Eclipse season

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As the Earth revolves around the Sun, approximate axial parallelism of the Moon's orbital plane (tilted five degrees to the Earth's orbital plane) results in the revolution of the lunar nodes relative to the Earth. This causes an eclipse season approximately every six months (173 days), in which a solar eclipse can occur at the new moon phase and a lunar eclipse can occur at the full moon phase. Eclipse vs new or full moons, annotated.svg
As the Earth revolves around the Sun, approximate axial parallelism of the Moon's orbital plane (tilted five degrees to the Earth's orbital plane) results in the revolution of the lunar nodes relative to the Earth. This causes an eclipse season approximately every six months (173 days), in which a solar eclipse can occur at the new moon phase and a lunar eclipse can occur at the full moon phase.
James Ferguson's 1757 comparison of a lunar or solar eclipse with a full or new moon, showing how the nodal precession of the moon's 5deg orbital inclination means eclipses happen only about every six months rather than every two weeks Comparison of a lunar or solar eclipse with a full or new moon, showing how the moon's 5deg orbital inclination means eclipses happen only about every six months rather than every two weeks (1757 publication by James Ferguson).jpg
James Ferguson's 1757 comparison of a lunar or solar eclipse with a full or new moon, showing how the nodal precession of the moon's 5° orbital inclination means eclipses happen only about every six months rather than every two weeks

An eclipse season is a period, roughly every six months, when eclipses occur. Eclipse seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of the Moon's orbital plane (tilted five degrees to the Earth's orbital plane), just as Earth's weather seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted axis as it orbits around the Sun. During the season, the "lunar nodes" – the line where the Moon's orbital plane intersects with the Earth's orbital plane – align with the Sun and Earth, such that a solar eclipse is formed during the new moon phase and a lunar eclipse is formed during the full moon phase.

Contents

Only two (or occasionally three) eclipse seasons occur during each year, and each season lasts about 35 days and repeats just short of six months (173 days) later, thus two full eclipse seasons always occur each year. Either two or three eclipses happen each eclipse season. During the eclipse season, the Moon is at a low ecliptic latitude (less than around 1.5° north or south), hence the Sun, Moon, and Earth become aligned straightly enough (in syzygy) for an eclipse to occur. Eclipse seasons should occur 38 times within a saros period (6,585.3 days).

The type of each solar eclipse (whether total or annular, as seen from the sublunar point) depends on the apparent sizes of the Sun and Moon, which are functions of the distances of Earth from the Sun and of the Moon from Earth, respectively, as seen from Earth's surface. These distances vary because both the Earth and the Moon have elliptic orbits.

If both orbits were coplanar (i.e. on the same plane) with each other, then two eclipses would happen every lunar month (29.53 days), assuming the Earth had a perfectly circular orbit centered around the Sun, and the Moon's orbit was also perfectly circular and centered around the Earth. A lunar eclipse would occur at every full moon, a solar eclipse every new moon, and all solar eclipses would be the same type.

Details

An eclipse season is the only time when the Sun (from the perspective of the Earth) is close enough to one of the Moon's nodes to allow an eclipse to occur. During the season, whenever there is a full moon a lunar eclipse may occur and whenever there is a new moon a solar eclipse may occur. If the Sun is close enough to a node, then a "full" eclipse [total or annular solar, or total lunar] will occur. Each season lasts from 31 to 37 days, and seasons recur about every 6 months (173 days). At least two (one solar and one lunar, in any order), and at most three eclipses (solar, lunar, then solar again, or vice versa), will occur during every eclipse season. This is because it is about 15 days (a fortnight) between a full moon and a new moon and vice versa. If there is an eclipse at the very beginning of the season, then there is enough time (30 days) for two more eclipses.

