- published: 20 Mar 2015
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As seen from the Earth, a solar eclipse is a type of eclipse that occurs when the Moon passes between the Sun and Earth, and the Moon fully or partially blocks ("occults") the Sun. This can happen only at new moon, when the Sun and the Moon are in conjunction as seen from Earth in an alignment referred to as syzygy. In a total eclipse, the disk of the Sun is fully obscured by the Moon. In partial and annular eclipses, only part of the Sun is obscured.
If the Moon were in a perfectly circular orbit, a little closer to the Earth, and in the same orbital plane, there would be total solar eclipses every month. However, the Moon's orbit is inclined (tilted) at more than 5 degrees to the Earth's orbit around the Sun (see ecliptic), so its shadow at new moon usually misses Earth. Earth's orbit is called the ecliptic plane as the Moon's orbit must cross this plane in order for an eclipse (both solar as well as lunar) to occur. In addition, the Moon's actual orbit is elliptical, often taking it far enough away from Earth that its apparent size is not large enough to block the Sun totally. The orbital planes cross each other at a line of nodes resulting in at least two, and up to five, solar eclipses occurring each year; no more than two of which can be total eclipses. However, total solar eclipses are rare at any particular location because totality exists only along a narrow path on the Earth's surface traced by the Moon's shadow or umbra.
the laughing moon covers the sun, sinister darkness
covers the Earth
this total eclipse of the sun seems to last forever!
creatures are creping, crawling up from the deepest pits
of the ground
everything seems falling apart, there's no more hope
around
shadows of forgotten species are shivering in candlelight
everyone tries to hide away to a place where a sign of
life remained!
dark milling crowd of monsters are concoursing the
streets
they're screaming, barking, laughing
their sharp voices are pain to the ears
...and then the Lord of Darkness returned
with wings of a bat, head of a goat
finally his time has come today, this will be our very
last day
he turned to look at me for a while with his ruby eyes
he was grinning like a shark
he called me on my name, like the voice of night