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 123 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 1074 Apr 29. The series will end with a partial eclipse in the southern hemisphere on 2318 May 31. The total duration of Saros series 123 is 1244.08 years. In summary:
First Eclipse = 1074 Apr 29 01:23:46 TD Last Eclipse = 2318 May 31 05:42:33 TD Duration of Saros 123 = 1244.08 Years
Saros 123 is composed of 70 solar eclipses as follows:
| Solar Eclipses of Saros 123 | |||
| Eclipse Type | Symbol | Number | Percent |
| All Eclipses | - | 70 | 100.0% |
| Partial | P | 26 | 37.1% |
| Annular | A | 27 | 38.6% |
| Total | T | 14 | 20.0% |
| Hybrid[3] | H | 3 | 4.3% |
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 123 appears in the following table.
| Umbral Eclipses of Saros 123 | ||
| Classification | Number | Percent |
| All Umbral Eclipses | 44 | 100.0% |
| Central (two limits) | 42 | 95.5% |
| Central (one limit) | 1 | 2.3% |
| Non-Central (one limit) | 1 | 2.3% |
The following string illustrates the sequence of the 70 eclipses in Saros 123: 6P 27A 3H 14T 20P
The longest and shortest central eclipses of Saros 123 as well as largest and smallest partial eclipses are listed in the below.
| Extreme Durations and Magnitudes of Solar Eclipses of Saros 123 | |||
| Extrema Type | Date | Duration | Magnitude |
| Longest Annular Solar Eclipse | 1398 Nov 09 | 08m07s | - |
| Shortest Annular Solar Eclipse | 1651 Apr 19 | 00m14s | - |
| Longest Total Solar Eclipse | 1813 Jul 27 | 03m27s | - |
| Shortest Total Solar Eclipse | 1939 Oct 12 | 01m32s | - |
| Longest Hybrid Solar Eclipse | 1705 May 22 | 01m32s | - |
| Shortest Hybrid Solar Eclipse | 1669 Apr 30 | 00m22s | - |
| Largest Partial Solar Eclipse | 1975 Nov 03 | - | 0.95882 |
| Smallest Partial Solar Eclipse | 1074 Apr 29 | - | 0.11514 |
The catalog below lists concise details and local circumstances at greatest eclipse[5] for every solar eclipse in Saros 123. 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 123.
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
07299 -33 1074 Apr 29 01:23:46 1190 -11449 Pb 1.4965 0.1151 62.2N 39.8E 0
07343 -32 1092 May 09 07:55:04 1111 -11226 P 1.4182 0.2481 62.8N 67.4W 0
07389 -31 1110 May 20 14:22:27 1037 -11003 P 1.3362 0.3876 63.6N 173.8W 0
07434 -30 1128 May 30 20:45:57 967 -10780 P 1.2507 0.5336 64.5N 80.5E 0
07479 -29 1146 Jun 11 03:09:15 901 -10557 P 1.1642 0.6817 65.4N 25.5W 0
07524 -28 1164 Jun 21 09:30:36 840 -10334 P 1.0754 0.8336 66.4N 131.2W 0
