Plan to wash lots of clothes if you travel the world. (Photo: George Doyle/Stockbyte/Getty Images ) Phileas Fogg took 80 days to travel the world to win a bet. Nellie Bly beat that record by eight days to prove the resourcefulness of solo female travelers. Neither the fictional Fogg nor the ...
It is a popular misconception that the phenomenon of a total eclipse of the sun is a rare occurrence. Quite the contrary. Approximately once every 18 months (on average) a total solar eclipse is visible from some place on the Earthâs surface. That's two totalities for every three years.
The type of solar eclipse event depends on the distance of the Moon from the Earth during the event. A total solar eclipse occurs when the Earth intersects the umbra portion of the Moon's shadow. When the umbra does not reach the surface of the Earth, the Sun is only partially occulted, resulting in an annular eclipse. Partial solar eclipses occur when the viewer is inside the penumbra.