The periodicity and recurrence of 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 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. For more information, see Periodicity of Solar Eclipses.
Solar eclipses of Saros 101 all occur at the Moon’s ascending node and the Moon moves southward with each eclipse. The series began with a partial eclipse in the northern hemisphere on 0329 May 15. The series ended with a partial eclipse in the southern hemisphere on 1591 Jun 21. The total duration of Saros series 101 is 1262.11 years. In summary:
First Eclipse = 0329 May 15 13:16:33 TD Last Eclipse = 1591 Jun 21 04:28:43 TD Duration of Saros 101 = 1262.11 Years
Saros 101 is composed of 71 solar eclipses as follows:
| Solar Eclipses of Saros 101 | |||
| Eclipse Type | Symbol | Number | Percent |
| All Eclipses | - | 71 | 100.0% |
| Partial | P | 18 | 25.4% |
| Annular | A | 53 | 74.6% |
| Total | T | 0 | 0.0% |
| Hybrid[3] | H | 0 | 0.0% |
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 101 appears in the following table.
| Umbral Eclipses of Saros 101 | ||
| Classification | Number | Percent |
| All Umbral Eclipses | 53 | 100.0% |
| Central (two limits) | 52 | 98.1% |
| Central (one limit) | 1 | 1.9% |
| Non-Central (one limit) | 0 | 0.0% |
The following string illustrates the sequence of the 71 eclipses in Saros 101: 8P 53A 10P
The longest and shortest central eclipses of Saros 101 as well as largest and smallest partial eclipses are listed in the below.
| Extreme Durations and Magnitudes of Solar Eclipses of Saros 101 | |||
| Extrema Type | Date | Duration | Magnitude |
| Longest Annular Solar Eclipse | 0689 Dec 17 | 10m31s | - |
| Shortest Annular Solar Eclipse | 1411 Feb 23 | 02m05s | - |
| Largest Partial Solar Eclipse | 0455 Jul 30 | - | 0.94059 |
| Smallest Partial Solar Eclipse | 1591 Jun 21 | - | 0.01287 |
The catalog below lists concise details and local circumstances at greatest eclipse[5] for every solar eclipse in Saros 101. A description or explanation of each parameter listed in the catalog can be found in Key to Catalog of Solar Eclipse Saros Series.
Several fields in the catalog link to web pages or files containing additional information for each eclipse (for the years -1999 through +3000). The following gives a brief explanation of each link.
For an animation showing how the eclipse path changes with each member of the series, see Animation of Saros 101.
TD of
Seq. Rel. Calendar Greatest Luna Ecl. Ecl. Sun Path Central
Num. Num. Date Eclipse ΔT Num. Type Gamma Mag. Lat Long Alt Width Dur.
s ° ° ° km
05548 -35 0329 May 15 13:16:33 7361 -20663 Pb 1.5194 0.0460 62.9N 122.2W 0
05588 -34 0347 May 26 20:15:24 7185 -20440 P 1.4489 0.1753 63.6N 123.1E 0
05628 -33 0365 Jun 06 03:10:31 7009 -20217 P 1.3761 0.3084 64.4N 9.0E 0
05669 -32 0383 Jun 17 10:04:04 6831 -19994 P 1.3025 0.4418 65.3N 105.0W 0
05710 -31 0401 Jun 27 16:57:24 6653 -19771 P 1.2292 0.5739 66.3N 140.7E 0
05751 -30 0419 Jul 08 23:50:44 6475 -19548 P 1.1565 0.7035 67.3N 26.0E 0