07570 -27 1182 Jul 02 15:55:48 782 -10111 An 0.9892 0.9368 74.6N 120.1E 7 - 03m50s
07615 -26 1200 Jul 12 22:22:50 728 -9888 A 0.9039 0.9409 83.6N 101.5W 25 521 04m12s
07660 -25 1218 Jul 24 04:55:35 677 -9665 A 0.8225 0.9425 72.3N 135.3E 34 376 04m34s
07706 -24 1236 Aug 03 11:33:03 629 -9442 A 0.7441 0.9432 61.9N 29.8E 42 314 04m57s
07751 -23 1254 Aug 14 18:19:43 585 -9219 A 0.6726 0.9433 52.6N 75.8W 47 282 05m23s
07795 -22 1272 Aug 25 01:13:45 544 -8996 A 0.6067 0.9430 43.9N 177.3E 52 264 05m50s
07838 -21 1290 Sep 05 08:17:10 505 -8773 A 0.5480 0.9424 35.8N 68.4E 57 253 06m17s
07880 -20 1308 Sep 15 15:30:02 469 -8550 A 0.4964 0.9417 28.2N 42.6W 60 247 06m43s
07922 -19 1326 Sep 26 22:53:53 435 -8327 A 0.4531 0.9409 21.3N 156.1W 63 244 07m07s
07963 -18 1344 Oct 07 06:26:57 404 -8104 A 0.4170 0.9402 15.1N 88.4E 65 242 07m29s
08005 -17 1362 Oct 18 14:09:27 374 -7881 A 0.3879 0.9397 9.6N 29.1W 67 241 07m48s
08046 -16 1380 Oct 28 22:00:47 346 -7658 A 0.3656 0.9395 4.9N 148.4W 69 240 08m01s
08087 -15 1398 Nov 09 06:00:34 319 -7435 A 0.3493 0.9397 1.1N 90.5E 70 238 08m07s
08127 -14 1416 Nov 19 14:05:55 294 -7212 A 0.3370 0.9404 1.8S 31.6W 70 234 08m05s
08167 -13 1434 Nov 30 22:17:34 271 -6989 A 0.3290 0.9416 3.7S 155.0W 71 229 07m54s
08207 -12 1452 Dec 11 06:31:53 248 -6766 A 0.3224 0.9434 4.8S 81.1E 71 221 07m32s
08246 -11 1470 Dec 22 14:49:05 227 -6543 A 0.3175 0.9458 4.9S 43.4W 72 210 07m02s
08286 -10 1489 Jan 01 23:04:27 207 -6320 A 0.3102 0.9489 4.3S 167.5W 72 197 06m24s
08327 -09 1507 Jan 13 07:20:10 189 -6097 A 0.3024 0.9526 3.0S 68.3E 72 181 05m42s
08369 -08 1525 Jan 23 15:31:21 171 -5874 A 0.2897 0.9569 1.2S 54.8W 73 163 04m58s
08411 -07 1543 Feb 03 23:38:52 155 -5651 A 0.2735 0.9617 1.0N 177.0W 74 143 04m14s
08452 -06 1561 Feb 14 07:39:21 141 -5428 A 0.2507 0.9670 3.4N 62.6E 75 122 03m30s
08493 -05 1579 Feb 25 15:34:47 129 -5205 A 0.2229 0.9728 6.0N 56.4W 77 100 02m48s
08534 -04 1597 Mar 17 23:22:39 120 -4982 A 0.1878 0.9788 8.4N 173.3W 79 77 02m08s
08575 -03 1615 Mar 29 07:03:24 100 -4759 A 0.1461 0.9851 10.7N 71.7E 82 53 01m28s
08619 -02 1633 Apr 08 14:37:06 74 -4536 A 0.0976 0.9913 12.4N 41.2W 84 31 00m51s
08664 -01 1651 Apr 19 22:04:37 47 -4313 A 0.0433 0.9976 13.7N 152.4W 87 8 00m14s
08710 00 1669 Apr 30 05:26:07 24 -4090 H -0.0171 1.0036 14.1N 98.2E 89 13 00m22s
08755 01 1687 May 11 12:42:28 10 -3867 H -0.0828 1.0094 13.6N 9.9W 85 33 00m57s
08800 02 1705 May 22 19:55:06 9 -3644 Hm -0.1525 1.0147 12.2N 117.0W 81 51 01m32s
08845 03 1723 Jun 03 03:05:13 10 -3421 T -0.2251 1.0196 9.6N 136.1E 77 69 02m05s
