Parts of an Eclipse

• An eclipse has two parts. The umbra is a small, completely black inner area of the eclipse.
  Latin for shadow, the umbra is the region where the blocking body is completely obscuring the light source and the viewer in the umbra would experience a total eclipse. The larger outer area where the light is only partially blocked is called the penumbra. Penumbra means almost or nearly, combined with the root word shadow, meaning the viewer in the penumbra would see only a partial shadow or partial eclipse. An umbra occurs inside the penumbra.
  
  

Lunar Eclipse

• Lunar eclipses happen when the Earth is directly in the path between the sun and moon. The Earth blocks the all or part sun's light from the moon and the moon is fully or partially hidden in the Earth's shadow. There are three types of lunar eclipses; total, partial and penumbral.
  
  

Total Lunar Eclipse

• When the moon passes through the umbra, or completely dark portion of the Earth's shadow, it is called a total eclipse. Total eclipses are rare and the moon's color is seen as dark and coppery. The coppery color appears because the Earth's umbra is not totally dark due to light scattered in the atmosphere, similar to the colors that appear reddish during sunrise or sunset.
  
  

Partial and Penumbral Lunar Eclipses

• Less rare is the partial eclipse. A partial eclipse occurs when only part of the moon enters the Earth's umbra.
  A third type is the penumbral eclipse. This occurs when the moon passes through the Earth's penumbra or large, lighter outer shadow and misses the Earth's umbra completely.
  
  

Solar Eclipses

• A solar eclipse is when the moon passes directly between the sun and the Earth. The moon blocks the sun's light and it's shadow falls on the Earth. Different areas of the Earth will see varying solar eclipse stages. Some might see a total eclipse while others will see only a partial eclipse or even no eclipse at all.