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 160 all occur at the Moon’s ascending node and the Moon moves southward with each eclipse. The series will begin with a penumbral eclipse near the northern edge of the penumbra on 2248 Oct 03. The series will end with a penumbral eclipse near the southern edge of the penumbra on 3528 Nov 19. The total duration of Saros series 160 is 1280.14 years. In summary:
First Eclipse = 2248 Oct 03 15:52:04 TD
Last Eclipse = 3528 Nov 19 20:45:41 TD
Duration of Saros 160 = 1280.14 Years
Saros 160 is composed of 72 lunar eclipses as follows:
| Lunar Eclipses of Saros 160 | |||
| Eclipse Type | Symbol | Number | Percent |
| All Eclipses | - | 72 | 100.0% |
| Penumbral | N | 32 | 44.4% |
| Partial | P | 15 | 20.8% |
| Total | T | 25 | 34.7% |
The 72 lunar eclipses in Saros 160 occur in the order of 21N 7P 25T 8P 11N which corresponds to:
21 Penumbral
7 Partial
25 Total
8 Partial
11 Penumbral
The longest and shortest eclipses of Saros 160 are as follows.
Longest Total Lunar Eclipse: 2843 Sep 29 Duration = 01h45m34s
Shortest Total Lunar Eclipse: 3186 Apr 25 Duration = 00h26m10s
Longest Partial Lunar Eclipse: 2735 Jul 27 Duration = 03h24m40s
Shortest Partial Lunar Eclipse: 2627 May 22 Duration = 00h08m02s
Longest Penumbral Lunar Eclipse: 2609 May 11 Duration = 04h38m23s
Shortest Penumbral Lunar Eclipse: 3528 Nov 19 Duration = 00h31m08s
The largest and smallest magnitude partial eclipses of Saros 160 are:
Largest Partial Lunar Eclipse: 3204 May 06 Magnitude = 0.9443
Smallest Partial Lunar Eclipse: 2627 May 22 Magnitude = 0.0011
Local circumstances at greatest eclipse[2] for every lunar eclipse of Saros 160 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.
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 -33 2248 Oct 03 15:52:04 567 3076 Nb t- 1.5365 0.0611 -0.9836 73.3 - -
02 -32 2266 Oct 14 23:23:02 618 3299 N t- 1.4969 0.1369 -0.9139 109.4 - -
03 -31 2284 Oct 25 07:01:35 670 3522 N t- 1.4633 0.2016 -0.8553 132.6 - -
04 -30 2302 Nov 06 14:46:26 724 3745 N t- 1.4353 0.2560 -0.8068 149.3 - -
05 -29 2320 Nov 16 22:38:58 781 3968 N t- 1.4138 0.2982 -0.7701 161.1 - -
06 -28 2338 Nov 28 06:37:25 840 4191 N t- 1.3976 0.3305 -0.7428 169.7 - -
07 -27 2356 Dec 08 14:40:36 900 4414 N t- 1.3857 0.3546 -0.7232 176.0 - -
08 -26 2374 Dec 19 22:47:53 963 4637 N t- 1.3775 0.3715 -0.7103 180.5 - -
09 -25 2392 Dec 30 06:57:20 1028 4860 N t- 1.3717 0.3838 -0.7011 183.8 - -
10 -24 2411 Jan 10 15:08:15 1095 5083 N t- 1.3675 0.3928 -0.6946 186.2 - -
