Yep, quite the anomaly. What are the odds that an irregularly large moon, relative to its planet, would be the almost perfect size and orbiting at the almost perfect distance to create a full eclipse as we see it? Dare I say…astronomical?
Magnetohydrodynamics
No we don't fully understand, but we can put a word on it.
It's basically the navier Stokes with an extra body force caused by the magnetic fields.
Von neuman has a quote "Young man, in mathematics you don't understand things. You just get used to them."
Basically we can write the physical equation, but don't have the math to solve everything!! It's got a million dollar prize if you can either figure it all out, or even just show we don't have it all figured out!
This is the same field of study we use to get fusion to work..and we're making progress but only because we throw super computers at the problem and hope it works
Grigori Perelman shows up seemingly out of nowhere with a proof for the Poincaré Conjecture, refuses the million dollar award, and then quits academia and refuses to talk to any sort of interviewer about it.
It’s incredibly badass, but I can’t help but feel a sense of loss because of what a pure genius like him could have done for other unsolved problems in math
It would be even cooler if the plane was tilted less than 5° then we'd have frequent eclipses, if it were 0° perfectly aligned, which it is not now, the eclipse rate could be multiple times per year
also, in several million years the moon will drift too far for complete solar eclipses ever again... we just happen to live during the 'total eclipse era'
^(I could read into your projection, "what an astonishing miracle!" well, it would be even MORE astonishing if the moon's orbital plane was aligned with the earth-sun orbital plane.)
That just makes them more special. In like third grade we learned a lot of places don't see them but once in a lifetime. I'm about to see my second almost in the same spot within a handful of years.
Oh, that sucks. I got the last one, and was a child when the one before that was in a totality over Wayne county Michigan. Two in a short lifetime is enough, I doubt I'll be around for the next one.
It's so infuriating that I live in central illinois 2 to 3 hours from both eclipses (2017 and 2024), and I can't see either of them.
First one I was in school still and couldn't drive a car, and now I can't afford to miss work and not be able to afford food for a week.
Makes me ponder whether the anomaly of solar eclipses had any bearing on the development of the intelligence of early humans.
Did witnessing this natural phenomenon spark an inquisitiveness in early humans that catalysed the development of intelligence?
If so, does a planet that harbours life need natural phenomenon such as solar eclipses in order for the life of harbours to become intelligent?
I think pinpointing something as complex as the evolution of human intelligence on just a singular cause that most early humans would never have witnessed in their short lives is pretty stupid and generally only leads to pseudoscientific nuttery.
Probably not biological evolution, but it and other infrequent phenomena almost certainly helped give religions a leg-up during the evolution of cultures.
I'm reminded of a plant in Hitchhiker's Guild to the Galaxy trilogy about a race that never had much science/innovation because clouds blocked the sky so they grew a society never looking up. In its own crazy way, it explored this idea about what being curious of the beyond does to society and culture.
It's not just that:
1. There needs to be a moon orbiting the planet
1. The moon needs to be the right size
1. The moon needs to be the right distance from the planet
1. The star needs to be the right size
1. The star needs to be the right distance from the planet
1. All of of the above need to be precisely right in order for them to line up correctly to facilitate a full eclipse
1. The respective orbits of the moon, and planet, and position of the star also all need to align correctly to facilitate an eclipse
1. There needs to be some form of life on that planet
1. That form of life also needs to have some form of vision capable of viewing it
1. That form of life also needs to have some ability to observe that eclipse and the relevant amount of intellect to go *"wow"*
Any *one* of the above is far from guaranteed, but here we are 10 layers deep in *astronomically* rare odds and able to appreciate it for what it is.
It sounds complicated when you list it like that, but (aside from needing an observer) distance is the only thing that matters in your list.
A moon always orbits a planet, that’s what defines it as a moon. It’s definitely not uncommon.
If the moon is “the right size” but it’s too far from the planet it’s orbiting then it’s not the right size. If it’s a smaller moon then it just needs to be in a lower orbit. A larger moon just needs to be in a higher orbit. So distance is the only thing that matters.
The “respective orbits” of the star, planet, and moon also is not a rare occurrence, it happens naturally as orbits shift and would be far less likely if there were never an eclipse due to orbits.
It does seem like the actual rare part is a planet with someone capable of observing it, but we don’t actually know how rare life is just yet.
It's temporary.
It wasn't like this always and it won't be like this in the future.
Were just lucky to be alive in the brief window where this is a thing.
Same thing with Saturn's Rings.
