What Does Eclipse Mean, In Context Of Lunar Eclipse?

Eclipse is the passing of the part of a celestial body or its entirety, into the shadow of another. There are two major types of eclipses when seen from the earth-the solar eclipse and the lunar eclipse. Both involve the moon and the sun. In the solar eclipse, the moon comes between the sun and the earth. In the lunar eclipse, the earth comes between the sun and the moon, hiding the sun from the moon's point of view. Lunar eclipses are usually seen during the full moon. During the full moon phase, the earth is between the sun and moon.

There are two types of lunar eclipses: penumbral lunar eclipse and total penumbral eclipse. In a penumbral lunar eclipse, the moon travels through the penumbra, the outer portion of the shadow of the earth. In the total penumbral eclipse or the total lunar eclipse, the moon passes through the earth's umbra, the dark inner part of the shadow. If only a part of the moon passes through the umbra, it is termed as a partial lunar eclipse. Usually, lunar eclipses happen twice in most years. A total lunar eclipse recently took place on March 3, 2007 at 23:22(UT)

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