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 131 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 1125 Aug 01. The series will end with a partial eclipse in the southern hemisphere on 2369 Sep 02. The total duration of Saros series 131 is 1244.08 years. In summary:
First Eclipse = 1125 Aug 01 05:15:09 TD Last Eclipse = 2369 Sep 02 03:25:56 TD Duration of Saros 131 = 1244.08 Years
Saros 131 is composed of 70 solar eclipses as follows:
| Solar Eclipses of Saros 131 | |||
| Eclipse Type | Symbol | Number | Percent |
| All Eclipses | - | 70 | 100.0% |
| Partial | P | 29 | 41.4% |
| Annular | A | 30 | 42.9% |
| Total | T | 6 | 8.6% |
| Hybrid[3] | H | 5 | 7.1% |
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 131 appears in the following table.
| Umbral Eclipses of Saros 131 | ||
| Classification | Number | Percent |
| All Umbral Eclipses | 41 | 100.0% |
| Central (two limits) | 41 | 100.0% |
| Central (one limit) | 0 | 0.0% |
| Non-Central (one limit) | 0 | 0.0% |
The following string illustrates the sequence of the 70 eclipses in Saros 131: 22P 6T 5H 30A 7P
The longest and shortest central eclipses of Saros 131 as well as largest and smallest partial eclipses are listed in the below.
| Extreme Durations and Magnitudes of Solar Eclipses of Saros 131 | |||
| Extrema Type | Date | Duration | Magnitude |
| Longest Annular Solar Eclipse | 2009 Jan 26 | 07m54s | - |
| Shortest Annular Solar Eclipse | 1720 Aug 04 | 00m27s | - |
| Longest Total Solar Eclipse | 1612 May 30 | 00m58s | - |
| Shortest Total Solar Eclipse | 1522 Mar 27 | 00m26s | - |
| Longest Hybrid Solar Eclipse | 1630 Jun 10 | 00m55s | - |
| Shortest Hybrid Solar Eclipse | 1702 Jul 24 | 00m01s | - |
| Largest Partial Solar Eclipse | 1504 Mar 16 | - | 0.93484 |
| Smallest Partial Solar Eclipse | 2369 Sep 02 | - | 0.10247 |
The catalog below lists concise details and local circumstances at greatest eclipse[5] for every solar eclipse in Saros 131. 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 131.
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
07428 -37 1125 Aug 01 05:15:09 978 -10815 Pb 1.4666 0.1198 69.9N 109.5W 0
07473 -36 1143 Aug 12 12:57:36 911 -10592 P 1.4088 0.2324 70.7N 121.9E 0
07518 -35 1161 Aug 22 20:46:37 849 -10369 P 1.3564 0.3340 71.3N 8.8W 0
07564 -34 1179 Sep 03 04:42:14 791 -10146 P 1.3096 0.4241 71.7N 141.7W 0
07609 -33 1197 Sep 13 12:45:54 736 -9923 P 1.2695 0.5009 71.9N 83.1E 0
07654 -32 1215 Sep 24 20:55:57 685 -9700 P 1.2351 0.5664 71.9N 53.7W 0