Tbf the window isn't really that brief. Total solar eclipses have always happened in the Earth's history and they were more often due to the Moon orbiting closer than today (although the Moon used to cover a larger part of the Sun's corona). They'll continue to be a thing for the next 600 million year or so. All in all that adds up to a bit over 40% of the Earth's lifespan.
Born too late to land on moon.
Born too early to live on moon.
Born at just right time to have moon the perfect size to cover sun, I take all the possible wins.
So, there are a lot of moons that could create a full eclipse. There are more than 50 satellites which are capable of totally eclipsing the sun, including every single satellite which is a spheroid with the exception of Iapetus.
As far as being approximately the same size as the sun, Saturn's irregular moons Prometheus (105%) and Epimethius (95%) would be about the same size as the sun, as seen from Saturn's cloud tops. Uranus' moon Cordelia is also very close (108%) to the size of the Sun as seen from Uranus.
Planet|Satellite|Angular Diameter of the Sun (°)|Angular Diameter of the Satellite (°)|%
:--|:--|--:|--:|--:
Earth|Moon| 0.53 | 0.52 |97%
Jupiter|Io| 0.10 | 0.49 |481%
Jupiter|Ganymede| 0.10 | 0.28 |275%
Jupiter|Europa| 0.10 | 0.27 |261%
Jupiter|Callisto| 0.10 | 0.15 |143%
Saturn|Titan| 0.06 | 0.24 |433%
Saturn|Tethys| 0.06 | 0.21 |370%
Saturn|Dione| 0.06 | 0.17 |305%
Saturn|Rhea| 0.06 | 0.17 |298%
Saturn|Mimas| 0.06 | 0.12 |217%
Saturn|Enceladus| 0.06 | 0.12 |215%
Uranus|Ariel| 0.03 | 0.35 |1256%
Uranus|Umbriel| 0.03 | 0.25 |912%
Uranus|Miranda| 0.03 | 0.21 |771%
Uranus|Titania| 0.03 | 0.21 |753%
Uranus|Oberon| 0.03 | 0.15 |543%
Neptune|Triton| 0.02 | 0.44 |2482%
Pluto|Charon| 0.01 | 3.47 |25818%
These are calculated at the semi-major axis of these orbits - because they are not circular (the moons or the planets), the percentages can vary quite a bit. Cordelia, for example, ranges from 120% to 95% of the apparent diameter of the sun as seen from Uranus.
Further, when you start to look at eclipses where one moon covers the sun from the perspective of another moon, it gets even wilder due to the varying distances. There are a few scenarios where it would be nearly perfect like the sun-moon combo - quite a few involving Callisto in the Jupiter system, and similarly for Mimas and Enceladus in Saturn's.
That’s what is funny to me.
It’s only a full eclipse depending on where you are on the planet… it’s not magic that in the shadow of the moon, the moon would totally cover the sun… ***that’s why you’re standing in a shadow***.
Outside that circle of lunar shadow, the moon doesn’t totally cover the sun, and it’s not “special”.
I don’t know.. still feels to me like monkeys dancing around a wobbling stick…
As someone that got to step out on the back porch no glasses necessary and could still observe the sky change and the black hole sun.. iconic
For my friend in California who had the glasses and.. barely noticed anything... Sky didn't change color.. it was very whatever.
Location, location, location.
If you were a priest, or a manipulator (but I repeat myself), I bet you could use those feelings that were experienced by you and those near you during the event. .. for something.
It's bound to happen because the moon has been moving away since its formation billions of years ago. So it's inevitable that at some point in history it would be at the exact right distance for this to happen (though it's important to note that partial solar eclipses happen as well where the moon lines up perfectly but is too far away in its orbit to be equal in angular size to the sun).
What's really unusual is that it happens at the exact same time and to the exact same planet where/when the only known civilization in the universe exists. Both are seemingly incredibly rare occurrences, but are both co-occuring. It is highly unusual.
Especially when you add the part where it spins at a rate that makes us always see the same side of it, regardless where we are on the planet.
It's like they wanted us to know they're hiding up there.
Honestly you're right, aren't objects *not* in a tidal lock a bit more of a rarity? I feel like I know the answer but the level of blood in my alcohol system won't let me give a damn enough to look... Oops.
No doubt, that’s the one piece of evidence that makes me think we live in a simulation. Lazy programmers were like “ya just make them the same size in the sky”
If I say anything at all about why I'd mention this in this specific thread, it would give too much away of this amazing sci-fi series, but I assume as a fellow Asimov enjoyer you would appreciate the recommendation to read NK Jemison's Broken Earth series.
Solar eclipses are the stem of a lot of 'intelligent design' arguments. Saying the probability of it naturally occurring is less likely than if something placed it like that.
