Stargazing Solar and Lunar Eclipse - size of moon

AI Thread Summary
During a solar eclipse, the moon's shadow tapers one moon diameter on Earth, while during a lunar eclipse, the Earth's shadow also tapers one moon diameter on the moon. This is due to the relative distances and sizes of the moon and Earth. The Earth's shadow is significantly larger, being 2.5 times wider than the moon. The discussion highlights confusion regarding the tapering of shadows, questioning why the Earth's shadow doesn't taper by an Earth diameter instead. Understanding these dynamics is crucial for grasping the mechanics of eclipses.
samona
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If during a solar eclipse the moon tapers one moon diameter, wouldn't a lunar eclipse taper one Earth diameter?
 
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hi samona

what do you mean by tapers one moon diameter ?
you do realize that the moon is a lot closer to the Earth than the sun is ?

Dave
 
I meant the shadow of the moon tapers 1 moon diameter on the Earth during a solar eclipse. My physics book says that the Earth's shadow on the moon during a lunar eclipse also tapers 1 moon diameter.

My physics book says that if the moon's shadow tapers 1 moon diameter on the Earth during a solar eclipse, then the Earth's shadow tapers one moon diameter during a lunar eclipse. Therefore, since the Earth's shadow is 2.5 times wider than the moon, if you take into account that the Earth's shadow tapers 1 moon diameter than the Earth is 3.5(2.5 + 1) times larger than the moon.

My confusion is that if the moon's shadow tapers 1 moon diameter, why does the Earth's shadow also taper 1 moon diameter? Wouldn't the Earth's shadow taper one Earth diameter?
 

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