Solar Eclipse Prime Page

Total Solar Eclipse of 1979 Feb 26

Fred Espenak

Introduction

The Total Solar Eclipse of 1979 Feb 26 is visible from the following geographic regions:

Partial Eclipse: North & Central America, northwest Europe
Total Eclipse: northwest U.S., central Canada, Greenland

The map to the right depicts the geographic regions of eclipse visibility. Click on the map to enlarge it. For an explanation of the features appearing in the map, see Key to Solar Eclipse Maps.

The instant of greatest eclipse takes place on 1979 Feb 26 at 16:55:06 TD (16:54:16 UT1). This is 0.8 days after the Moon reaches perigee. During the eclipse, the Sun is in the constellation Aquarius. The synodic month in which the eclipse takes place has a Brown Lunation Number of 695.

The eclipse belongs to Saros 120 and is number 59 of 71 eclipses in the series. All eclipses in this series occur at the Moon’s descending node. The Moon moves northward with respect to the node with each succeeding eclipse in the series and gamma increases.

The total solar eclipse of 1979 Feb 26 is followed two weeks later by a partial lunar eclipse on 1979 Mar 13.

These eclipses all take place during a single eclipse season.

The eclipse predictions are given in both Terrestrial Dynamical Time (TD) and Universal Time (UT1). The parameter ΔT is used to convert between these two times (i.e., UT1 = TD - ΔT). ΔT has a value of 49.7 seconds for this eclipse.

The following links provide maps and data for the eclipse.

Orthographic Map: Total Solar Eclipse of 1979 Feb 26 - detailed global map of eclipse visibility (Key to Figure)
Google Map: Total Solar Eclipse of 1979 Feb 26 - interactive map of the eclipse path
Path Table: Total Solar Eclipse of 1979 Feb 26 - coordinates of the central line and path limits
Circumstances Table: Total Solar Eclipse of 1979 Feb 26 - eclipse times for hundreds of cities
Saros 120 Table - data for all eclipses in the Saros series

Additional Tables and Data - for this event

Eclipse Data: Total Solar Eclipse of 1979 Feb 26

Eclipse Characteristics
Parameter	Value
Eclipse Magnitude	1.03907
Eclipse Obscuration	1.07966
Gamma	0.89811

Conjunction Times
Event	Calendar Date and Time	Julian Date
Greatest Eclipse	1979 Feb 26 at 16:55:05.7 TD (16:54:16.0 UT1)	2443931.204351
Ecliptic Conjunction	1979 Feb 26 at 16:46:02.6 TD (16:45:12.9 UT1)	2443931.198066
Equatorial Conjunction	1979 Feb 26 at 17:22:11.4 TD (17:21:21.7 UT1)	2443931.223167

Geocentric Coordinates of Sun and Moon
1979 Feb 26 at 16:55:05.7 TD (16:54:16.0 UT1)
Coordinate	Sun	Moon
Right Ascension	22h36m45.5s	22h35m43.5s
Declination	-08°45'23.7"	-07°52'47.4"
Semi-Diameter	16'09.1"	16'39.8"
Eq. Hor. Parallax	08.9"	1°01'09.4"

Geocentric Libration of Moon
Angle	Value
l	1.6°
b	-1.2°
c	-23.3°

Prediction Parameters
Paramater	Value
Ephemerides	JPL DE405
ΔT	49.7 s
k (penumbra)	0.2725076
k (umbra)	0.2722810
Saros Series	120 (59/71)

Explanation of Solar Eclipse Data Tables

Penumbral Shadow Contacts and Extremes: Total Solar Eclipse of 1979 Feb 26

Contacts of Penumbral Shadow with Earth
Contact Event	Contact	Time TD	Time UT1	Latitude	Longitude
First External Contact	P1	14:46:04.0	14:45:14.3	19°21.6'N	124°56.4'W
Last External Contact	P4	19:03:56.4	19:03:06.7	51°23.1'N	023°37.0'W