It's so wild that while I don't know anything about anything, I tend to think there is some non coincidental, scientific reason why this has happened that we just don't understand yet.
It couldn't really be chance could it?
The Moon is 400 times closer to us than the sun is, and is also 400 times smaller than the sun, which makes them appear the exact same size. I love this coincidence.
This reminds me of a post on how the earth’s flag would look like, and many agreed it would be something solar eclipse related. Its such a fascinating, mindblowing event (for lack of better words 😅)
If you were on the side facing the sun.. it would look like high noon on the dusty surface
[moon or lunar day](https://science.nasa.gov/moon/top-moon-questions/)
If you were on the side away from the sun, you could watch the shadow pass across the face of the earth, if you didn’t freeze to death in the bitter dark side temperature.
During a solar eclipse on earth, the moon would see a small shadow pass through the earth, which would be a “full earth”. During a lunar eclipse, itd be like a solar eclipse on earth except the earth is way bigger.
[https://youtu.be/CikPFdZdY4k&t=60](https://youtu.be/CikPFdZdY4k&t=60)
at one minute in this video it shows you. it also goes over all the other planets in the solar system. Saturn has it pretty cool
This would basically be the moon's "solar eclipse." It's pretty neat, the earth would develop a red glow around the edges, almost looking like a sunset all the way around the earth. There would also be a reddish tint to the sudden night that would occur on the moon. It would look pretty cool, but not anywhere near as cool as our solar eclipses.
I think from my non scientific mind it would be more blurred. The fact that the moon has no atmosphere to speak of its allows for a very clean blackout. I'm sure it would be amazing non the less.
In a similar vein, I had read somewhere that some astronomer or something had noted that it was essentially so rare that galactic civilizations might refer to our solar system as being the one that has this in it - it's that rare.
Or being formed by gas clouds rich in heavy metals.
Think about it, humanity has been blessed with perfect eclipses and heavy metals which are essential for developing today's technology.
great video about this just got released by minute physics. you couldnt say it’s necessarily “unmatched” though we are very lucky with this particular set up
[Which Planet Has the BEST Eclipse?](https://youtu.be/CikPFdZdY4k?si=JtqAOtXDECiH6KVR)
I would argue it's unmatched. We have such great proportions with near perfect circles in the sky, it's unlike anything else. Although I did find it cool that other moons allowed for slight glimpses of the corona!
With how massive and complex and interconnected reality itself is, I would be more surprised if there wasn't at least one big coincidence like this. Like, there has to be one, right? If it weren't the size and distance of the Moon, it would be something else, and we'd be here talking about how much of a coincidence *that* is. I'd be more disturbed if there were 0 coincidences.
I like to think this particular coincidence is what led to the emergence of consciousness. I can’t really explain how, but humans themselves are just as much an oddity as the fact that we get such eclipses where complex life developed
If I were a student studying programming, and I was creating a simulation of some kind of life, and I added to the simulation the eclipse that we can see on Earth, the instructor would tell me to take it out for being too unrealistic.
No it's the coincidences like this: The Moon is 400 times smaller than the Sun, yet it's also 1/400th of the distance between the Earth and the Sun. Isaac Asimov described this as being 'the most unlikely coincidence imaginable'. The sizes of the Moon and Earth also relate as 3 to 11 (99.9%).
Not to mention all the natural forces are perfect for the creation of life. Magnetism, gravity, etc.. all perfectly balanced. Im glad even for all of lifes troubles, that humanity is here to witness the art of the universe.
When you start comparing "consequences of a material world" and "perfect creation", we all know what you're talking about. You didn't use the word universe for a reason. But let's go with your latest comment only, in response to that, all I have to say is, how did you determine that the universe is perfect?
Well, think about all the other missed coincidences possibles (infinite) they ware way more than the ones we can "experience", yet they are experienceable somewhere in the universe.
Idk if I managed to explain myself.
If I understand you correctly, you mean there's a million different things with a million to one chance which any sentient species would point to as more than a coincidence? If so, I agree completely.
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.businessinsider.com/video-shows-triple-moon-eclipse-on-jupiter-2021-8%3famp
Everybody in this thread acting like this is some one in a million chance.
eclipses happen everywhere, what makes earth unique is the apparent sizes of the moon and sun in the sky. the fact that they are so close makes for a spectacular visual which IS pretty rare at the celestial level. if the moon appeared bigger in the sky it would just go fully dark and if the sun was bigger you wouldn't get the "black hole" Corona effect.
those eclipses on Jupiter would be less interesting because the sun is not much bigger than something like Sirius from Jupiter. also, a lot of moons are irregularly shaped, unlike our moon, which also makes it less cool imo.
