A Partial Lunar Eclipse
What's happened to the Moon? This past weekend, once again, part of the Moon moved through the Earth's shadow. This happens about once or twice a year, on the average , but not each month since the Moon's orbit around the Earth is slightly tilted. Pictured above, the face of a full moon is partly blocked by Earth's clouds, and partly darkened on the upper right by Earth's umbral shadow . Clouds permitting, the partial lunar eclipse was visible from the half of the Earth facing the Moon at the time of the eclipse , which included much of Earth's Pacific Rim . On July 11, a total eclipse of the Sun will be visible in a thin swath of Earth crossing the southern Pacific Ocean .