The periodicity and recurrence of solar (and lunar) 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 13 centuries and contains 70 or more eclipses. Every saros series begins with a number of partial eclipses near one of Earth's polar regions. The series will then produce several dozen central[2] eclipses before ending with a group of partial eclipses near the opposite pole.
Solar eclipses of Saros 56 all occur at the Moon’s descending node and the Moon moves northward with each eclipse. The series began with a partial eclipse in the southern hemisphere on -1172 Jul 17. The series ended with a partial eclipse in the northern hemisphere on 0144 Sep 15. The total duration of Saros series 56 is 1316.20 years. In summary:
First Eclipse = -1172 Jul 17 20:10:38 TD
Last Eclipse = 0144 Sep 15 04:08:10 TD
Duration of Saros 56 = 1316.20 Years
Saros 56 is composed of 74 solar eclipses as follows:
| Solar Eclipses of Saros 56 | |||
| Eclipse Type | Symbol | Number | Percent |
| All Eclipses | - | 74 | 100.0% |
| Partial | P | 31 | 41.9% |
| Annular | A | 13 | 17.6% |
| Total | T | 15 | 20.3% |
| Hybrid[3] | H | 15 | 20.3% |
Umbral eclipses (annular, total and hybrid) can be further classified as either: 1) Central (two limits), 2) Central (one limit) or 3) Non-Central (one limit). The statistical distribution of these classes in Saros series 56 appears in the following table.
| Umbral Eclipses of Saros 56 | ||
| Classification | Number | Percent |
| All Umbral Eclipses | 43 | 100.0% |
| Central (two limits) | 43 | 100.0% |
| Central (one limit) | 0 | 0.0% |
| Non-Central (one limit) | 0 | 0.0% |
The following string illustrates the sequence of the 74 eclipses in Saros 56: 21P 13A 15H 15T 10P
The longest and shortest eclipses of Saros 56 as well as other eclipse extrema are listed below.
Longest Total Solar Eclipse: -0126 Apr 06 Duration = 04m48s
Shortest Total Solar Eclipse: -0289 Dec 30 Duration = 02m04s
Longest Annular Solar Eclipse: -0793 Mar 02 Duration = 04m06s
Shortest Annular Solar Eclipse: -0577 Jul 09 Duration = 00m04s
Longest Hybrid Solar Eclipse: -0307 Dec 18 Duration = 01m38s
Shortest Hybrid Solar Eclipse: -0559 Jul 20 Duration = 00m04s
Largest Partial Solar Eclipse: -0018 Jun 10 Magnitude = 0.9954
Smallest Partial Solar Eclipse: 0144 Sep 15 Magnitude = 0.0176
Local circumstances at greatest eclipse[4] for every eclipse of Saros 56 are presented in the following catalog. The sequence number in the first column links to a global map showing regions of eclipse visibility. A detailed key and additional information about the catalog can be found at: Key to Catalog of Solar Eclipse Saros Series.
For an animation showing how the eclipse path changes with each member of the series, see Saros 056 Animation.
TD of
Seq. Rel. Calendar Greatest Luna Ecl. Ecl. Sun Sun Path Central
Num. Num. Date Eclipse ΔT Num. Type Gamma Mag. Lat. Long. Alt Azm Width Dur.
s ° ° ° ° km
01 -34 -1172 Jul 17 20:10:38 27595 -39226 Pb -1.5509 0.0224 64.4S 34.6W 0 24
02 -33 -1154 Jul 29 02:53:30 27263 -39003 P -1.4854 0.1352 63.5S 146.4W 0 34
03 -32 -1136 Aug 08 09:44:32 26933 -38780 P -1.4262 0.2368 62.7S 100.1E 0 43