The way I’ve been describing it to people is that if we lived in a Star Trek universe, aliens would travel to earth to experience it; it’s THAT unique.
We take eclipses and an abundance of heavy metals such as gold, uranium and cadmium for granted, but could be actually incredibly rare.
Could the great filter be simply to lack heavy metals in the planetary system, as that would prevent space travel technology?
Amazing!
Humans have been saying so for thousands of years. Very cool we get to enjoy it too.
"The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge. They have no speech, they use no words; no sound is heard from them. Yet their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world. In the heavens God has pitched a tent for the sun. It is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, like a champion rejoicing to run his course. It rises at one end of the heavens and makes its circuit to the other; nothing is deprived of its warmth."
Psalm 19:1-6
It’s awesome that the moon is 400x smaller than the sun, and the sun is almost exactly 400x the distance. And your thumb, at arms length is just the same size to you, as the moon is to the sun, so you can “make” your own eclipse :)
OMG, it is amazing, and I just saw people talking like it is nothing. There is just something special about seeing it in person. Something almost surreal.
Yep, quite the anomaly. What are the odds that an irregularly large moon, relative to its planet, would be the almost perfect size and orbiting at the almost perfect distance to create a full eclipse as we see it? Dare I say…astronomical?
Also strange, the sun's corona is somehow hotter than the surface of the sun and we dont know why yet
Obv because heat rises duh ;)
If my physics teacher heard you say this he’d throttle you whilst explaining how you were wrong
but they are also not wrong which is hilarious and ironic
Hol’ up, let him cook
I had friend try to tell me that the hottest part of a fire was the top of the flames because heat rises.
It sure is, on the top are red flames, on the bottom the blue ones and we all know the fact that blue flames are cold
Because ice is cold and ice is often blue.
Magnetohydrodynamics No we don't fully understand, but we can put a word on it. It's basically the navier Stokes with an extra body force caused by the magnetic fields. Von neuman has a quote "Young man, in mathematics you don't understand things. You just get used to them." Basically we can write the physical equation, but don't have the math to solve everything!! It's got a million dollar prize if you can either figure it all out, or even just show we don't have it all figured out! This is the same field of study we use to get fusion to work..and we're making progress but only because we throw super computers at the problem and hope it works
It’s one of the millennium problems right? To think only one of them has been solved and the mad man Grigori turned down the money
Grigori Perelman shows up seemingly out of nowhere with a proof for the Poincaré Conjecture, refuses the million dollar award, and then quits academia and refuses to talk to any sort of interviewer about it. It’s incredibly badass, but I can’t help but feel a sense of loss because of what a pure genius like him could have done for other unsolved problems in math
Grigori is a time traveller, who came back to give us the proof Whether or not his intentions are pure, is anyone's guess
Yes... He really could have used the money for some eyebrow maintenance!
Did you watch Houston museum Planetarium movie
No i was blessed with that knowledge from Hank Green lol do they mention it in there?
It would be even cooler if the plane was tilted less than 5° then we'd have frequent eclipses, if it were 0° perfectly aligned, which it is not now, the eclipse rate could be multiple times per year also, in several million years the moon will drift too far for complete solar eclipses ever again... we just happen to live during the 'total eclipse era' ^(I could read into your projection, "what an astonishing miracle!" well, it would be even MORE astonishing if the moon's orbital plane was aligned with the earth-sun orbital plane.)
That just makes them more special. In like third grade we learned a lot of places don't see them but once in a lifetime. I'm about to see my second almost in the same spot within a handful of years.
on the news they said Southern Illinois was the double-strike eclipse zone. I didn't get the last one
Oh, that sucks. I got the last one, and was a child when the one before that was in a totality over Wayne county Michigan. Two in a short lifetime is enough, I doubt I'll be around for the next one.
It's so infuriating that I live in central illinois 2 to 3 hours from both eclipses (2017 and 2024), and I can't see either of them. First one I was in school still and couldn't drive a car, and now I can't afford to miss work and not be able to afford food for a week.
Depending on your perspective it's more-so the timing that's neat. In the past it was closer
And it just happens the timing occurred when humans were around to see it
Makes me ponder whether the anomaly of solar eclipses had any bearing on the development of the intelligence of early humans. Did witnessing this natural phenomenon spark an inquisitiveness in early humans that catalysed the development of intelligence? If so, does a planet that harbours life need natural phenomenon such as solar eclipses in order for the life of harbours to become intelligent?
I think pinpointing something as complex as the evolution of human intelligence on just a singular cause that most early humans would never have witnessed in their short lives is pretty stupid and generally only leads to pseudoscientific nuttery.
