So if you were writing a science textbook ... Look at this diagram of the moon on opposite sides of the Earth: On the far side of Earth, the gravitational force from both Earth and the sun ...

Earth is our home planet ... Marilyn Perkins is the content manager at Live Science. She is a science writer and illustrator based in Los Angeles, California. She received her master’s degree ...

This cosmic event occurs when the Earth, sun, and moon align perfectly. One diagram shows how a total solar eclipse works, and why it darkens the sky in the middle of the day. A total solar ...

Earth and Planetary Science Letters 136, 475-494 (1995). Kuper, R., and Kröpelin, S. Climate-controlled Holocene occupation of the Sahara: Motor of Africa's evolution. Science 313, 803-807 (2006).

There are two points — called nodes — where the moon's orbit crosses the Earth's plane. On the diagram above, the moon is lined up on a node. The moon aligns with the nodes and the sun about ...