05792 -29 0437 Jul 19 06:47:24 6296 -19325 P 1.0873 0.8256 68.3N 90.1W 0
05832 -28 0455 Jul 30 13:47:01 6118 -19102 P 1.0212 0.9406 69.3N 152.6E 0
05875 -27 0473 Aug 09 20:51:51 5941 -18879 A 0.9601 0.9654 78.2N 19.0W 16 463 02m13s
05918 -26 0491 Aug 21 04:01:41 5764 -18656 A 0.9036 0.9621 71.1N 170.7W 25 323 02m44s
05962 -25 0509 Aug 31 11:18:53 5587 -18433 A 0.8538 0.9579 62.5N 65.1E 31 294 03m22s
06006 -24 0527 Sep 11 18:42:58 5411 -18210 A 0.8106 0.9532 54.6N 54.3W 36 290 04m05s
06051 -23 0545 Sep 22 02:14:00 5235 -17987 A 0.7737 0.9485 47.4N 173.0W 39 296 04m53s
06097 -22 0563 Oct 03 09:52:51 5061 -17764 A 0.7438 0.9438 41.0N 67.4E 42 307 05m44s
06143 -21 0581 Oct 13 17:39:23 4889 -17541 A 0.7205 0.9393 35.4N 53.5W 44 321 06m38s
06189 -20 0599 Oct 25 01:32:36 4717 -17318 A 0.7033 0.9352 30.6N 175.5W 45 337 07m32s
06234 -19 0617 Nov 04 09:31:18 4547 -17095 A 0.6910 0.9314 26.6N 61.4E 46 353 08m25s
06279 -18 0635 Nov 15 17:34:25 4379 -16872 A 0.6828 0.9283 23.4N 62.5W 47 367 09m12s
06325 -17 0653 Nov 26 01:41:15 4212 -16649 A 0.6779 0.9257 21.1N 172.8E 47 380 09m51s
06372 -16 0671 Dec 07 09:48:18 4046 -16426 A 0.6733 0.9238 19.4N 48.2E 48 389 10m18s
06417 -15 0689 Dec 17 17:56:06 3883 -16203 A 0.6698 0.9225 18.4N 76.4W 48 394 10m31s
06461 -14 0707 Dec 29 02:00:34 3722 -15980 A 0.6636 0.9219 17.9N 159.8E 48 392 10m30s
06503 -13 0726 Jan 08 10:02:27 3563 -15757 A 0.6558 0.9219 18.0N 36.8E 49 387 10m16s
06545 -12 0744 Jan 19 17:56:37 3406 -15534 A 0.6418 0.9227 18.4N 84.1W 50 375 09m52s
06587 -11 0762 Jan 30 01:45:52 3252 -15311 A 0.6242 0.9239 19.2N 156.4E 51 360 09m22s
06628 -10 0780 Feb 10 09:25:34 3101 -15088 A 0.5986 0.9257 20.2N 39.7E 53 341 08m49s
06669 -09 0798 Feb 20 16:57:03 2954 -14865 A 0.5668 0.9279 21.3N 74.5W 55 321 08m15s
06710 -08 0816 Mar 03 00:17:49 2809 -14642 A 0.5262 0.9304 22.6N 174.4E 58 300 07m45s
06751 -07 0834 Mar 14 07:30:30 2668 -14419 A 0.4792 0.9331 23.9N 65.8E 61 280 07m17s
06791 -06 0852 Mar 24 14:33:08 2531 -14196 A 0.4238 0.9359 25.1N 39.7W 65 260 06m53s
06831 -05 0870 Apr 04 21:26:39 2397 -13973 A 0.3608 0.9388 26.0N 142.3W 69 242 06m35s
06871 -04 0888 Apr 15 04:11:50 2268 -13750 A 0.2910 0.9414 26.5N 117.7E 73 225 06m22s
06911 -03 0906 Apr 26 10:50:32 2142 -13527 A 0.2158 0.9440 26.4N 19.6E 77 211 06m15s
06951 -02 0924 May 06 17:22:41 2021 -13304 A 0.1351 0.9462 25.4N 76.7W 82 200 06m12s
06992 -01 0942 May 17 23:50:31 1905 -13081 A 0.0504 0.9481 23.4N 172.0W 87 191 06m15s
07033 00 0960 May 28 06:15:21 1793 -12858 Am -0.0369 0.9497 20.3N 93.1E 88 185 06m21s
07073 01 0978 Jun 08 12:39:24 1685 -12635 A -0.1248 0.9507 16.3N 2.2W 83 182 06m30s
07115 02 0996 Jun 18 19:01:57 1582 -12412 A -0.2142 0.9514 11.3N 97.9W 78 182 06m39s
07157 03 1014 Jun 30 01:27:23 1484 -12189 A -0.3013 0.9515 5.5N 165.0E 72 186 06m45s
07199 04 1032 Jul 10 07:55:08 1390 -11966 A -0.3866 0.9513 1.1S 66.4E 67 193 06m46s
TD of
Seq. Rel. Calendar Greatest Luna Ecl. Ecl. Sun Path Central
Num. Num. Date Eclipse ΔT Num. Type Gamma Mag. Lat Long Alt Width Dur.