In other words, because the eclipse season (34 days long on average) is longer than the synodic month (one lunation, or the time for the Moon to return to a particular phase and about 29.5 days), the Moon will be new or full at least two, and up to three, times during the season. Eclipse seasons occur slightly shy of six months apart (successively occurring every 173.31 days - half of an eclipse year), the time it takes the Sun to travel from one node to the next along the ecliptic. If the last eclipse of an eclipse season occurs at the very beginning of a calendar year, a total of seven eclipses to occur since there is still time before the end of the calendar year for two full eclipse seasons, each having up to three eclipses. [1] [2] [3]

Examples: Part 1 out of 4

Visual sequence of two particular eclipse seasons

In each sequence below, each eclipse is separated by a fortnight. The first and last eclipse in each sequence is separated by one synodic month. See also Eclipse cycles .

Eclipse season of June–July 2020
June 5
Descending node (full moon)		 June 21
Ascending node (new moon)		 July 5
Descending node (full moon)
Lunar eclipse chart close-2020Jun05.png SE2020Jun21A.png Lunar eclipse chart close-2020Jul05.png
Penumbral lunar eclipse
Lunar saros 111		 Annular solar eclipse
Solar saros 137		Penumbral lunar eclipse
Lunar saros 149
Eclipse season of June–July 2029
June 12
Descending node (new moon)		 June 26
Ascending node (full moon)		 July 11
Descending node (new moon)
SE2029Jun12P.png Lunar eclipse chart close-29jun26.png SE2029Jul11P.png
Partial solar eclipse
Solar saros 118		Total lunar eclipse
Lunar saros 130		Partial solar eclipse
Solar saros 156

(The two eclipse seasons above share similarities (lunar or solar centrality and gamma of each eclipse in the same column) because they are a half saros apart.) [4]

