It is 2023 will have four eclipses, two of Moon and two of Sun.
Remember that lunar eclipses can be seen for several hours and from practically any part of the Earth, it only needs to be at night, that the Moon is above the horizon and that the sky is cloudless. On the other hand, solar eclipses are visible to a relatively small strip of the Earth and for a much shorter time. In order to observe it without risk to our health, it is necessary to protect our eyes and never look directly at the Sun.
Eclipses occur when the Earth, the Moon and the Sun are aligned in such a way that the light of our star is blocked by one of the two celestial bodiesthis can occur partially or totally.
Solar eclipse of April 20, 2023
The April 20th The first eclipse of the year 2023 arrives and it will be very special because it is a eclipse solar hybrid. This type of astronomical phenomenon it occurs only a few times each century, the last being in April 2005.
The types of solar eclipses are classified into ‘total’: the Moon completely blocks the solar disk, ‘cancel’: the lunar disk blocks only the center of the sun disk and leaves the well-known ‘ring of fire’ around it, and ‘partial’: the Moon blocks only a portion of the solar disk, but there is also the hybrid solar eclipse.
hybrid solar eclipse It brings together the characteristics of all eclipses in one, with a rare Earth-Moon-Sun alignment. The eclipse it first manages to be annular, then it goes for a very brief period to be a total eclipse, and finally it is annular again.
This phenomenon occurs because the Moon is at its limit point for the shadow of its threshold to reach the Earth, which thanks to its curved shape allows its natural satellite to completely block the incoming sunlight for a moment, to then return to the annular phase of the eclipse.
The regions that will see at least a partial eclipse this April 20 will be: part of the southeast Asia, Oceaniaa portion of Antarctica, the Indian and Pacific oceans. The one known as eclipse of That’s it’on the path of totality passes through North West Cape (Northwestern Cape), a cape and large peninsula located on the northwestern coast of Australia. The people who are located in this remote peninsula of Western Australia, they will have a privileged location. Unfortunately it will not be seen from Argentina, nor from any other point in America.
Lunar eclipse of May 5-6, 2023
It will be a eclipse penumbral de Lunathis means that our natural satellite crosses only the outer part of the shadow of the Earth, which is quite diffuse, so only a slight darkening of the lunar disk will be seen seen from Earth.
The second eclipse of the year and the first lunar eclipse of 2023 will be visible from: Africa, Oceania, Antarctica, most of Europa and from Asia, Oceania, Africa, part of the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian oceans. Unfortunately, this eclipse will not be visible from Argentina either, nor from any other point on the American continent.
The ‘Great American Solar Eclipse’ of October 14, 2023
It’s about a annular solar eclipsein this case the Moon is aligned between the Earth and the Sun in such a way that the lunar disk covers the exact center of the solar disk leaving a thin “ring of fire” around the Moon.
This impressive natural spectacle will be visible only along a narrow pathlike all eclipses of the Sun, in this case the annulment path will cross the EU from Oregon to Texasthen it will pass over the peninsula of Yucatan in Mexicoalso for parts of Central America, Colombia and Brazil in South America, part of the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. In the rest of America it will be visible from Alaska to the center of Argentinabut only as a partial eclipse of the Sun.
Lunar eclipse of October 28-29, 2023
It is the last eclipse of the year, it is a partial lunar eclipse. May be fully visible over Europe and most of Asia and Africawill be seen rising over the eastern tip of the Americas and setting over Australia.
To see spectacular eclipses from Argentina again, you have to wait a bit, but we cannot get discouraged because we come from several consecutive years where the natural show of eclipses was the protagonist in our sky.
From Argentina We have managed to see several “blood moons” in recent yearsthis phenomenon occurs when the Earth stands between the Sun and our natural satellite, generating a shadow cone that darkens the Moon while it is in its full phase and dyes it reddish for our eyes, hence the name . This 2023 does not have such a lunar spectacle in its plans for Argentina, nor for any other point on the planet.
For our local readers who are a little disappointed by what this 2023 has in store for us in terms of eclipses, remember that in 2019, 2020 and 2021 there was the rarity that three total solar eclipses could be seen from Argentina, even in April 2022 it was seen in the extreme south. The good news is that for October 2024 a new total solar eclipse will visit southern Argentina and Chile again.
Happy New Year! The entire Meteored Argentina team wishes you.