Saros 56

Catalog of Solar Eclipses of Saros 56

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 56

The table below lists the concise characteristics of every solar eclipse belonging to Saros 56 . 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 56
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
1-34 -1172-Jul-1720:09:50 28438 995 -39226 Pb t- -1.5511 0.0220 64S 31W 0 - -
2-33 -1154-Jul-2902:52:43 28096 953 -39003 P t- -1.4857 0.1348 63S 143W 0 - -
3-32 -1136-Aug-0809:43:47 27756 911 -38780 P t- -1.4265 0.2364 63S 104E 0 - -
4-31 -1118-Aug-1916:43:54 27418 870 -38557 P t- -1.3741 0.3256 62S 12W 0 - -
5-30 -1100-Aug-2923:51:47 27082 830 -38334 P t- -1.3275 0.4045 61S 129W 0 - -
6-29 -1082-Sep-1007:10:21 26748 790 -38111 P t- -1.2893 0.4687 61S 111E 0 - -
7-28 -1064-Sep-2014:37:31 26417 751 -37888 P t- -1.2578 0.5213 61S 11W 0 - -
8-27 -1046-Oct-0122:14:39 26087 714 -37665 P t- -1.2338 0.5612 61S 135W 0 - -
9-26 -1028-Oct-1205:58:18 25759 676 -37442 P t- -1.2148 0.5926 61S 99E 0 - -
10-25 -1010-Oct-2313:50:38 25434 640 -37219 P t- -1.2024 0.6130 61S 29W 0 - -
11-24 -0992-Nov-0221:47:15 25110 619 -36996 P t- -1.1930 0.6285 61S 158W 0 - -
12-23 -0974-Nov-1405:48:28 24789 612 -36773 P t- -1.1871 0.6382 62S 71E 0 - -
13-22 -0956-Nov-2413:50:53 24470 605 -36550 P t- -1.1817 0.6471 63S 60W 0 - -
14-21 -0938-Dec-0521:54:33 24152 598 -36327 P t- -1.1770 0.6550 63S 169E 0 - -
15-20 -0920-Dec-1605:55:39 23837 591 -36104 P t- -1.1698 0.6673 64S 38E 0 - -
16-19 -0902-Dec-2713:53:44 23524 584 -35881 P t- -1.1597 0.6846 65S 93W 0 - -
17-18 -0883-Jan-0621:46:29 23213 578 -35658 P t- -1.1449 0.7100 66S 137E 0 - -
18-17 -0865-Jan-1805:34:00 22904 571 -35435 P t- -1.1256 0.7430 68S 8E 0 - -
19-16 -0847-Jan-2813:12:41 22597 564 -35212 P t- -1.0985 0.7899 69S 119W 0 - -
20-15 -0829-Feb-0820:44:32 22292 557 -34989 P t- -1.0652 0.8478 70S 114E 0 - -
21-14 -0811-Feb-1904:07:23 21989 550 -34766 P t- -1.0240 0.9199 70S 10W 0 - -
22-13 -0793-Mar-0211:23:47 21689 543 -34543 A t- -0.9767 0.9399 75S 172W 12 110604m06s
23-12 -0775-Mar-1218:30:15 21390 536 -34320 A t- -0.9205 0.9479 67S 39E 23 49404m01s
24-11 -0757-Mar-2401:31:28 21093 530 -34097 A t- -0.8590 0.9550 57S 83W 30 31903m50s
25-10 -0739-Apr-0308:24:53 20799 523 -33874 A p- -0.7899 0.9617 47S 163E 38 22403m35s
26 -9 -0721-Apr-1415:14:51 20506 516 -33651 A p- -0.7169 0.9681 37S 52E 44 16303m15s
27 -8 -0703-Apr-2421:59:08 20216 509 -33428 A p- -0.6381 0.9739 28S 55W 50 12002m51s
28 -7 -0685-May-0604:43:04 19928 502 -33205 A p- -0.5577 0.9793 19S 161W 56 8802m23s
29 -6 -0667-May-1611:24:51 19641 495 -32982 A p- -0.4741 0.9841 11S 94E 62 6401m54s
30 -5 -0649-May-2718:07:48 19357 488 -32759 A p- -0.3904 0.9884 3S 10W 67 4401m25s
31 -4 -0631-Jun-0700:52:22 19075 480 -32536 A p- -0.3068 0.9920 4N 114W 72 3000m58s
32 -3 -0613-Jun-1807:40:51 18795 473 -32313 A n- -0.2253 0.9951 10N 141E 77 1800m35s
33 -2 -0595-Jun-2814:34:21 18517 466 -32090 A nn -0.1469 0.9974 15N 37E 82 900m18s
34 -1 -0577-Jul-0921:33:19 18243 459 -31867 A nn -0.0719 0.9993 19N 68W 86 200m04s
35 0 -0559-Jul-2004:40:35 17968 453 -31644 H nn -0.0028 1.0006 22N 175W 90 200m04s
36 1 -0541-Jul-3111:55:49 17697 446 -31421 H nn 0.0609 1.0015 24N 77E 86 500m09s
