Catalog of Lunar Eclipse Saros Series

Saros Series 161

The periodicity and recurrence of lunar (and solar) eclipses is governed by the Saros cycle, a period of approximately 6,585.3 days (18 years 11 days 8 hours). When two eclipses are separated by a period of one Saros, they share a very similar geometry. The two eclipses occur at the same node[1] with the Moon at nearly the same distance from Earth and at the same time of year. Thus, the Saros is useful for organizing eclipses into families or series. Each series typically lasts 12 to 15 centuries and contains 70 or more lunar eclipses.

Lunar eclipses of Saros 161 all occur at the Moon’s descending node and the Moon moves northward with each eclipse. The series will begin with a penumbral eclipse near the southern edge of the penumbra on 2259 Sep 02. The series will end with a penumbral eclipse near the northern edge of the penumbra on 3557 Oct 31. The total duration of Saros series 161 is 1298.17 years. In summary:

                      First Eclipse =  2259 Sep 02   14:47:56 TD
                       Last Eclipse =  3557 Oct 31   11:10:59 TD

                      Duration of Saros 161  =  1298.17 Years

Saros 161 is composed of 73 lunar eclipses as follows:

Lunar Eclipses of Saros 161
Eclipse Type Symbol Number Percent
All Eclipses - 73100.0%
PenumbralN 29 39.7%
PartialP 17 23.3%
TotalT 27 37.0%

The 73 lunar eclipses in Saros 161 occur in the order of 20N 9P 27T 8P 9N which corresponds to:

                                    20  Penumbral
                                     9  Partial
                                    27  Total
                                     8  Partial
                                     9  Penumbral

The longest and shortest eclipses of Saros 161 are as follows.

            Longest  Total  Lunar Eclipse:    2890 Sep 19      Duration = 01h39m40s
           Shortest  Total  Lunar Eclipse:    3251 Apr 28      Duration = 00h34m06s

            Longest Partial Lunar Eclipse:    2764 Jul 05      Duration = 03h08m17s
           Shortest Partial Lunar Eclipse:    2620 Apr 09      Duration = 00h26m03s

          Longest Penumbral Lunar Eclipse:    2602 Mar 29      Duration = 04h14m10s
         Shortest Penumbral Lunar Eclipse:    2259 Sep 02      Duration = 00h30m13s

The largest and smallest magnitude partial eclipses of Saros 161 are:

            Largest Partial Lunar Eclipse:    3269 May 08      Magnitude = 0.9694
           Smallest Partial Lunar Eclipse:    2620 Apr 09      Magnitude = 0.0130

Local circumstances at greatest eclipse[2] for every lunar eclipse of Saros 161 are presented in the following catalog. For eclipses occurring between the years -1999 to +3000 (2000 BCE to 3000 CE), the sequence number in the first column links to a eclipse geometry diagram and a map from Five Millennium Canon of Lunar Eclipses: -1999 to +3000. A detailed key and additional information about the catalog can be found at: Key to Catalog of Lunar Eclipse Saros Series.



Catalog of Lunar Eclipses in Saros 161

                          TD of                                                          Phase
Seq. Rel.    Calendar   Greatest          Luna  Ecl.               Pen.    Um.    ---- Durations ---- 
Num. Num.      Date      Eclipse     ΔT    Num  Type QSE  Gamma    Mag.    Mag.    Pen.   Par.  Total
                                      s                                              m      m      m

 01  -35   2259 Sep 02  14:47:56    597   3211   Nb  t-  -1.5668  0.0099 -1.0435   30.2    -      -  
 02  -34   2277 Sep 12  21:49:40    649   3434   N   t-  -1.4999  0.1328 -0.9207  109.1    -      -  
 03  -33   2295 Sep 24  05:00:02    703   3657   N   t-  -1.4387  0.2450 -0.8086  146.4    -      -  
 04  -32   2313 Oct 05  12:20:12    758   3880   N   t-  -1.3843  0.3451 -0.7088  171.6    -      -  
 05  -31   2331 Oct 16  19:49:56    816   4103   N   t-  -1.3365  0.4329 -0.6213  190.2    -      -  
 06  -30   2349 Oct 27  03:30:27    876   4326   N   h-  -1.2963  0.5069 -0.5476  203.8    -      -  
 07  -29   2367 Nov 07  11:20:25    938   4549   N   h-  -1.2630  0.5678 -0.4867  213.8    -      -  
 08  -28   2385 Nov 17  19:18:57   1002   4772   N   h-  -1.2358  0.6177 -0.4366  221.3    -      -  
 09  -27   2403 Nov 29  03:25:44   1068   4995   N   a-  -1.2145  0.6565 -0.3973  226.6    -      -  
 10  -26   2421 Dec 09  11:40:03   1137   5218   N   a-  -1.1984  0.6857 -0.3671  230.3    -      -  

