Seasons and sky
Earth Shadow
Direct answer
Earth Shadow: The Earth Shadow is the dark blue-gray band rising opposite the Sun after sunset or sinking before sunrise as Earth blocks direct sunlight from the atmosphere.
The Earth Shadow is the twilight dark band on the antisolar horizon.
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At a glance
- Found in
- Seasons & Earth Almanac
- Related
- Brocken Spectre, Belt of Venus, Astronomical Season, Equinox
The Earth Shadow is the twilight dark band on the antisolar horizon.
A Sun-Earth orientation for seasonal, atmospheric, tidal, and terrestrial terms.
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The story behind Earth Shadow
Landscape observers long noted the dark antisolar arch; modern photography makes its changing height easy to record.
Why Earth Shadow matters
Earth Shadow makes the planet's own shadow visible in the atmosphere outside an eclipse.
Earth Shadow in practice: an example
Minutes after sunset, a dusky band can climb in the east beneath a rosy arc.
Where readings of Earth Shadow go wrong
The usual misreading is to confuse the atmospheric Earth Shadow with Earth umbra projected into space during a lunar eclipse.
Sources and editorial method
Research references used for this entry include:
- National Weather Service: Atmospheric Optics - NWS science reference for halos, pillars, sundogs, green flashes, rays, and related optical displays.
- NASA Science: Seeing Equinoxes and Solstices from Space - NASA explanation of axial tilt, the terminator, seasonal illumination, equinoxes, and solstices.
- Source
- The Great Almanac Dictionary
- Category
- Seasons & Earth Almanac
- Last updated
- 2026-09-26
Watch the antisolar shadow rise
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More in Seasons & Earth Almanac
- Green Flash
- Midnight Sun
- Obliquity of the Ecliptic
- Semidiurnal Tide
- Subsolar Point
- Tide
- Axial Tilt
- Climatological Normal
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Common questions
What is the Earth Shadow?
The Earth Shadow is the dark blue-gray band rising opposite the Sun after sunset or sinking before sunrise as Earth blocks direct sunlight from the atmosphere.
What do people get wrong about the Earth Shadow?
The usual misreading is to confuse the atmospheric Earth Shadow with Earth umbra projected into space during a lunar eclipse.
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