The Search for Eclipses as Perfect as Earth’s
by Emily Lakdawalla
Aug 22, 2015
3 minutes
This classic Facts So Romantic post was originally published in September, 2013.
Roughly twice a year, the apparent positions of sun and moon coincide, and a fortunate few observers are treated to a solar eclipse. Watching such an event provides the opportunity to contemplate a strange coincidence: From the surface of Earth, the apparent sizes of the sun and moon in the sky are nearly equal. The sun is almost exactly 400 times larger than the moon, and it’s also almost exactly 400 times farther away.
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