 11  -25   2439 Dec 20  19:59:36   1207   5441   N   a-  -1.1858  0.7079 -0.3434  232.7    -      -  
 12  -24   2457 Dec 31  04:23:20   1279   5664   N   a-  -1.1759  0.7250 -0.3242  234.3    -      -  
 13  -23   2476 Jan 11  12:49:31   1354   5887   N   a-  -1.1672  0.7397 -0.3068  235.5    -      -  
 14  -22   2494 Jan 21  21:17:45   1430   6110   N   a-  -1.1593  0.7525 -0.2908  236.4    -      -  
 15  -21   2512 Feb 03  05:43:56   1509   6333   N   a-  -1.1489  0.7695 -0.2698  237.7    -      -  
 16  -20   2530 Feb 13  14:09:12   1589   6556   N   a-  -1.1371  0.7891 -0.2459  239.3    -      -  
 17  -19   2548 Feb 24  22:29:44   1672   6779   N   a-  -1.1206  0.8168 -0.2131  241.8    -      -  
 18  -18   2566 Mar 07  06:46:52   1757   7002   N   a-  -1.1006  0.8507 -0.1738  244.9    -      -  
 19  -17   2584 Mar 17  14:56:25   1844   7225   N   a-  -1.0736  0.8975 -0.1213  249.3    -      -  
 20  -16   2602 Mar 29  23:01:38   1933   7448   N   a-  -1.0422  0.9520 -0.0609  254.2    -      -  

 21  -15   2620 Apr 09  06:58:47   2024   7671   P   a-  -1.0036  1.0199  0.0130  260.0   26.0    -  
 22  -14   2638 Apr 20  14:49:41   2117   7894   P   a-  -0.9590  1.0986  0.0978  266.4   70.4    -  
 23  -13   2656 Apr 30  22:32:51   2212   8117   P   a-  -0.9076  1.1901  0.1952  273.3   97.8    -  
 24  -12   2674 May 12  06:11:01   2309   8340   P   a-  -0.8512  1.2906  0.3014  280.2  119.3    -  
 25  -11   2692 May 22  13:43:08   2408   8563   P   a-  -0.7889  1.4021  0.4184  287.1  137.7    -  
 26  -10   2710 Jun 03  21:10:23   2510   8786   P   a-  -0.7219  1.5225  0.5439  293.7  153.6    -  
 27  -09   2728 Jun 14  04:34:21   2613   9009   P   a-  -0.6514  1.6496  0.6755  299.8  167.2    -  
 28  -08   2746 Jun 25  11:55:59   2719   9232   P   a-  -0.5784  1.7815  0.8114  305.3  178.6    -  
 29  -07   2764 Jul 05  19:15:49   2826   9455   P   a-  -0.5030  1.9180  0.9515  310.0  188.3    -  
 30  -06   2782 Jul 17  02:35:28   2936   9678   T   a-  -0.4266  2.0567  1.0932  314.0  196.2   45.2

 31  -05   2800 Jul 27  09:56:36   3048   9901   T   a-  -0.3507  2.1949  1.2337  317.1  202.3   68.4
 32  -04   2818 Aug 07  17:20:37   3161  10124   T   p-  -0.2767  2.3297  1.3702  319.4  206.9   82.0
 33  -03   2836 Aug 18  00:46:58   3277  10347   T-  p-  -0.2040  2.4626  1.5043  320.9  210.1   90.7
 34  -02   2854 Aug 29  08:19:05   3395  10570   T-  p-  -0.1357  2.5877  1.6300  321.8  212.1   96.0
 35  -01   2872 Sep 08  15:55:59   3515  10793   T-  pp  -0.0708  2.7068  1.7491  322.0  213.0   98.8
 36   00   2890 Sep 19  23:40:17   3637  11016   T-  pp  -0.0118  2.8153  1.8572  321.8  213.1   99.7
 37   01   2908 Oct 01  07:29:50   3761  11239   T+  pp   0.0432  2.7579  1.7990  321.2  212.5   99.1
 38   02   2926 Oct 12  15:28:29   3888  11462   T+  pp   0.0907  2.6714  1.7113  320.4  211.5   97.5
 39   03   2944 Oct 22  23:33:47   4016  11685   T+  -p   0.1330  2.5945  1.6330  319.4  210.2   95.2
 40   04   2962 Nov 03  07:47:44   4146  11908   T+  -p   0.1683  2.5305  1.5675  318.4  208.8   92.5