04 -31 -1118 Aug 19 16:44:36 26605 -38557 P -1.3738 0.3261 62.0S 15.4W 0 53
05 -30 -1100 Aug 29 23:52:26 26279 -38334 P -1.3272 0.4050 61.4S 132.6W 0 62
06 -29 -1082 Sep 10 07:10:58 25955 -38111 P -1.2889 0.4693 60.9S 107.6E 0 71
07 -28 -1064 Sep 20 14:38:06 25633 -37888 P -1.2574 0.5219 60.6S 14.2W 0 80
08 -27 -1046 Oct 01 22:15:12 25314 -37665 P -1.2334 0.5618 60.5S 138.4W 0 89
09 -26 -1028 Oct 12 05:58:51 24996 -37442 P -1.2144 0.5932 60.6S 95.7E 0 98
10 -25 -1010 Oct 23 13:51:12 24680 -37219 P -1.2020 0.6136 60.8S 32.3W 0 107
11 -24 -0992 Nov 02 21:47:52 24366 -36996 P -1.1926 0.6291 61.2S 161.5W 0 116
12 -23 -0974 Nov 14 05:49:08 24054 -36773 P -1.1868 0.6387 61.8S 68.1E 0 126
13 -22 -0956 Nov 24 13:51:36 23744 -36550 P -1.1814 0.6476 62.5S 62.8W 0 135
14 -21 -0938 Dec 05 21:55:18 23436 -36327 P -1.1767 0.6555 63.4S 165.7E 0 145
15 -20 -0920 Dec 16 05:56:25 23130 -36104 P -1.1695 0.6678 64.3S 34.6E 0 155
16 -19 -0902 Dec 27 13:54:30 22827 -35881 P -1.1594 0.6850 65.3S 96.2W 0 165
17 -18 -0883 Jan 06 21:47:16 22525 -35658 P -1.1446 0.7104 66.4S 134.0E 0 176
18 -17 -0865 Jan 18 05:34:46 22225 -35435 P -1.1254 0.7434 67.5S 5.0E 0 187
19 -16 -0847 Jan 28 13:13:23 21927 -35212 P -1.0983 0.7902 68.6S 122.4W 0 198
20 -15 -0829 Feb 08 20:45:13 21631 -34989 P -1.0650 0.8481 69.6S 111.4E 0 210
21 -14 -0811 Feb 19 04:08:00 21338 -34766 P -1.0238 0.9202 70.4S 13.2W 0 223
22 -13 -0793 Mar 02 11:24:22 21046 -34543 A -0.9765 0.9399 74.5S 175.1W 12 273 1102 04m06s
23 -12 -0775 Mar 12 18:30:48 20756 -34320 A -0.9204 0.9479 66.8S 36.1E 23 312 493 04m01s
24 -11 -0757 Mar 24 01:32:01 20468 -34097 A -0.8589 0.9550 57.0S 86.2W 30 326 319 03m50s
25 -10 -0739 Apr 03 08:25:25 20182 -33874 A -0.7897 0.9617 47.0S 160.0E 38 333 224 03m35s
26 -09 -0721 Apr 14 15:15:24 19899 -33651 A -0.7168 0.9681 37.4S 49.8E 44 338 163 03m15s
27 -08 -0703 Apr 24 21:59:40 19617 -33428 A -0.6379 0.9739 28.0S 57.6W 50 342 120 02m51s
28 -07 -0685 May 06 04:43:37 19314 -33205 A -0.5575 0.9793 19.1S 163.9W 56 346 88 02m23s
29 -06 -0667 May 16 11:25:24 19012 -32982 A -0.4740 0.9841 10.7S 91.1E 62 349 64 01m54s
30 -05 -0649 May 27 18:08:21 18714 -32759 A -0.3902 0.9884 2.9S 13.3W 67 353 44 01m25s
31 -04 -0631 Jun 07 00:52:54 18422 -32536 A -0.3066 0.9920 4.1N 117.4W 72 357 30 00m59s
32 -03 -0613 Jun 18 07:41:22 18133 -32313 A -0.2250 0.9951 10.3N 138.5E 77 1 18 00m35s
33 -02 -0595 Jun 28 14:34:50 17850 -32090 A -0.1466 0.9974 15.5N 33.9E 82 5 9 00m18s
34 -01 -0577 Jul 09 21:33:45 17570 -31867 A -0.0717 0.9993 19.5N 71.3W 86 10 2 00m04s
35 00 -0559 Jul 20 04:40:58 17296 -31644 H -0.0026 1.0006 22.3N 178.0W 90 76 2 00m04s
36 01 -0541 Jul 31 11:56:09 17025 -31421 H 0.0611 1.0015 23.8N 73.7E 86 198 5 00m09s
37 02 -0523 Aug 10 19:20:49 16758 -31198 H 0.1176 1.0020 24.1N 36.9W 83 202 7 00m12s
38 03 -0505 Aug 22 02:54:54 16496 -30975 Hm 0.1674 1.0023 23.3N 150.0W 80 206 8 00m13s
39 04 -0487 Sep 01 10:39:47 16237 -30752 H 0.2091 1.0023 21.5N 93.7E 78 208 8 00m13s
40 05 -0469 Sep 12 18:34:28 15983 -30529 H 0.2437 1.0023 19.1N 25.4W 76 210 8 00m13s
TD of
Seq. Rel. Calendar Greatest Luna Ecl. Ecl. Sun Sun Path Central
Num. Num. Date Eclipse ΔT Num. Type Gamma Mag. Lat. Long. Alt Azm Width Dur.