22-year chart of eclipses (1999–2020) demonstrating seasons

DateType (phase)Time of seasonSaros seriesnext eclipse will occur...
January 31, 1999lunar (full)beginningLunar saros 114 (58 of 71)next new moon
February 16, 1999solar (new)endSolar saros 140 (28 of 71)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 and a half months...
July 28, 1999lunar (full)beginningLunar saros 119 (60 of 82)next new moon
August 11, 1999solar (new)endSolar saros 145 (21 of 77)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 and a half months...
January 21, 2000lunar (full)beginningLunar saros 124 (48 of 73)next new moon
February 5, 2000solar (new)endSolar saros 150 (16 of 71)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 months...
July 1, 2000solar (new)beginningSolar saros 117 (68 of 71)next full moon
July 16, 2000lunar (full)middleLunar saros 129 (37 of 71)next new moon
July 31, 2000solar (new)endSolar saros 155 (5 of 71)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 months...
December 25, 2000solar (new)beginningSolar saros 122 (57 of 70)next full moon
January 9, 2001lunar (full)endLunar saros 134 (26 of 72)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 and a half months...
June 21, 2001solar (new)beginningSolar saros 127 (57 of 82)next full moon
July 5, 2001lunar (full)endLunar saros 139 (20 of 79)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 and a half months...
December 14, 2001solar (new)beginningSolar saros 132 (45 of 71)next full moon
December 30, 2001lunar (full)endLunar saros 144 (15 of 71)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 months...
May 26, 2002lunar (full)beginningLunar saros 111 (66 of 71)next new moon
June 10, 2002solar (new)middleSolar saros 137 (35 of 70)next full moon
June 24, 2002lunar (full)endLunar saros 149 (2 of 71)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 months...
November 20, 2002lunar (full)beginningLunar saros 116 (57 of 73)next new moon
December 4, 2002solar (new)endSolar saros 142 (22 of 72)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 and a half months...
May 16, 2003lunar (full)beginningLunar saros 121 (54 of 82)next new moon
May 31, 2003solar (new)endSolar saros 147 (22 of 80)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 and a half months...
November 9, 2003lunar (full)beginningLunar saros 126 (44 of 70)next new moon
November 23, 2003solar (new)endSolar saros 152 (12 of 70)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 months...
April 19, 2004solar (new)beginningSolar saros 119 (65 of 71)next full moon
May 4, 2004lunar (full)endLunar saros 131 (33 of 72)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 and a half months...
October 14, 2004solar (new)beginningSolar saros 124 (54 of 73)next full moon
October 28, 2004lunar (full)endLunar saros 136 (19 of 72)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 and a half months...
April 8, 2005solar (new)beginningSolar saros 129 (51 of 80)next full moon
April 24, 2005lunar (full)endLunar saros 141 (23 of 72)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 and a half months...
October 3, 2005solar (new)beginningSolar saros 134 (43 of 71)next full moon
October 17, 2005lunar (full)endLunar saros 146 (10 of 72)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 months...
March 14, 2006lunar (full)beginningLunar saros 113 (63 of 71)next new moon
March 29, 2006solar (new)endSolar saros 139 (29 of 71)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 and a half months...
September 7, 2006lunar (full)beginningLunar saros 118 (51 of 73)next new moon
September 22, 2006solar (new)endSolar saros 144 (16 of 70)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 and a half months...
March 3, 2007lunar (full)beginningLunar saros 123 (52 of 72)next new moon
March 19, 2007solar (new)endSolar saros 149 (20 of 71)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 and a half months...
August 28, 2007lunar (full)beginningLunar saros 128 (40 of 71)next new moon
September 11, 2007solar (new)endSolar saros 154 (6 of 71)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 months...
February 7, 2008solar (new)beginningSolar saros 121 (60 of 71)next full moon
February 21, 2008lunar (full)endLunar saros 133 (26 of 71)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 and a half months...
August 1, 2008solar (new)beginningSolar saros 126 (47 of 72)next full moon
August 16, 2008lunar (full)endLunar saros 138 (28 of 82)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 and a half months...
January 26, 2009solar (new)beginningSolar saros 131 (50 of 70)next full moon
February 9, 2009lunar (full)endLunar saros 143 (17 of 72)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 months...
July 7, 2009lunar (full)beginningLunar saros 110 (71 of 72)next new moon
July 22, 2009solar (new)middleSolar saros 136 (37 of 71)next full moon
August 6, 2009lunar (full)endLunar saros 148 (3 of 70)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 months...
December 31, 2009lunar (full)beginningLunar saros 115 (57 of 72)next new moon
January 15, 2010solar (new)endSolar saros 141 (23 of 70)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 and a half months...
June 26, 2010lunar (full)beginningLunar saros 120 (57 of 83)next new moon
July 11, 2010solar (new)endSolar saros 146 (27 of 76)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 and a half months...
December 21, 2010lunar (full)beginningLunar saros 125 (48 of 72)next new moon
January 4, 2011solar (new)endSolar saros 151 (14 of 72)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 months...
June 1, 2011solar (new)beginningSolar saros 118 (68 of 72)next full moon
June 15, 2011lunar (full)middleLunar saros 130 (34 of 71)next new moon
July 1, 2011solar (new)endSolar saros 156 (1 of 69)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 months...
November 25, 2011solar (new)beginningSolar saros 123 (53 of 70)next full moon
December 10, 2011lunar (full)endLunar saros 135 (23 of 71)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 and a half months...
May 20, 2012solar (new)beginningSolar saros 128 (58 of 73)next full moon
June 4, 2012lunar (full)endLunar saros 140 (24 of 77)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 and a half months...
November 13, 2012solar (new)beginningSolar saros 133 (45 of 72)next full moon
November 28, 2012lunar (full)endLunar saros 145 (11 of 71)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 months...
April 25, 2013lunar (full)beginningLunar saros 112 (65 of 72)next new moon
May 10, 2013solar (new)middleSolar saros 138 (31 of 70)next full moon
May 25, 2013lunar (full)endLunar saros 150 (1 of 71)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 months...
October 18, 2013lunar (full)beginningLunar saros 117 (52 of 71)next new moon
November 3, 2013solar (new)endSolar saros 143 (23 of 72)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 and a half months...
April 15, 2014lunar (full)beginningLunar saros 122 (56 of 74)next new moon
April 29, 2014solar (new)endSolar saros 148 (21 of 75)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 and a half months...
October 8, 2014lunar (full)beginningLunar saros 127 (42 of 72)next new moon
October 23, 2014solar (new)endSolar saros 153 (9 of 70)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 months...
March 20, 2015solar (new)beginningSolar saros 120 (61 of 71)next full moon
April 4, 2015lunar (full)endLunar saros 132 (30 of 71)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 and a half months...
September 13, 2015solar (new)beginningSolar saros 125 (54 of 73)next full moon
September 28, 2015lunar (full)endLunar saros 137 (26 of 78)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 and a half months...
March 9, 2016solar (new)beginningSolar saros 130 (52 of 73)next full moon
March 23, 2016lunar (full)endLunar saros 142 (18 of 73)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 and a half months...
September 1, 2016solar (new)beginningSolar saros 135 (39 of 71)next full moon
September 16, 2016lunar (full)endLunar saros 147 (8 of 70)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 months...
February 11, 2017lunar (full)beginningLunar saros 114 (59 of 71)next new moon
February 26, 2017solar (new)endSolar saros 140 (29 of 71)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 and a half months...
August 7, 2017lunar (full)beginningLunar saros 119 (61 of 82)next new moon
August 21, 2017solar (new)endSolar saros 145 (22 of 77)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 and a half months...
January 31, 2018lunar (full)beginningLunar saros 124 (49 of 73)next new moon
February 15, 2018solar (new)endSolar saros 150 (17 of 71)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 months...
July 13, 2018solar (new)beginningSolar saros 117 (69 of 71)next full moon
July 27, 2018lunar (full)middleLunar saros 129 (38 of 71)next new moon
August 11, 2018solar (new)endSolar saros 155 (6 of 71)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 months...
January 6, 2019solar (new)beginningSolar saros 122 (58 of 70)next full moon
January 21, 2019lunar (full)endLunar saros 134 (27 of 72)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 and a half months...
July 2, 2019solar (new)beginningSolar saros 127 (58 of 82)next full moon
July 16, 2019lunar (full)endLunar saros 139 (21 of 79)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 and a half months...
December 26, 2019solar (new)beginningSolar saros 132 (46 of 71)next full moon
January 10, 2020lunar (full)endLunar saros 144 (16 of 71)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 months...
June 5, 2020lunar (full)beginningLunar saros 111 (67 of 71)next new moon
June 21, 2020solar (new)middleSolar saros 137 (36 of 70)next full moon
July 5, 2020lunar (full)endLunar saros 149 (3 of 71)next eclipse season
... no eclipses for about 5 months...
November 30, 2020lunar (full)beginningLunar saros 116 (58 of 73)next new moon
December 14, 2020solar (new)endSolar saros 142 (23 of 72)next eclipse season

