Grazing occultation

When we look up at the sky at night, we often see stars. Sometimes, however, a planet or the Moon will pass in front of one of these stars, blocking out its light for a moment. This is called an occultation.

A grazing occultation is a special kind of occultation where the object passing in front of the star, instead of passing in a straight line, just barely skims the edge of the star. Think of it like a bird flying very close to the top of a tree without actually hitting it.

For someone watching from Earth, a grazing occultation can look like the star is blinking on and off, over and over again. It can be an exciting event for astronomers who use it to learn more about the objects passing in front of the star and the star itself.

So, to summarize, grazing occultation happens when an object passes very close to the star and it temporarily blocks the star's light, making it blink on and off.