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 128 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 0984 Aug 29. The series will end with a partial eclipse in the northern hemisphere on 2282 Nov 01. The total duration of Saros series 128 is 1298.17 years. In summary:
First Eclipse = 0984 Aug 29 08:35:40 TD
Last Eclipse = 2282 Nov 01 05:06:24 TD
Duration of Saros 128 = 1298.17 Years
Saros 128 is composed of 73 solar eclipses as follows:
| Solar Eclipses of Saros 128 | |||
| Eclipse Type | Symbol | Number | Percent |
| All Eclipses | - | 73 | 100.0% |
| Partial | P | 33 | 45.2% |
| Annular | A | 32 | 43.8% |
| Total | T | 4 | 5.5% |
| Hybrid[3] | H | 4 | 5.5% |
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 128 appears in the following table.
| Umbral Eclipses of Saros 128 | ||
| Classification | Number | Percent |
| All Umbral Eclipses | 40 | 100.0% |
| Central (two limits) | 39 | 97.5% |
| Central (one limit) | 1 | 2.5% |
| Non-Central (one limit) | 0 | 0.0% |
The following string illustrates the sequence of the 73 eclipses in Saros 128: 24P 4T 4H 32A 9P
The longest and shortest eclipses of Saros 128 as well as other eclipse extrema are listed below.
Longest Total Solar Eclipse: 1453 Jun 07 Duration = 01m45s
Shortest Total Solar Eclipse: 1417 May 16 Duration = 01m30s
Longest Annular Solar Eclipse: 1832 Feb 01 Duration = 08m35s
Shortest Annular Solar Eclipse: 1561 Aug 11 Duration = 00m27s
Longest Hybrid Solar Eclipse: 1489 Jun 28 Duration = 01m23s
Shortest Hybrid Solar Eclipse: 1543 Jul 31 Duration = 00m05s
Largest Partial Solar Eclipse: 1399 May 06 Magnitude = 0.9949
Smallest Partial Solar Eclipse: 0984 Aug 29 Magnitude = 0.0085
Local circumstances at greatest eclipse[4] for every eclipse of Saros 128 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 128 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 -42 0984 Aug 29 08:35:40 1680 -12558 Pb -1.5263 0.0085 61.3S 18.4W 0 74
02 -41 1002 Sep 09 16:38:28 1575 -12335 P -1.4840 0.0911 61.1S 148.3W 0 83
03 -40 1020 Sep 20 00:47:49 1485 -12112 P -1.4474 0.1625 61.0S 80.3E 0 92
04 -39 1038 Oct 01 09:05:32 1395 -11889 P -1.4177 0.2202 61.2S 53.2W 0 101
05 -38 1056 Oct 11 17:30:26 1306 -11666 P -1.3942 0.2656 61.4S 171.4E 0 110
06 -37 1074 Oct 23 02:01:48 1216 -11443 P -1.3765 0.2999 61.9S 34.4E 0 119
07 -36 1092 Nov 02 10:39:37 1126 -11220 P -1.3643 0.3234 62.4S 104.5W 0 129
08 -35 1110 Nov 13 19:22:20 1047 -10997 P -1.3568 0.3380 63.2S 115.3E 0 138
09 -34 1128 Nov 24 04:09:27 976 -10774 P -1.3531 0.3453 64.0S 26.2W 0 148