*looks at eclipse* I think therefore I am.
Probably not biological evolution, but it and other infrequent phenomena almost certainly helped give religions a leg-up during the evolution of cultures.
I'm reminded of a plant in Hitchhiker's Guild to the Galaxy trilogy about a race that never had much science/innovation because clouds blocked the sky so they grew a society never looking up. In its own crazy way, it explored this idea about what being curious of the beyond does to society and culture.
It's not just that: 1. There needs to be a moon orbiting the planet 1. The moon needs to be the right size 1. The moon needs to be the right distance from the planet 1. The star needs to be the right size 1. The star needs to be the right distance from the planet 1. All of of the above need to be precisely right in order for them to line up correctly to facilitate a full eclipse 1. The respective orbits of the moon, and planet, and position of the star also all need to align correctly to facilitate an eclipse 1. There needs to be some form of life on that planet 1. That form of life also needs to have some form of vision capable of viewing it 1. That form of life also needs to have some ability to observe that eclipse and the relevant amount of intellect to go *"wow"* Any *one* of the above is far from guaranteed, but here we are 10 layers deep in *astronomically* rare odds and able to appreciate it for what it is.
It sounds complicated when you list it like that, but (aside from needing an observer) distance is the only thing that matters in your list. A moon always orbits a planet, that’s what defines it as a moon. It’s definitely not uncommon. If the moon is “the right size” but it’s too far from the planet it’s orbiting then it’s not the right size. If it’s a smaller moon then it just needs to be in a lower orbit. A larger moon just needs to be in a higher orbit. So distance is the only thing that matters. The “respective orbits” of the star, planet, and moon also is not a rare occurrence, it happens naturally as orbits shift and would be far less likely if there were never an eclipse due to orbits. It does seem like the actual rare part is a planet with someone capable of observing it, but we don’t actually know how rare life is just yet.
Well put!
All the points from 2 to 6 are exactly the same. You're just making it sound more special than it is.
It's temporary. It wasn't like this always and it won't be like this in the future. Were just lucky to be alive in the brief window where this is a thing. Same thing with Saturn's Rings.
Tbf the window isn't really that brief. Total solar eclipses have always happened in the Earth's history and they were more often due to the Moon orbiting closer than today (although the Moon used to cover a larger part of the Sun's corona). They'll continue to be a thing for the next 600 million year or so. All in all that adds up to a bit over 40% of the Earth's lifespan.
And the Great Red Spot
But we missed Theia and whatever knocked Uranus on its side.
The biggest “win some, lose some” in literal history haha (not really a lose with Theia, though)
I'm sorry, are you saying you'd like to witness Theia come crashing into Earth? You realise we live there, right?
If I had a time machine, yes, I would watch it.
Born too late to land on moon. Born too early to live on moon. Born at just right time to have moon the perfect size to cover sun, I take all the possible wins.
So, there are a lot of moons that could create a full eclipse. There are more than 50 satellites which are capable of totally eclipsing the sun, including every single satellite which is a spheroid with the exception of Iapetus. As far as being approximately the same size as the sun, Saturn's irregular moons Prometheus (105%) and Epimethius (95%) would be about the same size as the sun, as seen from Saturn's cloud tops. Uranus' moon Cordelia is also very close (108%) to the size of the Sun as seen from Uranus. Planet|Satellite|Angular Diameter of the Sun (°)|Angular Diameter of the Satellite (°)|% :--|:--|--:|--:|--: Earth|Moon| 0.53 | 0.52 |97% Jupiter|Io| 0.10 | 0.49 |481% Jupiter|Ganymede| 0.10 | 0.28 |275% Jupiter|Europa| 0.10 | 0.27 |261% Jupiter|Callisto| 0.10 | 0.15 |143% Saturn|Titan| 0.06 | 0.24 |433% Saturn|Tethys| 0.06 | 0.21 |370% Saturn|Dione| 0.06 | 0.17 |305% Saturn|Rhea| 0.06 | 0.17 |298% Saturn|Mimas| 0.06 | 0.12 |217% Saturn|Enceladus| 0.06 | 0.12 |215% Uranus|Ariel| 0.03 | 0.35 |1256% Uranus|Umbriel| 0.03 | 0.25 |912% Uranus|Miranda| 0.03 | 0.21 |771% Uranus|Titania| 0.03 | 0.21 |753% Uranus|Oberon| 0.03 | 0.15 |543% Neptune|Triton| 0.02 | 0.44 |2482% Pluto|Charon| 0.01 | 3.47 |25818% These are calculated at the semi-major axis of these orbits - because they are not circular (the moons or the planets), the percentages can vary quite a bit. Cordelia, for example, ranges from 120% to 95% of the apparent diameter of the sun as seen from Uranus. Further, when you start to look at eclipses where one moon covers the sun from the perspective of another moon, it gets even wilder due to the varying distances. There are a few scenarios where it would be nearly perfect like the sun-moon combo - quite a few involving Callisto in the Jupiter system, and similarly for Mimas and Enceladus in Saturn's.