07700 -31 1233 Oct 05 05:14:34 637 -9477 P 1.2080 0.6174 71.6N 167.4E 0
07745 -30 1251 Oct 16 13:39:20 592 -9254 P 1.1863 0.6578 71.0N 27.4E 0
07789 -29 1269 Oct 26 22:11:15 550 -9031 P 1.1708 0.6862 70.3N 113.8W 0
07832 -28 1287 Nov 07 06:48:15 511 -8808 P 1.1600 0.7059 69.4N 104.2E 0
07874 -27 1305 Nov 17 15:30:56 475 -8585 P 1.1540 0.7163 68.4N 38.4W 0
07916 -26 1323 Nov 29 00:16:10 441 -8362 P 1.1509 0.7215 67.3N 178.8E 0
07957 -25 1341 Dec 09 09:03:29 409 -8139 P 1.1500 0.7229 66.3N 36.2E 0
07998 -24 1359 Dec 20 17:50:58 378 -7916 P 1.1496 0.7231 65.2N 106.0W 0
08039 -23 1377 Dec 31 02:38:10 350 -7693 P 1.1494 0.7234 64.3N 112.2E 0
08080 -22 1396 Jan 11 11:21:14 323 -7470 P 1.1464 0.7287 63.4N 28.1W 0
08120 -21 1414 Jan 21 20:00:46 298 -7247 P 1.1411 0.7384 62.6N 167.3W 0
08160 -20 1432 Feb 02 04:33:42 274 -7024 P 1.1309 0.7571 62.0N 55.4E 0
08200 -19 1450 Feb 12 13:01:23 252 -6801 P 1.1169 0.7829 61.5N 80.5W 0
08240 -18 1468 Feb 23 21:18:55 230 -6578 P 1.0953 0.8228 61.2N 146.3E 0
08280 -17 1486 Mar 06 05:30:00 210 -6355 P 1.0689 0.8714 61.0N 14.7E 0
08321 -16 1504 Mar 16 13:30:09 191 -6132 P 1.0345 0.9348 61.0N 114.0W 0
08363 -15 1522 Mar 27 21:22:59 174 -5909 T 0.9946 1.0076 62.0N 127.7E 4 347 00m26s
08404 -14 1540 Apr 07 05:04:30 158 -5686 T 0.9462 1.0115 63.1N 34.7E 18 123 00m42s
08445 -13 1558 Apr 18 12:39:27 144 -5463 T 0.8930 1.0132 64.1N 67.8W 26 100 00m50s
08486 -12 1576 Apr 28 20:04:44 131 -5240 T 0.8328 1.0140 64.8N 168.0W 33 86 00m55s
08527 -11 1594 May 20 03:23:17 121 -5017 T 0.7678 1.0141 64.9N 94.1E 40 76 00m58s
08567 -10 1612 May 30 10:34:29 104 -4794 T 0.6976 1.0135 63.6N 1.9W 45 65 00m58s
08611 -09 1630 Jun 10 17:41:07 79 -4571 H 0.6244 1.0122 60.9N 98.3W 51 54 00m55s
08656 -08 1648 Jun 21 00:43:22 51 -4348 H 0.5483 1.0102 56.7N 164.0E 56 42 00m49s
08702 -07 1666 Jul 02 07:42:30 27 -4125 H 0.4704 1.0075 51.4N 64.4E 62 29 00m39s
08748 -06 1684 Jul 12 14:40:35 11 -3902 H 0.3926 1.0041 45.2N 37.1W 67 16 00m23s
08793 -05 1702 Jul 24 21:38:51 8 -3679 H 0.3160 1.0001 38.4N 140.4W 71 1 00m01s
08838 -04 1720 Aug 04 04:38:15 10 -3456 A 0.2409 0.9957 31.1N 114.8E 76 16 00m27s
08884 -03 1738 Aug 15 11:40:12 11 -3233 A 0.1688 0.9907 23.7N 8.4E 80 33 01m00s
08930 -02 1756 Aug 25 18:46:17 14 -3010 Am 0.1009 0.9853 16.1N 99.5W 84 52 01m38s
08975 -01 1774 Sep 06 01:57:40 16 -2787 A 0.0385 0.9797 8.7N 150.9E 88 72 02m20s
09021 00 1792 Sep 16 09:13:52 16 -2564 A -0.0191 0.9739 1.3N 39.9E 89 93 03m02s
09066 01 1810 Sep 28 16:37:25 12 -2341 A -0.0696 0.9681 5.8S 72.8W 86 115 03m45s