11 -23 2429 Jan 20 23:16:44 1164 5306 N t- 1.3620 0.4038 -0.6854 189.1 - -
12 -22 2447 Feb 01 07:24:27 1235 5529 N t- 1.3562 0.4148 -0.6754 191.8 - -
13 -21 2465 Feb 11 15:26:51 1308 5752 N t- 1.3470 0.4319 -0.6587 195.8 - -
14 -20 2483 Feb 22 23:24:23 1384 5975 N t- 1.3340 0.4557 -0.6346 201.0 - -
15 -19 2501 Mar 06 07:13:33 1461 6198 N t- 1.3146 0.4909 -0.5985 208.2 - -
16 -18 2519 Mar 17 14:56:26 1540 6421 N t- 1.2905 0.5344 -0.5537 216.6 - -
17 -17 2537 Mar 27 22:29:42 1622 6644 N t- 1.2589 0.5915 -0.4949 226.8 - -
18 -16 2555 Apr 08 05:53:58 1705 6867 N t- 1.2203 0.6615 -0.4230 238.4 - -
19 -15 2573 Apr 18 13:08:28 1791 7090 N t- 1.1738 0.7457 -0.3367 251.2 - -
20 -14 2591 Apr 29 20:14:12 1879 7313 N t- 1.1201 0.8432 -0.2371 264.6 - -
21 -13 2609 May 11 03:10:50 1968 7536 N t- 1.0591 0.9539 -0.1241 278.4 - -
22 -12 2627 May 22 09:59:12 2060 7759 P t- 0.9914 1.0771 0.0011 292.1 8.0 -
23 -11 2645 Jun 01 16:40:36 2154 7982 P t- 0.9179 1.2111 0.1369 305.2 89.8 -
24 -10 2663 Jun 12 23:16:24 2250 8205 P t- 0.8395 1.3542 0.2816 317.7 126.1 -
25 -09 2681 Jun 23 05:46:34 2348 8428 P t- 0.7562 1.5062 0.4350 329.1 153.2 -
26 -08 2699 Jul 04 12:14:28 2448 8651 P t- 0.6708 1.6625 0.5922 339.3 174.3 -
27 -07 2717 Jul 15 18:39:40 2550 8874 P t- 0.5828 1.8237 0.7541 348.2 191.3 -
28 -06 2735 Jul 27 01:06:30 2655 9097 P t- 0.4956 1.9835 0.9141 355.6 204.7 -
29 -05 2753 Aug 06 07:32:44 2761 9320 T t- 0.4075 2.1452 1.0757 361.6 215.2 44.6
30 -04 2771 Aug 17 14:04:20 2869 9543 T t- 0.3232 2.3001 1.2302 366.2 223.0 73.8
31 -03 2789 Aug 27 20:38:53 2980 9766 T+ pp 0.2408 2.4518 1.3811 369.5 228.5 89.7
32 -02 2807 Sep 08 03:21:14 3092 9989 T+ pp 0.1643 2.5926 1.5210 371.5 232.0 98.8
33 -01 2825 Sep 18 10:09:06 3207 10212 T+ pp 0.0918 2.7262 1.6533 372.6 233.9 103.7
34 00 2843 Sep 29 17:07:01 3324 10435 T+ pp 0.0270 2.8459 1.7717 372.8 234.5 105.6
35 01 2861 Oct 10 00:12:28 3442 10658 T- pp -0.0322 2.8371 1.7613 372.4 234.0 105.2
36 02 2879 Oct 21 07:27:46 3563 10881 T- pp -0.0838 2.7431 1.6660 371.5 232.9 103.4
37 03 2897 Oct 31 14:52:00 3686 11104 T- pp -0.1285 2.6618 1.5833 370.3 231.3 100.6
38 04 2915 Nov 12 22:26:46 3811 11327 T- pp -0.1646 2.5961 1.5165 368.9 229.6 97.4
39 05 2933 Nov 23 06:10:08 3938 11550 T- pp -0.1945 2.5417 1.4612 367.5 227.8 94.1
40 06 2951 Dec 04 14:01:47 4067 11773 T- pp -0.2179 2.4989 1.4179 366.1 226.1 91.0
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 07 2969 Dec 14 22:00:51 4198 11996 T- pp -0.2358 2.4661 1.3852 364.7 224.7 88.3
42 08 2987 Dec 26 06:06:34 4332 12219 T- pp -0.2484 2.4426 1.3623 363.4 223.5 86.3