10 -33 1146 Dec 05 12:57:34 904 -10551 P -1.3507 0.3500 65.0S 168.3W 0 159
11 -32 1164 Dec 15 21:48:04 847 -10328 P -1.3507 0.3502 66.0S 48.7E 0 169
12 -31 1182 Dec 27 06:37:09 793 -10105 P -1.3505 0.3506 67.1S 94.4W 0 180
13 -30 1201 Jan 06 15:24:30 740 -9882 P -1.3491 0.3532 68.1S 122.4E 0 191
14 -29 1219 Jan 18 00:06:47 686 -9659 P -1.3445 0.3619 69.1S 20.1W 0 203
15 -28 1237 Jan 28 08:44:50 632 -9436 P -1.3369 0.3759 70.0S 162.2W 0 216
16 -27 1255 Feb 08 17:15:43 580 -9213 P -1.3244 0.3991 70.8S 57.0E 0 229
17 -26 1273 Feb 19 01:39:04 534 -8990 P -1.3066 0.4321 71.4S 82.5W 0 242
18 -25 1291 Mar 02 09:53:49 487 -8767 P -1.2826 0.4766 71.8S 139.7E 0 256
19 -24 1309 Mar 12 18:00:25 448 -8544 P -1.2527 0.5323 71.9S 3.8E 0 270
20 -23 1327 Mar 24 01:56:52 416 -8321 P -1.2152 0.6020 71.8S 129.5W 0 284
21 -22 1345 Apr 03 09:44:58 384 -8098 P -1.1717 0.6830 71.5S 99.4E 0 297
22 -21 1363 Apr 14 17:23:47 354 -7875 P -1.1212 0.7768 70.9S 28.8W 0 310
23 -20 1381 Apr 25 00:55:46 326 -7652 P -1.0659 0.8794 70.2S 154.8W 0 323
24 -19 1399 May 06 08:18:28 297 -7429 P -1.0035 0.9949 69.3S 82.0E 0 335
25 -18 1417 May 16 15:36:31 272 -7206 T -0.9378 1.0179 48.9S 46.4W 20 352 180 01m30s
26 -17 1435 May 27 22:47:54 247 -6983 T -0.8670 1.0184 37.8S 160.3W 30 359 127 01m43s
27 -16 1453 Jun 07 05:56:44 223 -6760 T -0.7948 1.0175 29.4S 88.6E 37 3 99 01m45s
28 -15 1471 Jun 18 13:00:12 206 -6537 T -0.7189 1.0157 22.3S 19.8W 44 8 77 01m38s
29 -14 1489 Jun 28 20:04:24 188 -6314 H3 -0.6440 1.0130 16.8S 127.6W 50 12 58 01m23s
30 -13 1507 Jul 10 03:06:33 171 -6091 H -0.5680 1.0095 12.4S 125.9E 55 16 40 01m01s
31 -12 1525 Jul 20 10:11:04 157 -5868 H -0.4947 1.0054 9.3S 19.3E 60 19 21 00m35s
32 -11 1543 Jul 31 17:16:23 143 -5645 H -0.4229 1.0007 7.3S 87.0W 65 22 3 00m05s
33 -10 1561 Aug 11 00:27:07 131 -5422 A -0.3564 0.9956 6.5S 165.5E 69 25 16 00m27s
34 -09 1579 Aug 22 07:41:32 120 -5199 A -0.2937 0.9901 6.6S 57.2E 73 27 36 01m00s
35 -08 1597 Sep 11 15:01:22 110 -4976 A -0.2363 0.9843 7.6S 52.4W 76 29 57 01m35s
36 -07 1615 Sep 22 22:27:21 95 -4753 A -0.1849 0.9784 9.1S 163.6W 79 29 78 02m11s
37 -06 1633 Oct 03 06:00:37 74 -4530 Am -0.1405 0.9726 11.2S 83.4E 82 29 99 02m48s
38 -05 1651 Oct 14 13:40:56 45 -4307 A -0.1025 0.9668 13.5S 31.3W 84 28 120 03m27s
39 -04 1669 Oct 24 21:28:05 25 -4084 A -0.0710 0.9613 15.9S 147.7W 86 26 141 04m07s
40 -03 1687 Nov 05 05:22:24 10 -3861 A -0.0460 0.9561 18.3S 94.3E 87 23 160 04m49s
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 -02 1705 Nov 16 13:23:06 8 -3638 A -0.0271 0.9514 20.4S 25.0W 88 19 178 05m31s