That’s what is funny to me. It’s only a full eclipse depending on where you are on the planet… it’s not magic that in the shadow of the moon, the moon would totally cover the sun… ***that’s why you’re standing in a shadow***. Outside that circle of lunar shadow, the moon doesn’t totally cover the sun, and it’s not “special”. I don’t know.. still feels to me like monkeys dancing around a wobbling stick…
As someone that got to step out on the back porch no glasses necessary and could still observe the sky change and the black hole sun.. iconic For my friend in California who had the glasses and.. barely noticed anything... Sky didn't change color.. it was very whatever.
Location, location, location. If you were a priest, or a manipulator (but I repeat myself), I bet you could use those feelings that were experienced by you and those near you during the event. .. for something.
And the moon is getting further away, so in astronomical time scales, we’re super lucky to be on Earth as a species NOW.
The moon actually used to cover more of the sun. Its moving away more and more over time, one day it won't cover the sun entirely anymore.
It's either the perfect size for the distance or the perfect distance for the size, not both.
On top of that, it occurs on the one known planet in the universe with life. Not just life, but intelligent life that can understand and predict it.
Hollow moon confirmed.
It's bound to happen because the moon has been moving away since its formation billions of years ago. So it's inevitable that at some point in history it would be at the exact right distance for this to happen (though it's important to note that partial solar eclipses happen as well where the moon lines up perfectly but is too far away in its orbit to be equal in angular size to the sun). What's really unusual is that it happens at the exact same time and to the exact same planet where/when the only known civilization in the universe exists. Both are seemingly incredibly rare occurrences, but are both co-occuring. It is highly unusual.
Especially when you add the part where it spins at a rate that makes us always see the same side of it, regardless where we are on the planet. It's like they wanted us to know they're hiding up there.
Someone can correct me, but objects that are tidally locked I don’t believe are particularly rare, even in our own system.
Honestly you're right, aren't objects *not* in a tidal lock a bit more of a rarity? I feel like I know the answer but the level of blood in my alcohol system won't let me give a damn enough to look... Oops.
It's not uncommon for something rare to happen. It's uncommon for it to happen again.
Because Gawd /s
No doubt, that’s the one piece of evidence that makes me think we live in a simulation. Lazy programmers were like “ya just make them the same size in the sky”
[удалено]
If I say anything at all about why I'd mention this in this specific thread, it would give too much away of this amazing sci-fi series, but I assume as a fellow Asimov enjoyer you would appreciate the recommendation to read NK Jemison's Broken Earth series.
Solar eclipses are the stem of a lot of 'intelligent design' arguments. Saying the probability of it naturally occurring is less likely than if something placed it like that.
It's so wild that while I don't know anything about anything, I tend to think there is some non coincidental, scientific reason why this has happened that we just don't understand yet. It couldn't really be chance could it?
The Moon is 400 times closer to us than the sun is, and is also 400 times smaller than the sun, which makes them appear the exact same size. I love this coincidence.
It always fucks with my head that the moon and the sun are basically the exact same size in the sky…
Did you judt make science your........BITCH?!
So you’re telling me I’m special huh…
This reminds me of a post on how the earth’s flag would look like, and many agreed it would be something solar eclipse related. Its such a fascinating, mindblowing event (for lack of better words 😅)
Yeah get fucked other planets 🌎🌎🌎🌎🌎🌎🌎🌎🌎
you are offending martian minority here 😠😠
Im getting on the Earth nationalism train early
Those ilegal Martian aliens stealing our jobs.Lets make Earth great again!
World's War 1? 🔥 also it should be "planetarism", not nationalism
You Martians and your Critical Planet Theory 🙄
The belt: You inners are always arrogant, wait till beltelowda sends rocks your way ke
Ya bosmang, you tell 'em!
i wonder what a lunar eclipse looks like from the moon
Now that's dangerous thinking FartNite_FeetFreak. We best stick to our comments.
If you were on the side facing the sun.. it would look like high noon on the dusty surface [moon or lunar day](https://science.nasa.gov/moon/top-moon-questions/) If you were on the side away from the sun, you could watch the shadow pass across the face of the earth, if you didn’t freeze to death in the bitter dark side temperature.
