Eclipse of the Sun by the Earth as Seen from the Moon

January 04, 2013

EclipseOftheSun

PhotographerDave Lynch
Summary Author: Dave Lynch 

What would a total eclipse of the Sun look like from the Moon? No one has ever seen it, though many have speculated. In 1979, I asked science fiction artist and author Morris Scott Dollens to paint such a scene. The idea was to be as realistic as possible, showing the solar corona, the bright red ring around the Earth’s terminator (due to scattering and absorption in the atmosphere) and the Milky Way sparkling beyond. Dollens's careful and accurate rendition, including the brilliant red ring (featured in detail in the view at right) is shown above. The most interesting aspect of such an event would be the reddish sunlight scattered through the Earth’s atmosphere. This same light makes a totally eclipsed Moon reddish. I wonder if anyone will ever see such an eclipse.

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