Three eclipses

Kamal Lodaya, The Institute of Mathematical Sciences, Chennai

There are three eclipses this year within a period of one month, beginning with June 1st. (There was an eclipse in January, and there will be one more in December.) The pictures show where these eclipses will be seen on the Earth.

Partial eclipse of the Sun on June 1
The eclipse began at sunrise in Siberia and northern China. Two hours later, the greatest eclipse (at 9:16 PM Greenwich time) was seen from the Arctic coast of western Siberia as the midnight Sun skirted the northern horizon. Most of Alaska and northern Canada witnessed the partial eclipse.

Total eclipse of the Moon on June 15
This event will be seen from the eastern half of Africa, the Middle East, central Asia and western Australia. Totality will be seen in Europe, but not the beginning of the eclipse which happens before moonrise there. Totality will also be seen in Eastern Asia, eastern Australia, and New Zealand, but they will miss the last stages of the eclipse which occur after moonset in those parts. At mid-eclipse (at 8:12 PM Greenwich time), the Moon is nearly above the head for observers in the islands of Reunion and Mauritius in the Indian Ocean.

Partial eclipse of the Sun on July 1
This event is visible from a D-shaped region in the Antarctic Ocean south of Africa. Such a remote and isolated path means that no human beings might see it except for those on ships sailing through those areas. The greatest eclipse is at 8:38 AM Greenwich time.

Questions to think about
1. Why is there a solar eclipse, then two weeks later a lunar eclipse, then two weeks later a solar eclipse?
2. The word "month" is named after one cycle of the Moon around the Earth. Do you think this cycle takes exactly 30 days?
3. Why is the first eclipse visible far in the Northern hemisphere, the next one centred around the Equator, and the last one visible far in the Southern hemisphere?
4. Suppose the first eclipse on June 1 had been visible in India. Where do you think the second eclipse on June 15 would have been visible? Where do you think the third eclipse on July 1 have been visible, if at all?
5. Does it seem likely that if there is a total eclipse of one kind (for example, an eclipse of the Moon, as on June 15), then there will be a total eclipse of the other kind (meaning an eclipse of the Sun) just two weeks before or after that?