09111 02 1828 Oct 09 00:07:47 8 -2118 A -0.1139 0.9623 12.5S 173.0E 83 137 04m26s
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
09155 03 1846 Oct 20 07:46:12 6 -1895 A -0.1506 0.9567 18.7S 57.3E 81 159 05m05s
09198 04 1864 Oct 30 15:30:31 6 -1672 A -0.1816 0.9514 24.3S 59.3W 79 181 05m41s
09240 05 1882 Nov 10 23:22:21 -6 -1449 A -0.2056 0.9465 29.2S 177.0W 78 201 06m14s
09282 06 1900 Nov 22 07:19:43 -2 -1226 A -0.2245 0.9421 33.1S 64.8E 77 220 06m42s
09325 07 1918 Dec 03 15:22:02 21 -1003 A -0.2387 0.9383 36.1S 53.7W 76 236 07m06s
09368 08 1936 Dec 13 23:28:12 24 -780 A -0.2493 0.9349 37.8S 172.6W 75 251 07m25s
09409 09 1954 Dec 25 07:36:42 31 -557 A -0.2576 0.9323 38.4S 68.2E 75 262 07m39s
09449 10 1973 Jan 04 15:46:21 43 -334 A -0.2644 0.9303 37.9S 51.2W 74 271 07m49s
09488 11 1991 Jan 15 23:53:51 58 -111 A -0.2727 0.9290 36.4S 170.4W 74 277 07m53s
09527 12 2009 Jan 26 07:59:45 66 112 A -0.2820 0.9282 34.1S 70.2E 73 280 07m54s
09567 13 2027 Feb 06 16:00:48 76 335 A -0.2952 0.9281 31.3S 48.5W 73 282 07m51s
09607 14 2045 Feb 16 23:56:07 89 558 A -0.3125 0.9285 28.3S 166.2W 72 281 07m47s
09648 15 2063 Feb 28 07:43:30 120 781 A -0.3360 0.9293 25.2S 77.7E 70 280 07m41s
09689 16 2081 Mar 10 15:23:31 159 1004 A -0.3653 0.9304 22.4S 36.7W 68 277 07m36s
09731 17 2099 Mar 21 22:54:32 201 1227 A -0.4016 0.9318 20.0S 149.0W 66 275 07m32s
09772 18 2117 Apr 02 06:15:20 244 1450 A -0.4459 0.9333 18.4S 101.1E 63 274 07m30s
09813 19 2135 Apr 13 13:27:05 289 1673 A -0.4973 0.9349 17.6S 6.5W 60 274 07m30s
09855 20 2153 Apr 23 20:29:24 335 1896 A -0.5557 0.9364 17.9S 111.8W 56 279 07m31s
09897 21 2171 May 05 03:23:15 374 2119 A -0.6209 0.9378 19.4S 144.8E 51 289 07m32s
09941 22 2189 May 15 10:08:34 416 2342 A -0.6928 0.9387 22.6S 43.3E 46 309 07m31s
09986 23 2207 May 27 16:47:47 459 2565 A -0.7692 0.9393 27.5S 57.0W 40 347 07m25s
10029 24 2225 Jun 06 23:21:31 505 2788 A -0.8496 0.9392 34.6S 156.5W 32 425 07m10s
10073 25 2243 Jun 18 05:49:56 553 3011 A -0.9342 0.9380 45.6S 104.7E 20 652 06m41s
10118 26 2261 Jun 28 12:16:28 603 3234 P -1.0198 0.9282 66.6S 6.0E 0
10163 27 2279 Jul 09 18:41:13 654 3457 P -1.1065 0.7802 67.7S 100.7W 0
10209 28 2297 Jul 20 01:07:47 708 3680 P -1.1915 0.6346 68.7S 151.6E 0
10254 29 2315 Aug 01 07:34:32 764 3903 P -1.2761 0.4898 69.6S 43.3E 0
10299 30 2333 Aug 11 14:06:48 822 4126 P -1.3558 0.3534 70.5S 66.9W 0
10345 31 2351 Aug 22 20:42:47 882 4349 P -1.4322 0.2228 71.2S 178.6W 0
10390 32 2369 Sep 02 03:25:56 945 4572 Pe -1.5027 0.1025 71.7S 67.4E 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)"
