Solar Eclipse Prime Page

Partial Solar Eclipse of 1971 Aug 20

Fred Espenak

Key to Solar Eclipse Figure (below)

Introduction


The Partial Solar Eclipse of 1971 Aug 20 is visible from the following geographic regions:

  • Partial Eclipse: east Australia, New Zealand, south Pacific

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 1971 Aug 20 at 22:39:31 TD (22:38:50 UT1). This is 3.9 days before the Moon reaches apogee. During the eclipse, the Sun is in the constellation Leo. The synodic month in which the eclipse takes place has a Brown Lunation Number of 602.

The eclipse belongs to Saros 154 and is number 4 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.

This is a very deep partial eclipse. It has an eclipse magnitude of 0.5080, while Gamma has a value of -1.2659.

The partial solar eclipse of 1971 Aug 20 is preceded two weeks earlier by a total lunar eclipse on 1971 Aug 06.

Another solar eclipse occurs one synodic month before the 1971 Aug 20 eclipse. It is the partial solar eclipse of 1971 Jul 22.

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 41.8 seconds for this eclipse.

The following links provide maps and data for the eclipse.

Eclipse Data: Partial Solar Eclipse of 1971 Aug 20

Eclipse Characteristics
Parameter Value
Eclipse Magnitude 0.50797
Eclipse Obscuration 0.39282
Gamma-1.26591
Conjunction Times
Event Calendar Date and Time Julian Date
Greatest Eclipse 1971 Aug 20 at 22:39:31.5 TD (22:38:49.6 UT1) 2441184.443630
Ecliptic Conjunction 1971 Aug 20 at 22:54:02.4 TD (22:53:20.6 UT1) 2441184.453710
Equatorial Conjunction 1971 Aug 20 at 23:50:24.9 TD (23:49:43.0 UT1) 2441184.492859
Geocentric Coordinates of Sun and Moon
1971 Aug 20 at 22:39:31.5 TD (22:38:49.6 UT1)
Coordinate Sun Moon
Right Ascension09h57m48.0s09h55m45.7s
Declination+12°25'50.7"+11°23'25.4"
Semi-Diameter 15'48.4" 14'56.3"
Eq. Hor. Parallax 08.7" 0°54'49.4"
Geocentric Libration of Moon
Angle Value
l 3.6°
b 1.6°
c 18.4°
Prediction Parameters
Paramater Value
Ephemerides JPL DE405
ΔT 41.8 s
k (penumbra) 0.2725076
k (umbra) 0.2722810
Saros Series 154 ( 4/71)

Explanation of Solar Eclipse Data Tables

Penumbral Shadow Contacts and Extremes: Partial Solar Eclipse of 1971 Aug 20

Contacts of Penumbral Shadow with Earth
Contact Event Contact Time
TD
Time
UT1
Latitude Longitude
First External ContactP120:52:59.220:52:17.427°56.2'S144°30.2'E
Last External ContactP400:25:39.400:24:57.674°06.7'S146°02.2'W
Extreme Northern and Southern Path Limits of Penumbra
Contact Event Contact Time
TD
Time
UT1
Latitude Longitude
North Extreme Path Limit 1N121:22:21.121:21:39.218°53.3'S134°45.9'E
South Extreme Path Limit 1S123:56:16.523:55:34.667°15.9'S119°45.2'W

Explanation of Penumbral Shadow Contacts and Extremes Tables

Polynomial Besselian Elements: Partial Solar Eclipse of 1971 Aug 20

Polynomial Besselian Elements
1971 Aug 20 at 23:00:00.0 TD (=t0)
n x y d l1 l2 μ
0 -0.38979 -1.21715 12.4290 0.56232 0.01608 164.1595
1 0.46393 -0.22286 -0.0132 0.00008 0.00008 15.0036
2 -0.00003 -0.00001 -0.0000 -0.00001 -0.00001 0.0000
3 -0.00001 0.00000 - - - -
Tan ƒ1 0.0046219
Tan ƒ2 0.0045989

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 = 23.000

Explanation of Polynomial Besselian Elements

Eclipse Publications

jpeg jpeg
jpeg jpeg
jpeg

For more visit: AstroPixels Publishing

Links for the Partial Solar Eclipse of 1971 Aug 20

Links to Additional Solar Eclipse Information

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

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 |

Solar Eclipse Publications

Eclipse Publications

jpeg jpeg
jpeg jpeg
jpeg jpeg

For more visit: AstroPixels Publishing

Eclipse Predictions

Predictions for the Partial Solar Eclipse of 1971 Aug 20 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 41.8 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.