Catalog of Lunar Eclipses in Saros 161

                          TD of                                                          Phase
Seq. Rel.    Calendar   Greatest          Luna  Ecl.               Pen.    Um.    ---- Durations ---- 
Num. Num.      Date      Eclipse     ΔT    Num  Type QSE  Gamma    Mag.    Mag.    Pen.   Par.  Total
                                      s                                              m      m      m

 41   05   2980 Nov 13  16:08:41   4279  12131   T+  -p   0.1980  2.4768  1.5122  317.5  207.4   89.8
 42   06   2998 Nov 25  00:38:12   4413  12354   T+  -p   0.2210  2.4354  1.4693  316.7  206.2   87.3
 43   07   3016 Dec 06  09:13:42   4550  12577   T+  -p   0.2390  2.4031  1.4355  316.0  205.1   85.1
 44   08   3034 Dec 17  17:54:52   4689  12800   T+  -p   0.2526  2.3787  1.4099  315.4  204.2   83.3
 45   09   3052 Dec 28  02:40:57   4829  13023   T+  -p   0.2625  2.3611  1.3914  315.0  203.5   81.9
 46   10   3071 Jan 08  11:30:55   4972  13246   T+  -p   0.2696  2.3482  1.3779  314.7  203.0   80.8
 47   11   3089 Jan 18  20:22:28   5117  13469   T   -p   0.2755  2.3375  1.3671  314.4  202.6   79.9
 48   12   3107 Jan 31  05:14:19   5264  13692   T   -p   0.2813  2.3267  1.3565  314.1  202.3   79.1
 49   13   3125 Feb 10  14:05:13   5413  13915   T   -p   0.2881  2.3139  1.3443  313.8  201.9   78.1
 50   14   3143 Feb 21  22:54:07   5564  14138   T   -p   0.2968  2.2974  1.3289  313.4  201.4   76.8

 51   15   3161 Mar 04  07:38:02   5717  14361   T   -p   0.3097  2.2731  1.3061  312.8  200.7   74.7
 52   16   3179 Mar 15  16:17:30   5872  14584   T   -p   0.3262  2.2419  1.2765  312.1  199.7   71.8
 53   17   3197 Mar 26  00:50:09   6030  14807   T   -p   0.3483  2.2005  1.2368  311.1  198.3   67.4
 54   18   3215 Apr 06  09:16:35   6189  15030   T   -p   0.3755  2.1497  1.1879  309.8  196.4   61.0
 55   19   3233 Apr 16  17:34:20   6351  15253   T   -a   0.4099  2.0856  1.1257  308.0  193.7   51.0
 56   20   3251 Apr 28  01:45:29   6514  15476   T   -a   0.4496  2.0118  1.0538  305.8  190.2   34.1
 57   21   3269 May 08  09:48:19   6680  15699   P   -a   0.4960  1.9259  0.9694  302.9  185.5    -  
 58   22   3287 May 19  17:43:43   6847  15922   P   -a   0.5484  1.8290  0.8738  299.3  179.3    -  
 59   23   3305 May 31  01:31:45   7017  16145   P   -a   0.6067  1.7216  0.7674  294.7  171.4    -  
 60   24   3323 Jun 11  09:13:51   7189  16368   P   -a   0.6696  1.6060  0.6523  289.2  161.3    -  

