Saros Series Catalog of Solar Eclipses

Saros Series 24

Introduction

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.


Statistics for Solar Eclipses of Saros 24

Solar eclipses of Saros 24 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 -2134 Apr 06. The series ended with a partial eclipse in the northern hemisphere on -0854 May 14. The total duration of Saros series 24 is 1280.14 years. In summary:

                      First Eclipse =  -2134 Apr 06   22:57:40 TD
                       Last Eclipse =  -0854 May 14   11:55:47 TD

                      Duration of Saros  24  =  1280.14 Years

Saros 24 is composed of 72 solar eclipses as follows:

Solar Eclipses of Saros 24
Eclipse Type Symbol Number Percent
All Eclipses - 72100.0%
PartialP 15 20.8%
AnnularA 26 36.1%
TotalT 15 20.8%
Hybrid[3]H 16 22.2%

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 24 appears in the following table.

Umbral Eclipses of Saros 24
Classification Number Percent
All Umbral Eclipses 57100.0%
Central (two limits) 56 98.2%
Central (one limit) 1 1.8%
Non-Central (one limit) 0 0.0%

The following string illustrates the sequence of the 72 eclipses in Saros 24: 8P 15T 16H 26A 7P

The longest and shortest central eclipses of Saros 24 as well as largest and smallest partial eclipses are listed in the below.

Extreme Durations and Magnitudes of Solar Eclipses of Saros 24
Extrema Type Date Duration Magnitude
Longest Annular Solar Eclipse -1089 Dec 2510m34s -
Shortest Annular Solar Eclipse -1431 Jun 0200m22s -
Longest Total Solar Eclipse -1954 Jul 2404m51s -
Shortest Total Solar Eclipse -1738 Dec 0101m01s -
Longest Hybrid Solar Eclipse -1557 Mar 1901m13s -
Shortest Hybrid Solar Eclipse -1449 May 2300m05s -
Largest Partial Solar Eclipse -2008 Jun 21 - 0.97213
Smallest Partial Solar Eclipse -2134 Apr 06 - 0.01587

Description of the Catalog of Solar Eclipses of Saros 24

The catalog below lists concise details and local circumstances at greatest eclipse[5] for every solar eclipse in Saros 24. 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 24.



Catalog of Solar Eclipses of Saros 24

                         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

----- -38 -2134 Apr 06  22:57:40  49786 -51128   Pb  -1.5196  0.0159  71.4S 137.5E   0             
----- -37 -2116 Apr 17  06:26:08  49333 -50905   P   -1.4522  0.1459  71.4S   9.6E   0             
----- -36 -2098 Apr 28  13:51:05  48882 -50682   P   -1.3815  0.2830  71.1S 117.2W   0             
----- -35 -2080 May 08  21:15:05  48433 -50459   P   -1.3099  0.4224  70.7S 116.5E   0             
----- -34 -2062 May 20  04:37:14  47986 -50236   P   -1.2367  0.5650  70.0S   8.9W   0             
----- -33 -2044 May 30  12:01:48  47541 -50013   P   -1.1652  0.7042  69.2S 134.4W   0             
----- -32 -2026 Jun 10  19:27:24  47098 -49790   P   -1.0943  0.8417  68.3S 100.5E   0             
----- -31 -2008 Jun 21  02:56:54  46657 -49567   P   -1.0267  0.9721  67.3S  25.1W   0             
00023 -30 -1990 Jul 02  10:30:06  46218 -49344   T   -0.9623  1.0609  51.2S 149.5W  15  756  04m30s
00066 -29 -1972 Jul 12  18:09:32  45781 -49121   T   -0.9033  1.0603  40.7S  89.6E  25  464  04m50s

00109 -28 -1954 Jul 24  01:54:42  45347 -48898   T   -0.8494  1.0580  34.1S  31.5W  32  361  04m51s
00152 -27 -1936 Aug 03  09:46:19  44914 -48675   T   -0.8011  1.0548  29.8S 153.4W  37  300  04m40s
00195 -26 -1918 Aug 14  17:45:39  44484 -48452   T   -0.7596  1.0510  27.3S  83.1E  40  256  04m21s
00239 -25 -1900 Aug 25  01:52:52  44055 -48229   T   -0.7250  1.0467  26.4S  42.2W  43  222  03m56s
00283 -24 -1882 Sep 05  10:07:48  43629 -48006   T   -0.6972  1.0423  26.8S 169.2W  46  193  03m30s
00329 -23 -1864 Sep 15  18:30:18  43205 -47783   T   -0.6763  1.0377  28.4S  61.8E  47  168  03m03s
00375 -22 -1846 Sep 27  02:59:55  42782 -47560   T   -0.6615  1.0333  31.0S  68.9W  48  147  02m38s
00421 -21 -1828 Oct 07  11:36:07  42362 -47337   T   -0.6527  1.0290  34.4S 158.7E  49  127  02m15s
00466 -20 -1810 Oct 18  20:16:20  41944 -47114   T   -0.6476  1.0251  38.4S  25.5E  49  110  01m54s
00513 -19 -1792 Oct 29  05:01:32  41528 -46891   T   -0.6471  1.0216  42.9S 108.8W  49   95  01m36s

