alleryStart learning →Why is there no eclipse at every new moon and every full moon?
AThe Moon's orbit is a perfect circle
BThe Moon's orbit is tilted 5 degrees
CThe Moon moves too fast to line up
DThe Moon is too small to cast one
Answer & Solution
Correct answer: B. The Moon's orbit is tilted 5 degrees
1. An eclipse needs the Sun, Earth and Moon on one straight line.
2. The Moon's path is tilted by about 5 degrees against the Sun's path.
3. Most months the Moon passes above or below the line and misses.
4. The paths cross twice a year, and only then is an eclipse possible.
_Source: OpenStax Astronomy (CC BY 4.0), Ch 4 "Earth, Moon, and Sky" and Ch 5 "Radiation and Spectra", section 4.7 Eclipses of the Sun and Moon_
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