The penumbral lunar eclipse of November 29–30, 2020 was followed by the solar eclipse of December 14, 2020.

Examples: Part 2 out of 4

Visual sequence of two particular eclipse seasons

In each sequence below, each eclipse is separated by a fortnight. The first and last eclipse in each sequence is separated by one synodic month. See also Eclipse cycles .

Eclipse season of July–August 2009
July 7th
Ascending node (full moon)		 July 22nd
Descending node (new moon)		 August 6th
Ascending node (full moon)
Lunar eclipse chart close-2009jul07.png SE2009Jul22T.png Lunar eclipse chart close-2009aug06.png
Penumbral lunar eclipse
Lunar saros 110		 Total solar eclipse
Solar saros 136		Penumbral lunar eclipse
Lunar saros 148
Eclipse season of July–August 2018
July 13th
Ascending node (new moon)		 July 27th
Descending node (full moon)		 August 11th
Ascending node (new moon)
SE2018Jul13P.png Lunar eclipse chart close-2018Jul27.png SE2018Aug11P.png
Partial solar eclipse
Solar saros 117		Total lunar eclipse
Lunar saros 129		Partial solar eclipse
Solar saros 155

(The two eclipse seasons above share similarities (lunar or solar centrality and gamma of each eclipse in the same column) because they are a half saros apart.) [4]

Examples: Part 3 out of 4

Visual sequence of two particular eclipse seasons

In each sequence below, each eclipse is separated by a fortnight. The first and last eclipse in each sequence is separated by one synodic month. See also Eclipse cycles .