42 -01 1723 Nov 27 21:28:16 10 -3415 A -0.0125 0.9471 22.0S 145.2W 89 14 195 06m12s
43 00 1741 Dec 08 05:38:00 12 -3192 A -0.0024 0.9434 23.0S 93.6E 90 6 209 06m51s
44 01 1759 Dec 19 13:50:05 15 -2969 A 0.0051 0.9404 23.3S 28.0W 90 193 221 07m25s
45 02 1777 Dec 29 22:03:28 17 -2746 A 0.0110 0.9380 22.7S 150.0W 90 183 231 07m53s
46 03 1796 Jan 10 06:14:52 15 -2523 A 0.0179 0.9362 21.1S 88.3E 89 177 238 08m15s
47 04 1814 Jan 21 14:24:47 12 -2300 A 0.0253 0.9350 18.6S 33.4W 89 173 242 08m28s
48 05 1832 Feb 01 22:30:14 6 -2077 A 0.0355 0.9344 15.3S 154.4W 88 169 245 08m35s
49 06 1850 Feb 12 06:29:37 7 -1854 A 0.0503 0.9345 11.0S 85.6E 87 166 245 08m35s
50 07 1868 Feb 23 14:21:31 3 -1631 A 0.0706 0.9348 6.1S 33.0W 86 164 244 08m30s
51 08 1886 Mar 05 22:05:26 -6 -1408 A 0.0970 0.9357 0.5S 150.1W 84 163 241 08m20s
52 09 1904 Mar 17 05:40:44 3 -1185 A 0.1299 0.9367 5.6N 94.7E 82 162 237 08m07s
53 10 1922 Mar 28 13:05:26 23 -962 A 0.1711 0.9381 12.3N 18.0W 80 162 233 07m50s
54 11 1940 Apr 07 20:21:21 24 -739 A 0.2190 0.9394 19.2N 128.5W 77 163 230 07m30s
55 12 1958 Apr 19 03:27:17 32 -516 A 0.2750 0.9408 26.5N 123.6E 74 164 228 07m07s
56 13 1976 Apr 29 10:24:18 47 -293 A 0.3378 0.9421 34.0N 18.3E 70 165 227 06m41s
57 14 1994 May 10 17:12:26 60 -70 A 0.4077 0.9431 41.5N 84.1W 66 168 230 06m13s
58 15 2012 May 20 23:53:54 67 153 A 0.4828 0.9439 49.1N 176.3E 61 171 237 05m46s
59 16 2030 Jun 01 06:29:13 77 376 A 0.5626 0.9443 56.5N 80.1E 55 176 250 05m21s
60 17 2048 Jun 11 12:58:53 91 599 A 0.6468 0.9441 63.7N 11.5W 49 184 272 04m58s
61 18 2066 Jun 22 19:25:48 128 822 A 0.7330 0.9435 70.1N 96.4W 43 198 309 04m40s
62 19 2084 Jul 03 01:50:26 167 1045 A 0.8208 0.9421 75.0N 169.1W 35 222 377 04m25s
63 20 2102 Jul 15 08:15:14 209 1268 A 0.9080 0.9398 75.9N 134.2E 24 261 539 04m14s
64 21 2120 Jul 25 14:40:02 252 1491 An 0.9948 0.9343 66.0N 90.4E 4 312 - 04m00s
65 22 2138 Aug 05 21:08:57 298 1714 P 1.0781 0.8285 62.4N 9.2W 0 309
66 23 2156 Aug 16 03:41:28 342 1937 P 1.1584 0.6912 61.9N 116.1W 0 300
67 24 2174 Aug 27 10:19:55 382 2160 P 1.2336 0.5629 61.4N 135.6E 0 291
68 25 2192 Sep 06 17:05:08 424 2383 P 1.3032 0.4444 61.2N 25.8E 0 282
69 26 2210 Sep 18 23:59:09 468 2606 P 1.3657 0.3384 61.0N 86.2W 0 274
70 27 2228 Sep 29 07:02:08 514 2829 P 1.4212 0.2445 61.1N 159.6E 0 265
71 28 2246 Oct 10 14:13:18 562 3052 P 1.4705 0.1615 61.3N 43.4E 0 256
72 29 2264 Oct 20 21:35:23 612 3275 P 1.5111 0.0933 61.6N 75.7W 0 247
73 30 2282 Nov 01 05:06:24 664 3498 Pe 1.5448 0.0370 62.1N 163.0E 0 238
[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)"
