Saros 8

Catalog of Solar Eclipses of Saros 8

Fred Espenak

Introduction

A solar eclipse occurs whenever the Moon's shadow passes across Earth's surface. At least two solar eclipses and as many as five occur every year.

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 with the Moon at nearly the same distance from Earth and the same time of year due to a harmonic in three cycles of the Moon's orbit. 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 eclipses before ending with a group of partial eclipses near the opposite pole. For more information, see Periodicity of Solar Eclipses.

Catalog of Solar Eclipses of Saros 8

The table below lists the concise characteristics of every solar eclipse belonging to Saros 8 . The date and time of each eclipse is given for the instant of Greatest Eclipse. For eclipses between the years -1999 to 3000, the calendar date links to a web page containing additional details and a map showing the geographic region of eclipse visibility for that eclipse. A description of each parameter in the catalog table can be found in Key to Saros Catalog of Solar Eclipses.

Catalog of Solar Eclipses of Saros 8
Seq Num Rel Num Calendar Date TD of Greatest Eclipse ΔT

s
ΔT Sigma
s
Luna Num Ecl Type QLE Gamma Ecl Mag Lat

°
Long

°
Sun Alt
°
Path Width km Central Dur
1-36 -2579-Mar-0720:24:24 61524 6514 -56633 Pb t- -1.5074 0.0720 70S 94W 0 - -
2-35 -2561-Mar-1903:36:20 61021 6417 -56410 P t- -1.4419 0.1881 71S 143E 0 - -
3-34 -2543-Mar-2910:42:44 60519 6320 -56187 P t- -1.3707 0.3164 71S 21E 0 - -
4-33 -2525-Apr-0917:46:44 60020 6225 -55964 P t- -1.2961 0.4522 72S 101W 0 - -
5-32 -2507-Apr-2000:48:13 59522 6129 -55741 P t- -1.2183 0.5955 72S 137E 0 - -
6-31 -2489-May-0107:48:33 59027 6035 -55518 P t- -1.1382 0.7442 71S 16E 0 - -
7-30 -2471-May-1114:49:54 58534 5941 -55295 P t- -1.0577 0.8949 71S 105W 0 - -
8-29 -2453-May-2221:53:15 58043 5848 -55072 T t- -0.9775 1.0220 61S 119E 11 37501m35s
9-28 -2435-Jun-0205:00:43 57554 5755 -54849 T t- -0.8998 1.0287 45S 5W 25 22302m24s
10-27 -2417-Jun-1312:11:47 57067 5663 -54626 T t- -0.8239 1.0330 35S 121W 34 19703m00s
11-26 -2399-Jun-2319:30:19 56582 5572 -54403 T p- -0.7532 1.0360 27S 123E 41 18403m27s
12-25 -2381-Jul-0502:54:49 56099 5482 -54180 T p- -0.6863 1.0380 20S 7E 47 17503m46s
13-24 -2363-Jul-1510:27:57 55618 5392 -53957 T p- -0.6257 1.0393 15S 111W 51 16903m55s
14-23 -2345-Jul-2618:08:49 55139 5303 -53734 T p- -0.5709 1.0399 11S 131E 55 16203m57s
15-22 -2327-Aug-0602:00:16 54663 5215 -53511 T p- -0.5240 1.0399 9S 10E 58 15603m53s
16-21 -2309-Aug-1710:00:31 54188 5127 -53288 T p- -0.4838 1.0396 8S 113W 61 15103m45s
17-20 -2291-Aug-2718:10:13 53716 5040 -53065 T p- -0.4508 1.0391 8S 122E 63 14603m35s
18-19 -2273-Sep-0802:29:11 53245 4953 -52842 T p- -0.4250 1.0384 9S 5W 65 14103m25s
19-18 -2255-Sep-1810:57:16 52777 4868 -52619 T n- -0.4065 1.0378 12S 135W 66 13803m16s
20-17 -2237-Sep-2919:32:24 52310 4783 -52396 T n- -0.3934 1.0373 15S 93E 67 13503m08s
21-16 -2219-Oct-1004:14:07 51846 4698 -52173 T n- -0.3855 1.0371 19S 40W 67 13403m02s
22-15 -2201-Oct-2113:00:44 51384 4615 -51950 T n- -0.3813 1.0372 23S 174W 67 13403m00s
23-14 -2183-Oct-3121:51:46 50924 4532 -51727 T n- -0.3806 1.0377 28S 51E 67 13602m59s
24-13 -2165-Nov-1206:43:20 50466 4449 -51504 T n- -0.3804 1.0388 32S 84W 67 14003m02s
25-12 -2147-Nov-2215:36:38 50010 4368 -51281 T n- -0.3813 1.0403 37S 142E 67 14603m08s
26-11 -2129-Dec-0400:27:09 49556 4287 -51058 T n- -0.3800 1.0424 40S 9E 67 15303m16s
27-10 -2111-Dec-1409:15:51 49104 4207 -50835 T n- -0.3767 1.0449 43S 123W 68 16203m28s
28 -9 -2093-Dec-2517:58:02 48654 4127 -50612 T n- -0.3681 1.0479 45S 108E 68 17103m43s
29 -8 -2074-Jan-0502:36:33 48206 4048 -50389 T n- -0.3562 1.0512 45S 20W 69 18204m00s
30 -7 -2056-Jan-1611:06:49 47761 3970 -50166 T n- -0.3377 1.0548 44S 145W 70 19204m19s
31 -6 -2038-Jan-2619:30:24 47317 3893 -49943 T n- -0.3132 1.0585 41S 90E 72 20304m42s
32 -5 -2020-Feb-0703:44:46 46876 3816 -49720 T n- -0.2811 1.0621 37S 34W 73 21305m05s
33 -4 -2002-Feb-1711:52:01 46436 3740 -49497 T n- -0.2429 1.0657 32S 156W 76 22205m29s
34 -3 -1984-Feb-2819:50:36 45999 3664 -49274 T n- -0.1977 1.0690 25S 82E 78 22905m53s
35 -2 -1966-Mar-1103:41:14 45563 3590 -49051 T n- -0.1458 1.0719 19S 39W 82 23606m14s
36 -1 -1948-Mar-2111:24:34 45130 3515 -48828 T nn -0.0879 1.0742 11S 158W 85 24206m31s
37 0 -1930-Apr-0119:01:39 44699 3442 -48605 Tm nn -0.0248 1.0759 4S 84E 89 24606m43s
38 1 -1912-Apr-1202:32:50 44270 3369 -48382 T nn 0.0430 1.0769 4N 33W 88 24906m48s
39 2 -1894-Apr-2309:59:33 43843 3298 -48159 T nn 0.1143 1.0770 12N 149W 83 25106m45s
40 3 -1876-May-0317:22:36 43418 3226 -47936 T -n 0.1884 1.0762 21N 96E 79 25106m34s
Catalog of Solar Eclipses of Saros 8
Seq Num Rel Num Calendar Date TD of Greatest Eclipse ΔT