s ° ° ° ° km
41 06 -0451 Sep 23 02:38:36 15732 -30306 H 0.2713 1.0024 16.1N 147.4W 74 210 9 00m13s
42 07 -0433 Oct 04 10:52:17 15485 -30083 H 0.2920 1.0026 12.7N 87.9E 73 210 9 00m14s
43 08 -0415 Oct 14 19:14:55 15242 -29860 H 0.3057 1.0031 9.2N 39.3W 72 209 11 00m17s
44 09 -0397 Oct 26 03:44:28 15002 -29637 H 0.3148 1.0040 5.7N 168.4W 72 207 14 00m23s
45 10 -0379 Nov 05 12:19:59 14766 -29414 H 0.3195 1.0052 2.5N 61.1E 71 204 19 00m31s
46 11 -0361 Nov 16 20:59:44 14533 -29191 H 0.3213 1.0071 0.4S 70.5W 71 200 26 00m42s
47 12 -0343 Nov 27 05:42:53 14303 -28968 H 0.3210 1.0094 2.7S 157.3E 71 197 34 00m57s
48 13 -0325 Dec 08 14:25:47 14076 -28745 H 0.3213 1.0123 4.3S 25.4E 71 192 45 01m16s
49 14 -0307 Dec 18 23:08:59 13853 -28522 H 0.3218 1.0156 5.0S 106.6W 71 188 57 01m38s
50 15 -0289 Dec 30 07:48:35 13633 -28299 T 0.3258 1.0196 4.7S 122.4E 71 183 71 02m04s
51 16 -0270 Jan 09 16:25:37 13415 -28076 T 0.3324 1.0240 3.4S 8.1W 71 179 86 02m30s
52 17 -0252 Jan 21 00:55:45 13201 -27853 T 0.3453 1.0287 0.9S 137.1W 70 175 104 02m57s
53 18 -0234 Jan 31 09:21:39 12989 -27630 T 0.3623 1.0337 2.5N 94.7E 69 171 122 03m24s
54 19 -0216 Feb 11 17:39:22 12780 -27407 T 0.3864 1.0389 6.9N 32.0W 67 168 141 03m48s
55 20 -0198 Feb 22 01:50:40 12573 -27184 T 0.4166 1.0441 12.2N 157.4W 65 165 161 04m10s
56 21 -0180 Mar 04 09:53:23 12369 -26961 T 0.4546 1.0492 18.3N 78.8E 63 162 182 04m27s
57 22 -0162 Mar 15 17:50:15 12167 -26738 T 0.4980 1.0540 25.1N 43.8W 60 160 205 04m40s
58 23 -0144 Mar 26 01:39:38 11968 -26515 T 0.5482 1.0584 32.4N 164.9W 57 159 229 04m47s
59 24 -0126 Apr 06 09:22:42 11771 -26292 T 0.6041 1.0623 40.3N 75.2E 53 157 255 04m48s
60 25 -0108 Apr 16 16:59:52 11576 -26069 T 0.6655 1.0654 48.8N 43.5W 48 155 286 04m43s
61 26 -0090 Apr 28 00:32:53 11383 -25846 T 0.7309 1.0677 57.7N 161.8W 43 153 324 04m32s
62 27 -0072 May 08 08:01:55 11192 -25623 T 0.7997 1.0690 67.2N 79.5E 37 150 376 04m16s
63 28 -0054 May 19 15:28:23 11004 -25400 T 0.8709 1.0691 77.4N 44.9W 29 140 463 03m55s
64 29 -0036 May 29 22:53:45 10816 -25177 T 0.9432 1.0674 84.8N 121.9E 19 60 683 03m28s
65 30 -0018 Jun 10 06:19:35 10631 -24954 P 1.0154 0.9954 67.1N 50.2W 0 2
66 31 0000 Jun 20 13:45:32 10447 -24731 P 1.0876 0.8552 66.1N 173.0W 0 351
67 32 0018 Jul 01 21:14:39 10265 -24508 P 1.1572 0.7197 65.1N 63.7E 0 342
68 33 0036 Jul 12 04:46:32 10084 -24285 P 1.2245 0.5888 64.2N 59.9W 0 332
69 34 0054 Jul 23 12:24:26 9905 -24062 P 1.2871 0.4677 63.4N 175.3E 0 323
70 35 0072 Aug 02 20:06:10 9726 -23839 P 1.3464 0.3533 62.6N 49.9E 0 313
71 36 0090 Aug 14 03:56:10 9550 -23616 P 1.3992 0.2521 62.0N 77.5W 0 304
72 37 0108 Aug 24 11:52:11 9374 -23393 P 1.4473 0.1608 61.5N 153.8E 0 295
73 38 0126 Sep 04 19:56:53 9199 -23170 P 1.4882 0.0838 61.2N 23.1E 0 286
74 39 0144 Sep 15 04:08:10 9025 -22947 Pe 1.5239 0.0176 61.0N 109.2W 0 277
[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]Central solar eclipses are eclipses in which the central axis of the Moon's shadow strikes the Earth's surface. All partial (penumbral) eclipses are non-central eclipses since the shadow axis misses Earth. However, umbral eclipses (total, annular and hybrid) may be either central (usually) or non-central (rarely).
[3]Hybrid eclipses are also known as annular/total eclipses. Such an eclipse is both total and annular along different sections of its umbral path. For more information, see Five Millennium Catalog of Hybrid Solar Eclipses .
[4]Greatest eclipse is defined as the instant when the axis of the Moon's shadow passes closest to the Earth's center. For total eclipses, the instant of greatest eclipse is virtually identical to the instants of greatest magnitude and greatest duration. However, for annular eclipses, the instant of greatest duration may occur at either the time of greatest eclipse or near the sunrise and sunset points of the eclipse path.
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..
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:
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.
Special thanks to Dan McGlaun for extracting the individual eclipse maps from the Five Millennium Canon of Solar Eclipses: -1999 to +3000 for use in this catalog and for preparing the Saros series animations from these maps.
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 Solar 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)"