37 2 -0523-Aug-1019:20:31 17428 439 -31198 H nn 0.1174 1.0020 24N 34W 83 700m12s
38 3 -0505-Aug-2202:54:37 17159 432 -30975 Hm nn 0.1671 1.0023 23N 147W 80 800m13s
39 4 -0487-Sep-0110:39:31 16858 426 -30752 H nn 0.2088 1.0023 22N 96E 78 800m13s
40 5 -0469-Sep-1218:34:11 16546 419 -30529 H -n 0.2434 1.0023 19N 23W 76 800m13s
Catalog of Solar Eclipses of Saros 56
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 6 -0451-Sep-2302:38:19 16234 412 -30306 H -n 0.2711 1.0024 16N 145W 74 900m13s
42 7 -0433-Oct-0410:51:58 15945 406 -30083 H -n 0.2918 1.0026 13N 90E 73 900m15s
43 8 -0415-Oct-1419:14:34 15657 399 -29860 H -n 0.3055 1.0031 9N 38W 72 1100m17s
44 9 -0397-Oct-2603:44:05 15372 393 -29637 H -n 0.3145 1.0040 6N 167W 72 1400m23s
45 10 -0379-Nov-0512:19:34 15103 387 -29414 H -n 0.3192 1.0052 2N 63E 71 1900m31s
46 11 -0361-Nov-1620:59:19 14834 380 -29191 H -n 0.3211 1.0071 0S 69W 71 2600m42s
47 12 -0343-Nov-2705:42:27 14573 374 -28968 H -n 0.3208 1.0094 3S 159E 71 3400m57s
48 13 -0325-Dec-0814:25:21 14322 368 -28745 H -n 0.3210 1.0123 4S 26E 71 4501m16s
49 14 -0307-Dec-1823:08:33 14071 362 -28522 H -n 0.3216 1.0156 5S 106W 71 5701m38s
50 15 -0289-Dec-3007:48:11 13829 355 -28299 T -n 0.3256 1.0196 5S 123E 71 7102m04s
51 16 -0270-Jan-0916:25:14 13592 349 -28076 T -n 0.3322 1.0240 3S 7W 71 8602m30s
52 17 -0252-Jan-2100:55:23 13354 343 -27853 T -n 0.3451 1.0287 1S 136W 70 10402m57s
53 18 -0234-Jan-3109:21:18 13128 337 -27630 T -n 0.3621 1.0337 2N 95E 69 12203m24s
54 19 -0216-Feb-1117:39:01 12903 332 -27407 T -n 0.3862 1.0389 7N 31W 67 14103m48s
55 20 -0198-Feb-2201:50:19 12680 326 -27184 T -n 0.4164 1.0441 12N 157W 65 16104m10s
56 21 -0180-Mar-0409:53:02 12469 320 -26961 T -p 0.4544 1.0492 18N 79E 63 18204m27s
57 22 -0162-Mar-1517:49:52 12258 314 -26738 T -p 0.4978 1.0540 25N 43W 60 20504m40s
58 23 -0144-Mar-2601:39:15 12050 308 -26515 T -p 0.5480 1.0584 32N 164W 57 22904m47s
59 24 -0126-Apr-0609:22:18 11849 303 -26292 T -p 0.6039 1.0623 40N 76E 53 25504m48s
60 25 -0108-Apr-1616:59:28 11649 297 -26069 T -p 0.6653 1.0654 49N 43W 48 28604m43s
61 26 -0090-Apr-2800:32:29 11452 292 -25846 T -p 0.7307 1.0677 58N 161W 43 32404m32s
62 27 -0072-May-0808:01:32 11259 286 -25623 T -p 0.7996 1.0690 67N 80E 37 37604m16s
63 28 -0054-May-1915:28:01 11066 281 -25400 T -p 0.8707 1.0691 77N 45W 29 46303m55s
64 29 -0036-May-2922:53:24 10878 275 -25177 T -t 0.9431 1.0674 85N 123E 19 68203m29s
65 30 -0018-Jun-1006:19:15 10692 270 -24954 P -t 1.0153 0.9957 67N 50W 0 - -
66 31 0000-Jun-2013:45:14 10506 265 -24731 P -t 1.0874 0.8554 66N 173W 0 - -
67 32 0018-Jul-0121:14:23 10329 260 -24508 P -t 1.1570 0.7200 65N 64E 0 - -
68 33 0036-Jul-1204:46:16 10151 254 -24285 P -t 1.2244 0.5892 64N 60W 0 - -
69 34 0054-Jul-2312:24:11 9975 249 -24062 P -t 1.2869 0.4680 63N 176E 0 - -
70 35 0072-Aug-0220:05:55 9801 244 -23839 P -t 1.3462 0.3536 63N 50E 0 - -
71 36 0090-Aug-1403:55:54 9628 239 -23616 P -t 1.3991 0.2524 62N 77W 0 - -
72 37 0108-Aug-2411:51:55 9455 234 -23393 P -t 1.4471 0.1612 62N 154E 0 - -
73 38 0126-Sep-0419:56:36 9283 229 -23170 P -t 1.4881 0.0842 61N 23E 0 - -
74 39 0144-Sep-1504:07:53 9111 225 -22947 Pe -t 1.5237 0.0180 61N 109W 0 - -