s
ΔT Sigma
s
Luna Num Ecl Type QLE Gamma Ecl Mag Lat

°
Long

°
Sun Alt
°
Path Width km Central Dur
41 4 -1858-May-1500:44:08 42995 3156 -47713 T -n 0.2635 1.0746 29N 18W 75 25006m15s
42 5 -1840-May-2508:03:38 42574 3086 -47490 T -n 0.3399 1.0720 37N 131W 70 24905m50s
43 6 -1822-Jun-0515:24:41 42156 3017 -47267 T -p 0.4146 1.0685 44N 117E 65 24605m20s
44 7 -1804-Jun-1522:46:45 41739 2948 -47044 T -p 0.4882 1.0643 51N 7E 61 24204m47s
45 8 -1786-Jun-2706:13:08 41324 2880 -46821 T -p 0.5576 1.0592 57N 103W 56 23504m13s
46 9 -1768-Jul-0713:42:05 40912 2813 -46598 T -p 0.6242 1.0535 63N 150E 51 22703m39s
47 10 -1750-Jul-1821:17:40 40501 2747 -46375 T -p 0.6848 1.0472 66N 45E 46 21603m07s
48 11 -1732-Jul-2904:58:06 40093 2681 -46152 T -p 0.7409 1.0404 67N 60W 42 20202m36s
49 12 -1714-Aug-0912:46:05 39687 2616 -45929 T -p 0.7900 1.0335 67N 167W 38 18402m07s
50 13 -1696-Aug-1920:40:22 39282 2552 -45706 T -p 0.8332 1.0263 65N 82E 33 16101m39s
51 14 -1678-Aug-3104:43:09 38880 2488 -45483 T -p 0.8687 1.0193 63N 35W 29 13201m13s
52 15 -1660-Sep-1012:53:05 38480 2425 -45260 T -t 0.8977 1.0123 60N 157W 26 9500m47s
53 16 -1642-Sep-2121:09:34 38082 2363 -45037 H -t 0.9208 1.0057 58N 78E 23 5000m22s
54 17 -1624-Oct-0205:33:05 37686 2302 -44814 A -t 0.9373 0.9995 56N 51W 20 500m02s
55 18 -1606-Oct-1314:02:00 37292 2241 -44591 A -t 0.9486 0.9940 55N 177E 18 6500m25s
56 19 -1588-Oct-2322:35:46 36900 2181 -44368 A -t 0.9557 0.9892 53N 43E 17 12900m47s
57 20 -1570-Nov-0407:11:23 36510 2121 -44145 A -t 0.9605 0.9850 52N 93W 16 19001m08s
58 21 -1552-Nov-1415:49:24 36122 2063 -43922 A -t 0.9628 0.9815 51N 131E 15 24301m27s
59 22 -1534-Nov-2600:26:39 35737 2005 -43699 A -t 0.9651 0.9786 51N 6W 15 29301m44s
60 23 -1516-Dec-0609:01:49 35353 1947 -43476 A -t 0.9684 0.9763 51N 142W 14 34601m59s
61 24 -1498-Dec-1717:32:46 34972 1891 -43253 A -t 0.9745 0.9742 53N 83E 12 42502m11s
62 25 -1480-Dec-2801:58:35 34592 1835 -43030 A -t 0.9841 0.9722 56N 50W 9 60402m20s
63 26 -1461-Jan-0810:16:48 34215 1780 -42807 A+ -t 0.9992 0.9810 66N 179E 0 - -
64 27 -1443-Jan-1818:26:26 33840 1726 -42584 P -t 1.0204 0.9430 67N 44E 0 - -
65 28 -1425-Jan-3002:26:47 33466 1672 -42361 P -t 1.0484 0.8933 68N 89W 0 - -
66 29 -1407-Feb-0910:17:29 33095 1619 -42138 P -t 1.0829 0.8319 69N 140E 0 - -
67 30 -1389-Feb-2017:56:18 32726 1567 -41915 P -t 1.1264 0.7547 70N 11E 0 - -
68 31 -1371-Mar-0301:25:23 32359 1515 -41692 P -t 1.1767 0.6655 71N 116W 0 - -
69 32 -1353-Mar-1408:43:13 31994 1465 -41469 P -t 1.2352 0.5619 71N 120E 0 - -
70 33 -1335-Mar-2415:52:51 31631 1415 -41246 P -t 1.2989 0.4490 72N 3W 0 - -
71 34 -1317-Apr-0422:51:02 31270 1365 -41023 P -t 1.3706 0.3221 72N 123W 0 - -
72 35 -1299-Apr-1505:43:28 30912 1317 -40800 P -t 1.4457 0.1896 72N 118E 0 - -
73 36 -1281-Apr-2612:27:22 30555 1269 -40577 Pe -t 1.5266 0.0474 71N 2E 0 - -