 61   25   3341 Jun 21  16:50:35   7363  16591   P   -a   0.7367  1.4828  0.5290  282.6  148.4    -  
 62   26   3359 Jul 03  00:21:44   7539  16814   P   -a   0.8080  1.3522  0.3979  274.6  131.5    -  
 63   27   3377 Jul 13  07:50:13   7717  17037   P   -a   0.8809  1.2190  0.2636  265.4  109.4    -  
 64   28   3395 Jul 24  15:15:26   7897  17260   P   -a   0.9559  1.0823  0.1252  254.5   77.0    -  
 65   29   3413 Aug 04  22:39:35   8079  17483   N   -a   1.0311  0.9455 -0.0140  242.1    -      -  
 66   30   3431 Aug 16  06:02:30   8263  17706   N   -a   1.1067  0.8082 -0.1542  227.8    -      -  
 67   31   3449 Aug 26  13:27:25   8450  17929   N   -a   1.1798  0.6758 -0.2901  211.8    -      -  
 68   32   3467 Sep 06  20:53:57   8638  18152   N   -a   1.2506  0.5480 -0.4219  193.8    -      -  
 69   33   3485 Sep 17  04:23:16   8828  18375   N   -a   1.3183  0.4261 -0.5483  173.5    -      -  
 70   34   3503 Sep 29  11:57:03   9021  18598   N   -a   1.3815  0.3125 -0.6668  150.8    -      -  

 71   35   3521 Oct 09  19:35:57   9216  18821   N   -a   1.4399  0.2081 -0.7765  124.7    -      -  
 72   36   3539 Oct 21  03:20:42   9412  19044   N   -a   1.4927  0.1140 -0.8762   93.5    -      -  
 73   37   3557 Oct 31  11:10:59   9611  19267   Ne  -a   1.5403  0.0295 -0.9664   48.1    -      -  


Footnotes

[1] The Moon's orbit is inclined about 5 degrees to Earth's orbit around the Sun. The points where the lunar orbit intersects the plane of Earth's orbit are known as the nodes. The Moon moves from south to north of Earth's orbit at the ascending node, and from north to south at the descending node.

[2]Greatest eclipse is defined as the instant when Moon passes closest to the axis of Earth's shadow.


Calendar

The Gregorian calendar is used for all dates from 1582 Oct 15 onwards. Before that date, the Julian calendar is used. For more information on this topic, see Calendar Dates. The Julian calendar does not include the year 0. Thus the year 1 BCE is followed by the year 1 CE (See: BCE/CE Dating Conventions ). This is awkward for arithmetic calculations. Years in this catalog are numbered astronomically and include the year 0. Historians should note there is a difference of one year between astronomical dates and BCE dates. Thus, the astronomical year 0 corresponds to 1 BCE, and astronomical year -1 corresponds to 2 BCE, etc..


Predictions

The coordinates of the Sun used in these predictions are based on the VSOP87 theory [Bretagnon and Francou, 1988]. The Moon's coordinates are based on the ELP-2000/82 theory [Chapront-Touze and Chapront, 1983]. For more information, see: Solar and Lunar Ephemerides. The revised value used for the Moon's secular acceleration is n-dot = -25.858 arc-sec/cy*cy, as deduced from the Apollo lunar laser ranging experiment (Chapront, Chapront-Touze, and Francou, 2002).

The largest uncertainty in the eclipse predictions is caused by fluctuations in Earth's rotation due primarily to tidal friction of the Moon. The resultant drift in apparent clock time is expressed as ΔT and is determined as follows:

  1. pre-1950's: ΔT calculated from empirical fits to historical records derived by Morrison and Stephenson (2004)
  2. 1955-present: ΔT obtained from published observations
  3. future: ΔT is extrapolated from current values weighted by the long term trend from tidal effects

A series of polynomial expressions have been derived to simplify the evaluation of ΔT for any time from -1999 to +3000. The uncertainty in ΔT over this period can be estimated from scatter in the measurements.


Acknowledgments

The Besselian elements used in the predictions were kindly provided by Jean Meeus. All eclipse calculations are by Fred Espenak, and he assumes full responsibility for their accuracy. Some of the information presented on this web site is based on data originally published in Five Millennium Canon of Lunar Eclipses: -1999 to +3000 and Five Millennium Catalog of Lunar Eclipses: -1999 to +3000.

Permission is freely granted to reproduce this data when accompanied by an acknowledgment:

"Eclipse Predictions by Fred Espenak and Jean Meeus (NASA's GSFC)"


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2009 Sep 29