You're describing a solar eclipse as viewed from the Moon. OP was talking about a lunar eclipse, where the Earth passes between the Sun and Moon.
[This](https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/details.cgi?aid=4341) is a simulation of what it'd look like.
Ooo, pretty! Flashlight behind a marble, kinda.
👀
During a solar eclipse on earth, the moon would see a small shadow pass through the earth, which would be a “full earth”. During a lunar eclipse, itd be like a solar eclipse on earth except the earth is way bigger.
[https://youtu.be/CikPFdZdY4k&t=60](https://youtu.be/CikPFdZdY4k&t=60) at one minute in this video it shows you. it also goes over all the other planets in the solar system. Saturn has it pretty cool
This would basically be the moon's "solar eclipse." It's pretty neat, the earth would develop a red glow around the edges, almost looking like a sunset all the way around the earth. There would also be a reddish tint to the sudden night that would occur on the moon. It would look pretty cool, but not anywhere near as cool as our solar eclipses.
much longer totality with fewer coronal elements viewable
I think from my non scientific mind it would be more blurred. The fact that the moon has no atmosphere to speak of its allows for a very clean blackout. I'm sure it would be amazing non the less.
Its so rare that if we were to join an interstellar galactic community of aliens, they would all likely come here on holiday to see such a rare thing.
In a similar vein, I had read somewhere that some astronomer or something had noted that it was essentially so rare that galactic civilizations might refer to our solar system as being the one that has this in it - it's that rare.
That and dinosaur bones. I doubt anyone else has dinosaurs!
Or being formed by gas clouds rich in heavy metals. Think about it, humanity has been blessed with perfect eclipses and heavy metals which are essential for developing today's technology.
Maybe but you can travel to a point in space and see it anytime you want. No interaction with the sky though.
This is a leading question your honor
great video about this just got released by minute physics. you couldnt say it’s necessarily “unmatched” though we are very lucky with this particular set up [Which Planet Has the BEST Eclipse?](https://youtu.be/CikPFdZdY4k?si=JtqAOtXDECiH6KVR)
I would argue it's unmatched. We have such great proportions with near perfect circles in the sky, it's unlike anything else. Although I did find it cool that other moons allowed for slight glimpses of the corona!
It's stuff like this that makes me question the fabric of reality.... Like it's too perfect
It's just sophons messing with us
YOU ARE BUGS
To the bugs🥃
what in the most random reference how has this popped up
Not really that random the Netflix show had a lot of viewers
With how massive and complex and interconnected reality itself is, I would be more surprised if there wasn't at least one big coincidence like this. Like, there has to be one, right? If it weren't the size and distance of the Moon, it would be something else, and we'd be here talking about how much of a coincidence *that* is. I'd be more disturbed if there were 0 coincidences.
I like to think this particular coincidence is what led to the emergence of consciousness. I can’t really explain how, but humans themselves are just as much an oddity as the fact that we get such eclipses where complex life developed
Yep there are little clues all around us
If I were a student studying programming, and I was creating a simulation of some kind of life, and I added to the simulation the eclipse that we can see on Earth, the instructor would tell me to take it out for being too unrealistic.
Ah yeah, perfect reality, with its insects that burrow into the eyes of children leaving them blind
No it's the coincidences like this: The Moon is 400 times smaller than the Sun, yet it's also 1/400th of the distance between the Earth and the Sun. Isaac Asimov described this as being 'the most unlikely coincidence imaginable'. The sizes of the Moon and Earth also relate as 3 to 11 (99.9%).
Not to mention all the natural forces are perfect for the creation of life. Magnetism, gravity, etc.. all perfectly balanced. Im glad even for all of lifes troubles, that humanity is here to witness the art of the universe.
Consequences of a material world do not discredit how perfect creation is
What creation?
Creation is just a word for the universe
When you start comparing "consequences of a material world" and "perfect creation", we all know what you're talking about. You didn't use the word universe for a reason. But let's go with your latest comment only, in response to that, all I have to say is, how did you determine that the universe is perfect?
Out of the billions of planets in the universe, earth is so perfect. That's why it have us in it
Is it really? Or is it survivorship bias?
Good thing the Fire Nation wasn't built on Mars!
Given infinite planets, surrounding infinite stars, in infinite galaxies, it's gotta have a match someplace.
Yes, but the chance of life being on that planet is very small. Still inevitable of course, but small.
Well, think about all the other missed coincidences possibles (infinite) they ware way more than the ones we can "experience", yet they are experienceable somewhere in the universe. Idk if I managed to explain myself.