Statistics for Solar Eclipses of Saros 8

Solar eclipses of Saros 8 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 -2579 Mar 07. The series ended with a partial eclipse in the northern hemisphere on -1281 Apr 26. The total duration of Saros series 8 is 1298.17 years.

Summary of Saros 8
First Eclipse -2579 Mar 07
Last Eclipse -1281 Apr 26
Series Duration 1298.17 Years
No. of Eclipses 73
Sequence 7P 45T 1H 10A 10P

Saros 8 is composed of 73 solar eclipses as follows:

Solar Eclipses of Saros 8
Eclipse Type Symbol Number Percent
All Eclipses - 73100.0%
PartialP 17 23.3%
AnnularA 10 13.7%
TotalT 45 61.6%
HybridH 1 1.4%

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 8 appears in the following table.

Umbral Eclipses of Saros 8
Classification Number Percent
All Umbral Eclipses 56100.0%
Central (two limits) 55 98.2%
Central (one limit) 0 0.0%
Non-Central (one limit) 1 1.8%

The 73 eclipses in Saros 8 occur in the following order : 7P 45T 1H 10A 10P

The longest and shortest central eclipses of Saros 8 as well as largest and smallest partial eclipses appear below.

Extreme Durations and Magnitudes of Solar Eclipses of Saros 8
Extrema Type Date Duration Magnitude
Longest Annular Solar Eclipse -1480 Dec 2802m20s -
Shortest Annular Solar Eclipse -1624 Oct 0200m02s -
Longest Total Solar Eclipse -1912 Apr 1206m48s -
Shortest Total Solar Eclipse -1660 Sep 1000m47s -
Longest Hybrid Solar Eclipse -1642 Sep 2100m22s -
Shortest Hybrid Solar Eclipse -1642 Sep 2100m22s -
Largest Partial Solar Eclipse -1443 Jan 18 - 0.94296
Smallest Partial Solar Eclipse -1281 Apr 26 - 0.04739

Eclipse Publications

by Fred Espenak

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Calendar

The Gregorian calendar (also called the Western calendar) is internationally the most widely used civil calendar. It is named for Pope Gregory XIII, who introduced it in 1582. On this website, the Gregorian calendar is used for all calendar 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..

Eclipse Predictions

The eclipse predictions presented here were generated using the JPL DE406 solar and lunar ephemerides. The lunar coordinates have been calculated with respect to the Moon's Center of Mass.

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 -2999 to +3000. The uncertainty in ΔT over this period can be estimated from scatter in the measurements.

Acknowledgments

Some of the content on this web site is based on the books Five Millennium Canon of Solar Eclipses: -1999 to +3000 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 covered.