SDO Eclipses & Transits: March 2013

This motion of the spacecraft around Earth, combined with the motion of the Moon around Earth, and the motion of Earth around the Sun creates opportunities for eclipses and transits involving these other bodies (see Lunar Transit from Solar Dynamics Observatory (2010). On rare occasions, SDO can see an eclipse and transit on the same day, as illustrated in these images collected from March 11, 2013.

These eclipses and transits are not just visually interesting, but important for mission planners as SDO receives much of the electrical power needed to function through solar panels. During these times, SDO needs to operate safely with power from onboard batteries until the time that full solar power can be restored.