Lunar eclipses are special events that only occur when certain conditions are met. First of all, the Moon must be in <a href="/the_universe/uts/moon3.html&edu=high&dev=1/earth/Atmosphere/moons/�/earth/climate/games_space_sense.html">full phase</a>. Secondly, the <a href="/sun/sun.html&edu=high&dev=1/earth/Atmosphere/moons/�/earth/climate/games_space_sense.html">Sun</a>, <a href="/earth/earth.html&edu=high&dev=1/earth/Atmosphere/moons/�/earth/climate/games_space_sense.html">Earth</a> and <a href="/earth/moons_and_rings.html&edu=high&dev=1/earth/Atmosphere/moons/�/earth/climate/games_space_sense.html">Moon</a> must be in a perfectly straight line. If both of these are met, then the Earth's shadow can block the Sun's light from hitting the Moon. The reddish glow of the Moon is caused by light from the Earth's limb scattering toward the Moon, which is reflected back to us from the Moon's surface.<p><small><em>Image credit - Doug Murray, Palm Beach Gardens, Florida</em></small></p>An image of Hurricane Sandy taken by the GOES-13 satellite on October 28. This category 1 <a href="/earth/Atmosphere/hurricane/hurricane.html&edu=high&dev=1/earth/Atmosphere/moons/�/earth/climate/games_space_sense.html">hurricane</a> was huge, spanning a horizontal distance of about one-third the US continental landmass. The storm came onshore in New Jersey, and gradually moved northeast. The storm disrupted the lives of tens of millions in the eastern US, doing billions of dollars in damage, resulting in over 30 deaths. Visit the National Hurricane Center's webpage on <a href="http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/">Hurricane Sandy</a> for details.<p><small><em>Image courtesy of NASA</em></small></p>A near-Earth <a href="/our_solar_system/asteroids.html&edu=high&dev=1/earth/Atmosphere/moons/�/earth/climate/games_space_sense.html">asteroid</a> - named 2012 DA14 by astronomers - passed within 17,200 miles from Earth on February 15, 2013. On closest approach at about 1:25 p.m. CST on February 15, although it was within the orbit of the <a href="/earth/moons_and_rings.html&edu=high&dev=1/earth/Atmosphere/moons/�/earth/climate/games_space_sense.html">Moon</a> and even geosynchronous <a href="/space_missions/satellites.html&edu=high&dev=1/earth/Atmosphere/moons/�/earth/climate/games_space_sense.html">satellites</a>, it didn't strike Earth! Find out more from <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/asteroids/news/asteroid20130201315144.html">NASA</a>! Fragments of a meteorite hit Chelyabinsk, Russia on 2/15/2013 <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/02/15/us-russia-meteorite-idUSBRE91E05Z20130215">injuring over 500</a>. Learn about <a href="http://www.windows2universe.org/our_solar_system/meteors/meteors.html">meteors and meteorites</a>.<p><small><em>NASA/JPL-CalTech</em></small></p>New observations by the MESSENGER spacecraft provide support for the hypothesis that Mercury harbors abundant water ice and other frozen volatile materials in its permanently shadowed (shown in red) polar craters. Areas where polar deposits of ice imaged by Earth-based radar are shown in yellow.<p><small><em>Image courtesy of NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington/National Astronomy and Ionosphere Center, Arecibo Observatory</em></small></p>An <a href="http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/recenteqsww/Quakes/usc000905e.php">8.6 magnitude earthquake</a> struck on 11 April 2012 off of Banda Aceh, Sumatra, Indonesia, followed by a strong aftershock. Earthquake motion was primarily horizontal. A tsunami warning was issued for the Indian Ocean, but was cancelled at 12:36 UTC. A tsunami was observed at 1 meter or less. Find out more about <a href="/earth/geology/quake_1.html&edu=high&dev=1/earth/Atmosphere/moons/�/earth/climate/games_space_sense.html">earthquake</a> and <a href="/earth/tsunami1.html&edu=high&dev=1/earth/Atmosphere/moons/�/earth/climate/games_space_sense.html">tsunami</a> processes. Check out the resources <a href="/teacher_resources/2011_AGU-NESTA_GIFT_Workshop.html&edu=high&dev=1/earth/Atmosphere/moons/�/earth/climate/games_space_sense.html">here</a>.<p><small><em>NOAA</em></small></p><p>The United Nations <a href="http://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/PAND_report.pdf" target="_blank">estimated</a> that between 1994-2015, there were 6,873 natural disasters worldwide, which affected 218 million people and claimed 1.35 million lives. </p> <p>Check out the materials about natural disasters in <a href="/earth/natural_hazards/when_nature_strikes.html&edu=high&dev=1/earth/Atmosphere/moons/�/earth/climate/games_space_sense.html">NBC Learn Videos</a>, and their earth system science connections built up by the related secondary classroom activities.</p><p><small><em>NBC Learn</em></small></p>


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