s ° ° ° km
07242 05 1050 Jul 21 14:29:16 1301 -11743 A -0.4670 0.9506 8.2S 34.4W 62 204 06m42s
07286 06 1068 Jul 31 21:07:35 1216 -11520 A -0.5441 0.9495 15.8S 137.0W 57 220 06m33s
07330 07 1086 Aug 12 03:55:33 1136 -11297 A -0.6134 0.9482 23.5S 117.3E 52 239 06m20s
07376 08 1104 Aug 22 10:50:41 1060 -11074 A -0.6772 0.9466 31.5S 9.2E 47 264 06m04s
07421 09 1122 Sep 02 17:56:11 989 -10851 A -0.7328 0.9449 39.3S 102.0W 43 295 05m48s
07466 10 1140 Sep 13 01:10:24 922 -10628 A -0.7820 0.9431 47.1S 144.0E 38 334 05m31s
07511 11 1158 Sep 24 08:36:09 859 -10405 A -0.8223 0.9415 54.6S 26.5E 34 378 05m15s
07556 12 1176 Oct 04 16:11:30 800 -10182 A -0.8551 0.9400 61.7S 94.1W 31 428 05m00s
07601 13 1194 Oct 15 23:56:12 744 -9959 A -0.8811 0.9389 68.2S 142.0E 28 481 04m45s
07646 14 1212 Oct 26 07:50:26 693 -9736 A -0.9000 0.9382 74.2S 14.8E 25 533 04m33s
07692 15 1230 Nov 06 15:52:58 644 -9513 A -0.9131 0.9380 79.6S 116.1W 24 574 04m21s
07738 16 1248 Nov 17 00:02:16 599 -9290 A -0.9210 0.9385 84.4S 107.9E 22 599 04m10s
07782 17 1266 Nov 28 08:16:01 557 -9067 A -0.9262 0.9396 88.5S 67.7W 22 608 04m00s
07825 18 1284 Dec 08 16:34:01 517 -8844 A -0.9284 0.9414 86.2S 56.2E 21 598 03m49s
07868 19 1302 Dec 20 00:53:51 480 -8621 A -0.9302 0.9438 82.1S 85.3W 21 578 03m37s
07910 20 1320 Dec 30 09:13:30 446 -8398 A -0.9327 0.9468 77.9S 141.3E 21 553 03m25s
07951 21 1339 Jan 10 17:31:41 414 -8175 A -0.9371 0.9504 73.9S 10.9E 20 531 03m11s
07992 22 1357 Jan 21 01:46:45 383 -7952 A -0.9448 0.9543 70.1S 116.8W 19 517 02m56s
08033 23 1375 Feb 01 09:57:38 355 -7729 A -0.9565 0.9586 66.8S 118.4E 16 525 02m39s
08074 24 1393 Feb 11 18:02:26 328 -7506 A -0.9742 0.9628 64.1S 1.4W 12 618 02m22s
08114 25 1411 Feb 23 02:01:36 302 -7283 As -0.9972 0.9654 61.6S 105.7W 1 - 02m05s
08154 26 1429 Mar 05 09:54:08 278 -7060 P -1.0266 0.9336 61.0S 129.6E 0
08194 27 1447 Mar 16 17:39:01 255 -6837 P -1.0629 0.8715 61.0S 4.7E 0
08234 28 1465 Mar 27 01:17:27 234 -6614 P -1.1052 0.7976 61.1S 118.7W 0
08274 29 1483 Apr 07 08:49:08 213 -6391 P -1.1536 0.7117 61.5S 119.5E 0
08314 30 1501 Apr 17 16:15:52 194 -6168 P -1.2071 0.6155 61.9S 1.1W 0
08356 31 1519 Apr 28 23:35:43 177 -5945 P -1.2666 0.5070 62.5S 120.2W 0
08397 32 1537 May 09 06:52:57 160 -5722 P -1.3289 0.3922 63.2S 121.2E 0
08438 33 1555 May 20 14:06:06 146 -5499 P -1.3947 0.2696 64.0S 3.3E 0
08479 34 1573 May 30 21:18:24 133 -5276 P -1.4619 0.1436 64.9S 114.6W 0
08520 35 1591 Jun 21 04:28:43 123 -5053 Pe -1.5311 0.0129 65.8S 127.7E 0
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.
[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 Earth's center. For total eclipses, the instant of greatest eclipse is nearly equal 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 information presented on this web page is based on data published in Five Millennium Canon of Solar Eclipses: -1999 to +3000 and Five Millennium Catalog of Solar Eclipses: -1999 to +3000. The individual global maps appearing in links (both GIF an animation) were extracted from full page plates appearing in Five Millennium Canon by Dan McGlaun. The Besselian elements were provided by Jean Meeus. Fred Espenak assumes full responsibility for the accuracy of all eclipse calculations.
Permission is freely granted to reproduce this data when accompanied by an acknowledgment:
"Eclipse Predictions by Fred Espenak (NASA's GSFC)"