08891 04 1741 Jun 13 10:12:48 12 -3198 T -0.3007 1.0239 6.0N 29.4E 73 85 02m35s
08937 05 1759 Jun 24 17:20:59 14 -2975 T -0.3768 1.0275 1.4N 78.1W 68 101 02m59s
08983 06 1777 Jul 05 00:29:29 17 -2752 T -0.4531 1.0305 4.2S 173.7E 63 115 03m17s
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
09029 07 1795 Jul 16 07:41:36 15 -2529 T -0.5274 1.0327 10.4S 63.8E 58 130 03m26s
09074 08 1813 Jul 27 14:55:35 12 -2306 T -0.6006 1.0341 17.4S 47.4W 53 144 03m27s
09119 09 1831 Aug 07 22:15:59 7 -2083 T -0.6691 1.0349 24.9S 160.9W 48 158 03m20s
09163 10 1849 Aug 18 05:40:49 7 -1860 T -0.7343 1.0349 32.9S 83.5E 43 172 03m07s
09205 11 1867 Aug 29 13:13:07 3 -1637 T -0.7940 1.0344 41.1S 34.9W 37 189 02m51s
09247 12 1885 Sep 08 20:51:52 -6 -1414 T -0.8489 1.0332 49.6S 156.5W 32 211 02m31s
09289 13 1903 Sep 21 04:39:52 2 -1191 T -0.8967 1.0316 58.0S 77.2E 26 241 02m12s
09331 14 1921 Oct 01 12:35:58 22 -968 T -0.9383 1.0293 66.1S 56.1W 20 291 01m52s
09374 15 1939 Oct 12 20:40:23 24 -745 T -0.9737 1.0266 72.8S 155.1E 12 418 01m32s
09415 16 1957 Oct 23 04:54:02 32 -522 T- -1.0022 1.0013 71.2S 23.1W 0
09455 17 1975 Nov 03 13:15:54 46 -299 P -1.0248 0.9588 70.4S 161.7W 0
09494 18 1993 Nov 13 21:45:51 60 -76 P -1.0411 0.9280 69.6S 58.3E 0
09534 19 2011 Nov 25 06:21:24 68 147 P -1.0536 0.9047 68.6S 82.4W 0
09574 20 2029 Dec 05 15:03:58 77 370 P -1.0609 0.8911 67.5S 135.7E 0
09614 21 2047 Dec 16 23:50:12 91 593 P -1.0661 0.8816 66.4S 6.6W 0
09655 22 2065 Dec 27 08:39:56 126 816 P -1.0688 0.8769 65.4S 149.2W 0
09696 23 2084 Jan 07 17:30:24 166 1039 P -1.0715 0.8723 64.4S 68.5E 0
09737 24 2102 Jan 19 02:21:30 207 1262 P -1.0741 0.8682 63.5S 73.6W 0
09778 25 2120 Jan 30 11:09:56 251 1485 P -1.0792 0.8594 62.7S 145.3E 0
09819 26 2138 Feb 09 19:55:23 297 1708 P -1.0872 0.8453 62.1S 5.1E 0
09861 27 2156 Feb 21 04:36:02 341 1931 P -1.0995 0.8230 61.6S 133.7W 0
09903 28 2174 Mar 03 13:11:54 381 2154 P -1.1162 0.7924 61.3S 88.7E 0
09947 29 2192 Mar 13 21:40:00 423 2377 P -1.1395 0.7491 61.1S 46.8W 0
09992 30 2210 Mar 26 06:01:57 466 2600 P -1.1680 0.6954 61.1S 179.2E 0
10035 31 2228 Apr 05 14:15:36 512 2823 P -1.2036 0.6279 61.3S 47.3E 0
10079 32 2246 Apr 16 22:23:24 560 3046 P -1.2445 0.5498 61.6S 83.2W 0
10124 33 2264 Apr 27 06:21:41 611 3269 P -1.2931 0.4564 62.1S 148.5E 0
10169 34 2282 May 08 14:15:16 663 3492 P -1.3458 0.3545 62.7S 21.3E 0
10215 35 2300 May 19 22:00:39 717 3715 P -1.4049 0.2399 63.4S 104.1W 0
10260 36 2318 May 31 05:42:33 773 3938 Pe -1.4670 0.1192 64.2S 131.2E 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)"