00559 -18 -1774 Nov 09  13:48:09  41114 -46668   T   -0.6486  1.0186  47.5S 117.2E  49   83  01m22s
00604 -17 -1756 Nov 19  22:36:12  40703 -46445   T   -0.6516  1.0162  52.1S  16.4W  49   73  01m10s
00649 -16 -1738 Dec 01  07:21:07  40293 -46222   T   -0.6526  1.0142  56.4S 147.5W  49   64  01m01s
00695 -15 -1720 Dec 11  16:04:48  39885 -45999   H3  -0.6533  1.0129  60.1S  83.5E  49   58  00m55s
00741 -14 -1702 Dec 23  00:42:38  39479 -45776   H   -0.6502  1.0120  62.7S  41.6W  49   54  00m51s
00785 -13 -1683 Jan 02  09:14:40  39076 -45553   H   -0.6429  1.0116  63.7S 163.3W  50   52  00m50s
00827 -12 -1665 Jan 13  17:38:08  38674 -45330   H   -0.6296  1.0115  62.8S  77.6E  51   51  00m51s
00868 -11 -1647 Jan 24  01:53:47  38275 -45107   H   -0.6104  1.0117  60.1S  41.1W  52   51  00m53s
00909 -10 -1629 Feb 04  09:59:41  37878 -44884   H   -0.5842  1.0121  55.8S 159.8W  54   51  00m57s
00950 -09 -1611 Feb 14  17:55:34  37482 -44661   H   -0.5506  1.0125  50.2S  81.6E  56   52  01m01s

00991 -08 -1593 Feb 26  01:41:29  37089 -44438   H   -0.5096  1.0128  43.8S  36.3W  59   51  01m06s
01033 -07 -1575 Mar 08  09:17:47  36698 -44215   H   -0.4614  1.0130  36.7S 153.2W  62   50  01m10s
01074 -06 -1557 Mar 19  16:43:59  36309 -43992   H   -0.4056  1.0128  29.2S  91.6E  66   48  01m13s
01114 -05 -1539 Mar 30  00:01:51  35922 -43769   H   -0.3438  1.0122  21.2S  21.9W  70   45  01m13s
01154 -04 -1521 Apr 10  07:11:26  35537 -43546   H   -0.2758  1.0112  13.1S 133.6W  74   40  01m09s
01194 -03 -1503 Apr 20  14:15:00  35154 -43323   H   -0.2038  1.0095   4.9S 116.2E  78   33  01m01s
01234 -02 -1485 May 01  21:11:15  34774 -43100   Hm  -0.1265  1.0072   3.4N   8.0E  83   25  00m47s
01274 -01 -1467 May 12  04:04:18  34395 -42877   H   -0.0476  1.0043  11.4N  99.0W  87   15  00m29s
01314  00 -1449 May 23  10:52:54  34018 -42654   H    0.0344  1.0008  19.3N 155.7E  88    3  00m05s
01355  01 -1431 Jun 02  17:41:14  33644 -42431   A    0.1153  0.9967  26.7N  51.3E  83   12  00m22s


