Is an Eclipse of the Sun an Astronomical Coincidence?

Question

Considering that the "Moon Circle" covers the "Sun Circle" in perfect harmony and exact geometry , it is . In the far future as the Moon retreats further from Earth and the Sun ,slowly but surely , grows in size , A solar Eclipse will be a thing of the past ..

Answer 1

You are correct in saying that eventually, total eclipses will become a thing of the past as the moon recedes from the earth. At the moment, if both the moon and sun line up when they are at their mean distances from earth, the result will be an annular eclipse. The moon needs to be nearer than average for a total eclipse to take place.

http://www.fourmilab.ch/images/peri_apo/ shows a calculation taking into account the moon's recession rate and concludes that the very last total solar eclipse will take place in about 1.4 billion years.

Answer 2

but not in your lifetime..........tom

Answer 3

No;  It won't be a thing of the past - but there'll be more "annular" eclipses - where a ring of the sun is still visible - when an eclipse does occur.  The moon, Earth and Sun will continue to line up every so often.  

Answer 4

That's one of the more interesting coincidences, I think.  The creationists are always saying things along the lines of 'Isn't it an amazing coincidence that all the planets orbit the sun just perfectly, without running into each other?'  I always think 'Well no, it's not really a coincidence at all.  It's a product of angular momentum and gravity.  Plus, at one time, they DID all bump into each other all the time.'  However, the sun and moon being the same apparent size to us, that really IS a coincidence and a pretty d**n good one.  I've always wondered why the creationists don't pick up on that one.

Maybe I should be quiet before I give them any ideas...

Answer 5

True...but at least we will always have total lunar eclipses.   :-)

Answer 6

your PRESENT existence is the coincidental part     in other words the fact that you exist NOW is the peculiar part,  at any other significantly distant time away from NOW, you wouldn't be asking this question

Answer 7

True.  In the far future, total eclipses will not be possible.  Only annular eclipses (leaving a ring of sun around the Moon) will be possible.

In fact, if we only consider the average apparent size of the Sun's disk and the Moon's disk, the Moon is slightly smaller than the Sun.  For a total eclipse, we need the Moon to be bigger and/or the Sun to be smaller.

That is why some of the nicer (and longer) total eclipses take place in the months of May to September, when we are further from the Sun (aphelion is around July 4), making it appear a tiny bit smaller.

If we are really lucky, the Moon would be at perigee (closest to Earth in its orbit) at the same time and we could get a total eclipse that lasts as long as 7 minutes.

Answer 8

Yes, you are correct, except, a TOTAL solar eclipse will be a thing of the past.

A couple billion years in the future a solar eclipse will look like the sun with a big black dot in the middle.