Eclipses and the Power of Science

Posted by Paul A. Heckert Feb 24, 2008

The lunar eclipse occurred on schedule last Wednesday night. It started and stopped just when the predictions said it would. Eclipses can be predicted correctly well into the future. That is part of the nature and power of science. Natural phenomena follow very specific laws of nature that allow us to predict what will happen. Mathematical statements of the laws of nature coupled with mathematical tools allow us to make specific quantitative predictions.

Before we understood these laws, nature seemed capricious. Our ancestors, with no understanding of how orbits work, looked at eclipses and saw random events, which they often attributed to capricious gods. They then performed various rituals to appease these gods in hopes the gods would return the Sun or Moon.

Scientists however try to understand natural events and their causes. This understanding allows us to predict natural events. As our understanding of natural laws has increased throughout history, our ability to predict natural phenomena has also increased. Our belief in the capriciousness of nature has correspondingly declined. Complex natural phenomena still elude prediction, but we at least usually understand their causes and are working on the predictions.

There are limitations to the power, but much of the power of science comes from the ability to accurately predict what will happen in a specific situation. Otherwise we are, like our ancestors, at the mercy of capricious nature.