Eclipse season of July–August 1944
July 6th
Descending node (full moon)		 July 20th
Ascending node (new moon)		 August 4th
Descending node (full moon)
Lunar eclipse chart close-1944Jul06.png SE1944Jul20A.png Lunar eclipse chart close-1944Aug04.png
Penumbral lunar eclipse
Lunar saros 109		 Annular solar eclipse
Solar saros 135		Penumbral lunar eclipse
Lunar saros 147
Eclipse season of July–August 1953
July 11th
Descending node (new moon)		 July 26th
Ascending node (full moon)		 August 9th
Descending node (new moon)
SE1953Jul11P.png Lunar eclipse chart close-1953Jul26.png SE1953Aug09P.png
Partial solar eclipse
Solar saros 116		Total lunar eclipse
Lunar saros 128		Partial solar eclipse
Solar saros 154

(The two eclipse seasons above share similarities (lunar or solar centrality and gamma of each eclipse in the same column) because they are a half saros apart.) [4]

Examples: Part 4 out of 4

Visual sequence of two particular eclipse seasons

In each sequence below, each eclipse is separated by a fortnight. The first and last eclipse in each sequence is separated by one synodic month. See also Eclipse cycles .

Eclipse season of July–August 1906
July 21st
Ascending node (new moon)		 August 4th
Descending node (full moon)		 August 20th
Ascending node (new moon)
SE1906Jul21P.png Lunar eclipse chart close-1906Aug04.png SE1906Aug20P.png
Partial solar eclipse
Solar saros 115		Total lunar eclipse
Lunar saros 127		Partial solar eclipse
Solar saros 153
Eclipse season of July–August 1915
July 26th
Ascending node (full moon)		 August 10th
Descending node (new moon)		 August 24th
Ascending node (full moon)
Lunar eclipse chart close-1915Jul26.png SE1915Aug10A.png Lunar eclipse chart close-1915Aug24.png
Penumbral lunar eclipse
Lunar saros 108		Annular solar eclipse
Solar saros 134		Penumbral lunar eclipse
Lunar saros 146

(The two eclipse seasons above share similarities (lunar or solar centrality and gamma of each eclipse in the same column) because they are a half saros apart.) [4]

See also

Related Research Articles

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Eclipses may occur repeatedly, separated by certain intervals of time: these intervals are called eclipse cycles. The series of eclipses separated by a repeat of one of these intervals is called an eclipse series.

The saros is a period of exactly 223 synodic months, approximately 6585.321 days, or 18 years plus 10, 11, or 12 days, and 8 hours, that can be used to predict eclipses of the Sun and Moon. One saros period after an eclipse, the Sun, Earth, and Moon return to approximately the same relative geometry, a near straight line, and a nearly identical eclipse will occur, in what is referred to as an eclipse cycle. A sar is one half of a saros.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Solar eclipse of April 29, 2014</span> 21st-century annular solar eclipse

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Solar eclipse of March 30, 2052</span> Total eclipse

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An annular solar eclipse occurred at the Moon's descending node of the orbit on February 4–5, 1981. A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun, thereby totally or partly obscuring the image of the Sun for a viewer on Earth. An annular solar eclipse occurs when the Moon's apparent diameter is smaller than the Sun's, blocking most of the Sun's light and causing the Sun to look like an annulus (ring). An annular eclipse appears as a partial eclipse over a region of the Earth thousands of kilometres wide. This annular solar eclipse was large because the Moon covered 99.4% of the Sun, with a path width of only 25 km . It was visible in Australia, crossing over Tasmania and southern Stewart Island of New Zealand near sunrise on February 5 (Thursday), and ended at sunset over western South America on February 4 (Wednesday). Occurring only 4 days before perigee, the moon's apparent diameter was larger.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Solar eclipse of August 10, 1980</span> 20th-century annular solar eclipse

An annular solar eclipse occurred at the Moon's ascending node of the orbit on August 10, 1980, centred over the Pacific Ocean. A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun, thereby totally or partly obscuring the image of the Sun for a viewer on Earth. An annular solar eclipse occurs when the Moon's apparent diameter is smaller than the Sun's, blocking most of the Sun's light and causing the Sun to look like an annulus (ring). An annular eclipse appears as a partial eclipse over a region of the Earth thousands of kilometres wide. Annularity was visible in Tabuaeran of Kiribati, Peru, Bolivia, northern Paraguay and Brazil. Occurring 5 days before apogee, the Moon's apparent diameter was smaller. At greatest eclipse, the Sun was 79 degrees above horizon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Solar eclipse of August 22, 1979</span> 20th-century annular solar eclipse

