Hi Keira! A total lunar eclipse happens when the Sun is behind the Earth, lined up just right so that the Earth's shadow falls on the Moon and it disappears. A total solar eclipse, on the other hand, happens when the Sun is behind the Moon, lined up just right so that the Moon's shadow falls on the Earth. The difference is that the Moon's shadow is a lot smaller than the Earth's shadow. So, during a lunar eclipse all of the moon is covered by the Earth's shadow, but during a solar eclipse only a small part of the Earth is covered by the Moon's shadow, so only a small region (the "path" of the solar eclipse) on Earth will see it. See http://www.mreclipse.com/Special/SEprimer.html for a nice description (with pictures!) of solar eclipses, and http://www.mreclipse.com/Special/LEprimer.html for one of lunar eclipses. cheers, Sarah