Extreme Northern and Southern Path Limits of Penumbra
Contact Event	Contact	Time TD	Time UT1	Latitude	Longitude
North Extreme Path Limit 1	N1	15:22:13.7	15:21:24.0	04°53.8'N	136°20.3'W
South Extreme Path Limit 1	S1	18:27:50.7	18:27:01.0	37°08.5'N	010°11.7'W

Explanation of Penumbral Shadow Contacts and Extremes Tables

Umbral Shadow Contacts and Extremes: Total Solar Eclipse of 1979 Feb 26

Contacts of Umbral Shadow with Earth
Contact Event	Contact	Time TD	Time UT1	Latitude	Longitude
First External Contact	U1	16:08:06.6	16:07:16.8	46°22.2'N	139°15.4'W
First Internal Contact	U2	16:12:03.2	16:11:13.5	48°17.4'N	139°35.4'W
Last Internal Contact	U3	17:37:49.2	17:36:59.5	77°54.3'N	036°53.7'W
Last External Contact	U4	17:41:44.4	17:40:54.6	76°29.4'N	031°48.1'W

Extreme Northern and Southern Path Limits of Umbra
Contact Event	Contact	Time TD	Time UT1	Latitude	Longitude
North Extreme Path Limit 1	N1	16:11:50.5	16:11:00.8	48°23.5'N	139°30.0'W
South Extreme Path Limit 1	S1	16:08:20.6	16:07:30.9	46°15.6'N	139°21.0'W
North Extreme Path Limit 2	N2	17:38:01.9	17:37:12.2	77°58.5'N	037°18.3'W
South Extreme Path Limit 2	S2	17:41:30.6	17:40:40.8	76°24.3'N	031°26.3'W

Explanation of Umbral Shadow Contacts and Extremes Tables

Central Line Extremes and Duration: Total Solar Eclipse of 1979 Feb 26

Extreme Limits of the Central Line
Contact Event	Contact	Time TD	Time UT1	Latitude	Longitude
Extreme Central Line Limit 1	C1	16:10:02.8	16:09:13.1	47°18.3'N	139°25.7'W
Extreme Central Line Limit 2	C2	17:39:48.9	17:38:59.2	77°11.8'N	034°06.8'W

Explanation of Central Line Extremes Table

Greatest Eclipse and Greatest Duration
Event	Time TD	Time UT1	Latitude	Longitude	Sun Altitude	Sun Azimuth	Path Width	Central Duration
Greatest Eclipse	16:55:05.7	16:54:16.0	52°08.4'N	094°27.6'W	25.7°	153.4°	297.8 km	02m48.96s
Greatest Duration	16:54:19.3	16:53:29.6	51°56.8'N	094°53.3'W	25.7°	152.7°	298.6 km	02m48.97s

Explanation of Greatest Eclipse and Greatest Duration

Polynomial Besselian Elements: Total Solar Eclipse of 1979 Feb 26

Polynomial Besselian Elements
1979 Feb 26 at 17:00:00.0 TD (=t0)
n	x	y	d	l1	l2	μ
0	-0.20600	0.87545	-8.7575	0.53790	-0.00822	71.7530
1	0.55703	0.16252	0.0152	0.00004	0.00004	15.0031
2	-0.00001	0.00000	0.0000	-0.00001	-0.00001	0.0000
3	-0.00001	-0.00000	-	-	-	-

Tan ƒ1	0.0047215
Tan ƒ2	0.0046980

At time t1 (decimal hours), each besselian element is evaluated by:

x = x0 + x1*t + x2*t² + x3*t³ (or x = Σ [xn*tⁿ]; n = 0 to 3)

where: t = t1 - t0 (decimal hours) and t0 = 17.000

Explanation of Polynomial Besselian Elements

Eclipse Publications

For more visit: AstroPixels Publishing

Links for the Total Solar Eclipse of 1979 Feb 26

Orthographic Map: Total Solar Eclipse of 1979 Feb 26 - detailed global map of eclipse visibility (Key to Figure)
Google Map: Total Solar Eclipse of 1979 Feb 26 - interactive map of the eclipse path
Path Table: Total Solar Eclipse of 1979 Feb 26 - coordinates of the central line and path limits
Circumstances Table: Total Solar Eclipse of 1979 Feb 26 - eclipse times for hundreds of cities
Saros 120 Table - data for all eclipses in the Saros series
Total Solar Eclipse of 1979 Feb 26 - Google search for links to this eclipse