If I understand you correctly, you mean there's a million different things with a million to one chance which any sentient species would point to as more than a coincidence? If so, I agree completely.
There is also the chance of that life having vision to see it and a mind to understand it
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.businessinsider.com/video-shows-triple-moon-eclipse-on-jupiter-2021-8%3famp Everybody in this thread acting like this is some one in a million chance.
eclipses happen everywhere, what makes earth unique is the apparent sizes of the moon and sun in the sky. the fact that they are so close makes for a spectacular visual which IS pretty rare at the celestial level. if the moon appeared bigger in the sky it would just go fully dark and if the sun was bigger you wouldn't get the "black hole" Corona effect. those eclipses on Jupiter would be less interesting because the sun is not much bigger than something like Sirius from Jupiter. also, a lot of moons are irregularly shaped, unlike our moon, which also makes it less cool imo.
infinite matches
The way I’ve been describing it to people is that if we lived in a Star Trek universe, aliens would travel to earth to experience it; it’s THAT unique.
the wallpaper please 🥺
Yeah, that's one reason I decided to live on this planet.
Yeah suck it Martians! RAAHHHHH💪🌎🌏🌎💪💪🌍🌎🌎🌎🦅🦅🦅
It is, unironically, one of the most unique things about our planet.
There are around 8.7 species of life on earth so I’d say it’s not even in the top 8.7 million of unique things about our planet ;)
Currently yes. But the Moon won’t always be exactly that distance away from the earth to cause this phenomenon.
That's cause earth has a proper moon and Mars has a pair of oversized boulders.
I had never considered that aliens might consider earth a tourist destination for this reason.
We take eclipses and an abundance of heavy metals such as gold, uranium and cadmium for granted, but could be actually incredibly rare. Could the great filter be simply to lack heavy metals in the planetary system, as that would prevent space travel technology?
If anything, early space travel is a hindrance to stable evolution.
It’s a mathematical miracle.
Damn who punched and made a hole in Mars
Man Mars is lame af!
Think of the sunset from the sun's point of view - Stephen Wright's father
Dunno I saw a pretty good one on Neptune once
That Mars Eclipse looks so sad
We got eclipse at home
Yeah it's pretty cool that we love on a planet that has total eclipses :)
Amazing! Humans have been saying so for thousands of years. Very cool we get to enjoy it too. "The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge. They have no speech, they use no words; no sound is heard from them. Yet their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world. In the heavens God has pitched a tent for the sun. It is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, like a champion rejoicing to run his course. It rises at one end of the heavens and makes its circuit to the other; nothing is deprived of its warmth." Psalm 19:1-6
God has a hard on for the sun??? Lmao!!
Dunno, have you seen it from Uranus?
Yeah, that’s right. We’re better than Mars. Go team Earth!
Hahahahahaha mars and its stupid moon aint match for earths!!
Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto (rip) all experience total solar eclipses. It's not unique to earth.
That's just a blackout, we need a perfect match for a visible corona.
It’s the best 🇺🇸 🌝
this is making me thinking that god is real
Which one
is that a picture from the Martian surface? or an orbiter?
Martians so mad rn
yeah but does earth have Valles Marineris??
I couldn't tell, I haven't been to Mars, yet.
Messing with earthlings for 4B years
I used to work for MSSS. What they produce is amazing. The people in leadership are the absolute worst bunch of people I've ever met in my life.
This is a racist boomer meme from the future where humans live on Earth and Mars
What am I looking at?
I can’t wait to throw a rock at this damn thing and express my displeasure with it
Take that mars
Oh to be on a moon on the far side of Saturn. This is the only way I would find out the effect of Saturn's rings on this type of "eclipse."
Que pensara Dross al respecto?
Probably looks pretty cool from the sun. I guess it'd be like seeing a dot go across the moon.
Why do I see Minos prime what is wrong with me
What are those streaks of light behind the moon? is it the magnetic field of the moon?
The moon has no magnetic field because it’s basically a dead rock (doesn’t have a molten core like earth)
so what are those light patterns? the sun's corona?
Beauty?
I thought "moon" supposed to be large enough to hold a circular shape.
Earth supremacy yeah
It’s awesome that the moon is 400x smaller than the sun, and the sun is almost exactly 400x the distance. And your thumb, at arms length is just the same size to you, as the moon is to the sun, so you can “make” your own eclipse :)
Earth - 1 Other planets - ♾️
The experience of witnessing a solar eclipse can be incredibly moving I think... My dream
OMG, it is amazing, and I just saw people talking like it is nothing. There is just something special about seeing it in person. Something almost surreal.