plane of the Earth's orbit, lunar eclipses are relatively infrequent. There are about two lunar eclipses each year (visible somewhere on Earth).

Upcoming Lunar Eclipses

The first Lunar Eclipse of 2010 will occur on June 26th and will be visible from parts of the Americas, Antarctica, eastern Asia, and Australasia.

The second Lunar Eclipse will occur on December 21st, and will be visible from Europe, west Africa, the Americas, eastern Australia, the Philippines, and eastern and northern Asia.

 Eclipse info from NASA
http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/eclipse/eclipse.htmlhttp://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/eclipse/eclipse.html