[ELI5] How do we predict solar and lunar eclipse?

Question

[ELI5] How do we predict solar and lunar eclipse?

In: Mathematics

Answer 1

You observe the position and speed of the moon, sun, earth with a telescope.

You input that into a physics model and run the simulation like a billion years forward and have the computer note every single lunar eclipse.

I don’t know how sophisticated these models need to be, but even a very simple two body Newtonian gravity model would probably be 99% accurate over 10 years.

Like you can do super basic and it still works fine for the most part,

https://www.compadre.org/osp/EJSS/4690/384.htm