Posted on 01/31/2009 12:27:31 PM PST by Daffynition
It is one of the most glorious pieces of natural theatre. Assuming you spend your life on the same part of the Earth's surface, you might witness it once - if you are particularly lucky or very long-lived, perhaps twice. But a total solar eclipse is worth the wait. At the height of totality, the fit of sun and moon is so perfect that beads of sunlight can only penetrate to us through the rugged valleys on the lunar surface, creating the stunning "diamond ring" effect.
It is all thanks to a striking coincidence. The sun is about 400 times as wide as the moon, but it is also 400 times further away. The two therefore look the same size in the sky - a unique situation among our solar system's eight planets and 166 known moons. Earth is also the only planet to harbour life. Pure coincidence?
Almost undoubtedly, say most astronomers. But perhaps it is not so much of one as the bare numbers suggest. Our moon is different. The many moons of the large outer planets - Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune - are thought to have originated through one of two processes: from the accretion of a disc of material in the planet's gravity field, in a miniature version of the formation of the solar system's planets, or through the later gravitational capture of passing small bodies. The second possibility is also thought to account for Mars's two small satellites, Deimos and Phobos, the only other moons in the inner solar system.
But our moon is simply too big relative to Earth's own size ..........
[snip]
(Excerpt) Read more at newscientist.com ...
“it is all thanks to a striking coincidence.”
I was looking for that. They ALWAYS make sure that’s in the first paragraph.
Yes, it’s just one of MANY glaringly obvious “coincedences” by which God gives us his signature.
Like the same happy "coincidence" that cocoa butter (chocolate) melts at the same average temperature of the human body. Thanks Oh Great Creator of "coincidence". :-)
Two blondes in Chicago were talking, and one asked the other “What's closer, Texas or the Moon?”
The other replied “Duh! Can you see Texas?”
So they can dirty dance together?
I wish we had two moons at the same distance so they could have clacker like encounters from time to time.
So that explains why chocolate tastes so good, ehhh? :)
It doesn't matter if you are a gigantic heat, light and energy producer, or a large dead useless rock that only changed because of the impact of expensive, taxpayer-funded government programs on it (Apollo, etc.) and then just changed a tiny bit, Obama wants us all to get the same recognition, (except ACORN and big time Dem donors, of course.)
lets check out the manual, see what it says!
Gen 1:14a
And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs,
See #9
:`)
Has to be Global Warming. That is the root of all evil and the cause of all problems.
Girl cop pulled over a drunken guy and said “ anything you say will be held against you” he replied “ TITTIES “!!!!
Really helped reaffirm my Faith. I said to myself “SOMEBODY had to have planned this” when I found out. I mean the joy of “melts in your mouth”. I can’t possibly think of any use for chocolate syrup, other than an occasional sundae. Would seem like such a waste. :-)
“The same size” means approximately, not exactly. On average, the Sun appears slightly larger than the Moon in our sky, although both vary slightly in apparent size due to the eccentricities of Earth’s and the Moon’s orbits. Because of these variations sometimes the Moon appears larger than the Sun, and if it passes in front of the Sun at that time a total solar eclipse occurs. Other times, the Moon appears smaller, and if it passes in front of the Sun then, an annular eclipse occurs, where a thin ring of sunlight remains around its edge, where the Moon is not large enough to cover it.
Also, like the article stated, the Moon is slowly moving away from us, and millions of years later it will appear small enough that all solar eclipses will be annular (or partial). And hundreds of millions of years ago, during the time of the dinosaurs, the Moon appeared distinctly larger than the Sun.
This thread is to much for “Super-Bowl Saturday”, but for some insane reason I had to read it. :^)
The relative sizes also allows for annular eclipses, such as the one this past Monday visible in Asia which heralded the Chinese New Year -- of the "Ox", in this go-round.
(Obviously, a sign from above blessing the presence of the One in our midst...)
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