43 09 3006 Jan 06 14:16:17 4467 12442 T- -p -0.2584 2.4237 1.3447 362.1 222.4 84.6
44 10 3024 Jan 17 22:29:43 4604 12665 T- -p -0.2657 2.4093 1.3322 360.7 221.5 83.3
45 11 3042 Jan 28 06:44:20 4744 12888 T -p -0.2728 2.3950 1.3205 359.3 220.6 82.0
46 12 3060 Feb 08 14:59:46 4885 13111 T -p -0.2797 2.3807 1.3094 357.8 219.7 80.8
47 13 3078 Feb 18 23:12:07 5029 13334 T -p -0.2897 2.3603 1.2930 356.0 218.6 79.0
48 14 3096 Mar 01 07:22:49 5175 13557 T -p -0.3018 2.3358 1.2730 354.0 217.3 76.7
49 15 3114 Mar 13 15:28:11 5322 13780 T -p -0.3188 2.3021 1.2444 351.7 215.7 73.2
50 16 3132 Mar 23 23:28:37 5472 14003 T -p -0.3407 2.2592 1.2070 349.1 213.5 68.1
51 17 3150 Apr 04 07:21:47 5624 14226 T -p -0.3692 2.2039 1.1575 345.9 210.7 60.3
52 18 3168 Apr 14 15:09:27 5778 14449 T -p -0.4030 2.1389 1.0986 342.3 207.1 48.5
53 19 3186 Apr 25 22:49:53 5934 14672 T -t -0.4433 2.0617 1.0275 338.0 202.5 26.2
54 20 3204 May 06 06:23:07 6092 14895 P -t -0.4904 1.9722 0.9443 333.0 196.6 -
55 21 3222 May 17 13:50:12 6253 15118 P -t -0.5433 1.8721 0.8502 327.2 189.1 -
56 22 3240 May 27 21:11:30 6415 15341 P -t -0.6018 1.7616 0.7457 320.3 179.8 -
57 23 3258 Jun 08 04:28:16 6579 15564 P -t -0.6647 1.6435 0.6332 312.5 168.3 -
58 24 3276 Jun 18 11:40:21 6746 15787 P -t -0.7321 1.5171 0.5121 303.4 153.8 -
59 25 3294 Jun 29 18:50:47 6914 16010 P -t -0.8018 1.3868 0.3866 293.3 135.8 -
60 26 3312 Jul 11 01:59:31 7085 16233 P -t -0.8738 1.2525 0.2567 281.8 112.4 -
61 27 3330 Jul 22 09:07:56 7257 16456 P -h -0.9468 1.1166 0.1246 268.9 79.5 -
62 28 3348 Aug 01 16:17:22 7432 16679 N -h -1.0196 0.9814 -0.0073 254.8 - -
63 29 3366 Aug 12 23:29:11 7609 16902 N -h -1.0912 0.8486 -0.1373 239.3 - -
64 30 3384 Aug 23 06:45:12 7788 17125 N -h -1.1600 0.7211 -0.2626 222.6 - -
65 31 3402 Sep 04 14:04:51 7968 17348 N -a -1.2267 0.5980 -0.3840 204.5 - -
66 32 3420 Sep 14 21:31:16 8151 17571 N -a -1.2884 0.4841 -0.4967 185.5 - -
67 33 3438 Sep 26 05:03:44 8337 17794 N -a -1.3459 0.3783 -0.6019 165.1 - -
68 34 3456 Oct 06 12:44:12 8524 18017 N -a -1.3973 0.2837 -0.6960 143.8 - -
69 35 3474 Oct 17 20:31:50 8713 18240 N -a -1.4436 0.1989 -0.7809 121.0 - -
70 36 3492 Oct 28 04:28:20 8904 18463 N -a -1.4834 0.1259 -0.8540 96.7 - -
71 37 3510 Nov 09 12:33:10 9097 18686 N -a -1.5171 0.0643 -0.9160 69.3 - -
72 38 3528 Nov 19 20:45:41 9293 18909 N -a -1.5452 0.0129 -0.9679 31.1 - -
[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.
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.
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)"