Catalog of Solar Eclipses of Saros 24

                         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

01396  02 -1413 Jun 14  00:27:17  33271 -42208   A    0.1970  0.9919  33.5N  51.5W  78   29  00m51s
01437  03 -1395 Jun 24  07:16:36  32901 -41985   A    0.2749  0.9867  39.5N 153.8W  74   49  01m21s
01479  04 -1377 Jul 05  14:07:10  32533 -41762   A    0.3510  0.9810  44.5N 105.1E  69   72  01m51s
01521  05 -1359 Jul 15  21:02:47  32166 -41539   A    0.4217  0.9751  48.2N   4.0E  65   98  02m20s
01563  06 -1341 Jul 27  04:02:45  31802 -41316   A    0.4878  0.9688  50.5N  97.2W  61  129  02m50s
01606  07 -1323 Aug 06  11:10:03  31440 -41093   A    0.5468  0.9625  51.3N 160.1E  57  162  03m20s
01650  08 -1305 Aug 17  18:24:18  31080 -40870   A    0.5994  0.9561  50.8N  55.0E  53  198  03m51s
01693  09 -1287 Aug 28  01:45:37  30722 -40647   A    0.6455  0.9499  49.4N  53.0W  50  238  04m23s
01738  10 -1269 Sep 08  09:15:41  30366 -40424   A    0.6835  0.9439  47.3N 164.7W  47  279  04m58s
01783  11 -1251 Sep 18  16:53:26  30012 -40201   A    0.7145  0.9384  44.8N  80.3E  44  319  05m34s

01828  12 -1233 Sep 30  00:39:28  29661 -39978   A    0.7381  0.9334  42.0N  38.0W  42  359  06m12s
01873  13 -1215 Oct 10  08:31:20  29311 -39755   A    0.7562  0.9289  39.3N 158.6W  41  395  06m53s
01918  14 -1197 Oct 21  16:29:48  28963 -39532   A    0.7685  0.9251  36.7N  78.3E  40  427  07m35s
01963  15 -1179 Nov 01  00:31:51  28618 -39309   A    0.7772  0.9220  34.2N  46.0W  39  454  08m17s
02010  16 -1161 Nov 12  08:36:42  28274 -39086   A    0.7830  0.9196  32.1N 171.4W  38  476  08m58s
02056  17 -1143 Nov 22  16:42:10  27933 -38863   A    0.7876  0.9179  30.5N  63.0E  38  494  09m36s
02102  18 -1125 Dec 04  00:47:19  27594 -38640   A    0.7917  0.9169  29.4N  62.5W  37  508  10m07s
02147  19 -1107 Dec 14  08:49:04  27256 -38417   A    0.7982  0.9166  29.2N 172.8E  37  522  10m27s
02190  20 -1089 Dec 25  16:46:10  26921 -38194   A    0.8081  0.9168  29.9N  49.2E  36  536  10m34s
02233  21 -1070 Jan 05  00:37:10  26588 -37971   A    0.8224  0.9175  31.8N  73.1W  34  552  10m26s

02276  22 -1052 Jan 16  08:21:39  26257 -37748   A    0.8413  0.9186  34.7N 165.9E  32  573  10m03s
02319  23 -1034 Jan 26  15:55:58  25928 -37525   A    0.8683  0.9199  39.3N  46.8E  29  613  09m25s
02362  24 -1016 Feb 06  23:22:20  25601 -37302   A    0.9013  0.9213  45.3N  71.5W  25  689  08m37s
02404  25 -0998 Feb 17  06:37:53  25276 -37079   A    0.9430  0.9224  53.6N 170.2E  19  889  07m41s
02445  26 -0980 Feb 28  13:45:50  24954 -36856   An   0.9904  0.9221  66.3N  41.7E   7   -   06m33s
02486  27 -0962 Mar 10  20:41:34  24633 -36633   P    1.0474  0.8764  71.4N  90.2W   0             
02527  28 -0944 Mar 21  03:30:52  24314 -36410   P    1.1093  0.7726  71.8N 152.3E   0             
02568  29 -0926 Apr 01  10:10:07  23998 -36187   P    1.1791  0.6547  71.8N  37.1E   0             
02608  30 -0908 Apr 11  16:44:07  23683 -35964   P    1.2526  0.5298  71.6N  76.7W   0             
02647  31 -0890 Apr 22  23:10:40  23371 -35741   P    1.3319  0.3944  71.2N 171.6E   0             

02688  32 -0872 May 03  05:35:02  23061 -35518   P    1.4124  0.2562  70.6N  61.0E   0             
02729  33 -0854 May 14  11:55:47  22753 -35295   Pe   1.4956  0.1129  69.9N  48.1W   0             


Calendar

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..


Predictions

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:

  1. pre-1950's: ΔT calculated from empirical fits to historical records derived by Morrison and Stephenson (2004)
  2. 1955-present: ΔT obtained from published observations
  3. future: ΔT is extrapolated from current values weighted by the long term trend from tidal effects

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.


Footnotes

[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.


Acknowledgments

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)"


Return to:

Saros Series Catalog of Solar Eclipses

Periodicity of Solar Eclipses

Five Millennium Catalog of Solar Eclipses

2009 Sep 26