Links to Additional Solar Eclipse Information

Home - home page of EclipseWise with predictions for both solar and lunar eclipses

Solar Eclipses - primary page for solar eclipse predictions
Solar Eclipse Links - detailed directory of links

Solar Eclipse Basics - the fundamentals about solar eclipses
Periodicity of Solar Eclipses - eclipse seasons, Saros and Inex
Solar Eclipses and the Saros - details on the Saros cycle
Solar Eclipse Predictions and the Mean Lunar Radius

• Decade Tables of Solar Eclipses:
| 1901 - 1910 | 1911 - 1919 | 1921 - 1930 | 1931 - 1940 | 1941 - 1950 |
| 1951 - 1960 | 1961 - 1970 | 1971 - 1980 | 1981 - 1990 | 1991 - 2000 |
| 2001 - 2010 | 2011 - 2020 | 2021 - 2030 | 2031 - 2040 | 2041 - 2050 |
| 2051 - 2060 | 2061 - 2070 | 2071 - 2080 | 2081 - 2090 | 2091 - 2100 |

Six Millennium Catalog of Solar Eclipses - covers the years -2999 to +3000 (3000 BCE to 3000 CE)
Global Map Animations of Solar Eclipses: 2001 - 2100 - animated maps of every solar eclipse of the 21st Century
Saros Catalog of Solar Eclipses - covers Saros series -30 through 190
World Atlas of Solar Eclipse Maps - index page

Solar Eclipse Search Engine - search for solar eclipses from -1999 to +3000
Javascript Solar Eclipse Explorer - calculate all solar eclipses visible from a city

MrEclipse.com - Eclipse resources and tips on photography
MrEclipse: Solar Eclipses for Beginners - a primer on solar eclipse basics
How to Photograph a Solar Eclipse - instructions for imaging an eclipse of the Sun
MrEclipse Photo Index - an index of solar eclipse photographs

Solar Eclipse Publications

Eclipse Almanac: 2021 to 2030 - overview of all solar and lunar eclipses for the decade
21st Century Canon of Solar Eclipses - coveres every solar eclipse from 2001 through 2100
Thousand Year Canon of Solar Eclipses 1501 to 2500 - basic details about every solar eclipse for 1000 years
Five Millennium Canon of Solar Eclipses: -1999 to +3000 - the ultimate reference with maps and diagrams
Five Millennium Catalog of Solar Eclipses: -1999 to +3000 - the ultimate reference containing comprehensive tables
Atlas of Central Solar Eclipses in the USA - 2,000 years of solar eclipses through North America

Road Atlas of the Annular Solar Eclipse of 2023 October 14 - detailed maps of the annular eclipse path
Road Atlas of the Total Solar Eclipse of 2024 April 08 - detailed maps of the total eclipse path

Eclipse Publications

For more visit: AstroPixels Publishing

Eclipse Predictions

Predictions for the Total Solar Eclipse of 1979 Feb 26 were generated using the JPL DE405 solar and lunar ephemerides. The lunar coordinates were calculated with respect to the Moon's Center of Mass. The predictions are given in both Terrestrial Dynamical Time (TD) and Universal Time (UT1). The parameter ΔT is used to convert between these two times (i.e., UT1 = TD - ΔT). ΔT has a value of 49.7 seconds for this eclipse.

Acknowledgments

Some of the content on this website is based on the books 21st Century Canon of Solar Eclipses and Thousand Year Canon of Solar Eclipses 1501 to 2500. All eclipse calculations are by Fred Espenak, and he assumes full responsibility for their accuracy.

Permission is granted to reproduce eclipse data when accompanied by a link to this page and an acknowledgment:

"Eclipse Predictions by Fred Espenak, www.EclipseWise.com"

The use of diagrams and maps is permitted provided that they are NOT altered (except for re-sizing) and the embedded credit line is NOT removed or concealed.