An annular solar eclipse occurred at the Moon's ascending node of the orbit on Wednesday, August 22, 1979. A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun, thereby totally or partly obscuring the image of the Sun for a viewer on Earth. An annular solar eclipse occurs when the Moon's apparent diameter is smaller than the Sun's, blocking most of the Sun's light and causing the Sun to look like an annulus (ring). An annular eclipse appears as a partial eclipse over a region of the Earth thousands of kilometres wide. A small annular eclipse covered only 93% of the Sun in a very broad path, 953 km wide at maximum, and lasted 6 minutes and 3 seconds. This was the second solar eclipse in 1979, the first one a total solar eclipse on February 26.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Solar eclipse of March 18, 1969</span> 20th-century annular solar eclipse

An annular solar eclipse occurred on March 18, 1969. A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun, thereby totally or partly obscuring the image of the Sun for a viewer on Earth. An annular solar eclipse occurs when the Moon's apparent diameter is smaller than the Sun's, blocking most of the Sun's light and causing the Sun to look like an annulus (ring). An annular eclipse appears as a partial eclipse over a region of the Earth thousands of kilometres wide. Annularity was visible from part of Indonesia, and two atolls in the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands which belongs to the Federated States of Micronesia now.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Solar eclipse of November 15, 2077</span> Future annular solar eclipse

An annular solar eclipse will occur on Monday, November 15, 2077, with a magnitude of 0.9371. A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun, thereby totally or partially obscuring the image of the Sun for a viewer on Earth. An annular solar eclipse occurs when the Moon's apparent diameter is smaller than the Sun's, blocking most of the Sun's light and causing the Sun to look like an annulus (ring). An annular eclipse appears as a partial eclipse over a region of the Earth thousands of kilometres wide. The path of annularity will cross North America and South America. This will be the 47th solar eclipse of Saros cycle 134. A small annular eclipse will cover only 93.71% of the Sun in a very broad path, 262 km wide at maximum, and will last 7 minutes and 54 seconds. Occurring only 4 days after apogee, the Moon's apparent diameter is smaller.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Solar eclipse of May 22, 2077</span> Total eclipse

A total solar eclipse will occur on Saturday, May 22, 2077. A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun, thereby totally or partly obscuring the image of the Sun for a viewer on Earth. A total solar eclipse occurs when the Moon's apparent diameter is larger than the Sun's, blocking all direct sunlight, turning day into darkness. Totality occurs in a narrow path across Earth's surface, with the partial solar eclipse visible over a surrounding region thousands of kilometres wide.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Solar eclipse of November 4, 2078</span> Future annular solar eclipse

An annular solar eclipse will occur on Friday, November 4, 2078. A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun, thereby totally or partly obscuring the image of the Sun for a viewer on Earth. An annular solar eclipse occurs when the Moon's apparent diameter is smaller than the Sun's, blocking most of the Sun's light and causing the Sun to look like an annulus (ring). An annular eclipse appears as a partial eclipse over a region of the Earth thousands of kilometres wide. The path of annularity will cross Pacific Ocean, South America, and Atlantic Ocean. The tables below contain detailed predictions and additional information on the Annular Solar Eclipse of 4 November 2078.

References

  1. ↑ Littmann, Mark; Fred Espenak; Ken Willcox (2008). Totality: Eclipses of the Sun. Oxford University Press. pp. 18–19. ISBN   978-0-19-953209-4.
  2. ↑ Periodicity of Lunar and Solar Eclipses, Fred Espenak
  3. ↑ Five Millennium Catalog of Lunar and Solar Eclipses: -1999 to +3000, Fred Espenak and Jean Meeus
  4. 1 2 3 4 A Catalogue of Eclipse Cycles, Robert Harry van Gent
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