Statistics for Solar Eclipses of Saros 56

Solar eclipses of Saros 56 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 -1172 Jul 17. The series ended with a partial eclipse in the northern hemisphere on 0144 Sep 15. The total duration of Saros series 56 is 1316.20 years.

Summary of Saros 56
First Eclipse -1172 Jul 17
Last Eclipse 0144 Sep 15
Series Duration 1316.20 Years
No. of Eclipses 74
Sequence 21P 13A 15H 15T 10P

Saros 56 is composed of 74 solar eclipses as follows:

Solar Eclipses of Saros 56
Eclipse Type Symbol Number Percent
All Eclipses - 74100.0%
PartialP 31 41.9%
AnnularA 13 17.6%
TotalT 15 20.3%
HybridH 15 20.3%

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 56 appears in the following table.

Umbral Eclipses of Saros 56
Classification Number Percent
All Umbral Eclipses 43100.0%
Central (two limits) 43100.0%
Central (one limit) 0 0.0%
Non-Central (one limit) 0 0.0%

The 74 eclipses in Saros 56 occur in the following order : 21P 13A 15H 15T 10P

The longest and shortest central eclipses of Saros 56 as well as largest and smallest partial eclipses appear below.

Extreme Durations and Magnitudes of Solar Eclipses of Saros 56
Extrema Type Date Duration Magnitude
Longest Annular Solar Eclipse -0793 Mar 0204m06s -
Shortest Annular Solar Eclipse -0577 Jul 0900m04s -
Longest Total Solar Eclipse -0126 Apr 0604m48s -
Shortest Total Solar Eclipse -0289 Dec 3002m04s -
Longest Hybrid Solar Eclipse -0307 Dec 1801m38s -
Shortest Hybrid Solar Eclipse -0559 Jul 2000m04s -
Largest Partial Solar Eclipse -0018 Jun 10 - 0.99571
Smallest Partial Solar Eclipse 0144 Sep 15 - 0.01797

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.