A Total Solar Eclipse of Saros 145
Explanation:
A darkened sky holds bright planet Venus, the New Moon in
silhouette, and the shimmering
corona of the Sun
in this image of a total solar eclipse.
A composite of simultaneous telephoto and wide angle frames it was taken
in the path of totality 18 years ago,
August 11,
1999, near Kastamonu, Turkey.
That particular solar eclipse is a member of Saros 145.
Known
historically
from observations of the Moon's orbit,
the
Saros cycle predicts when the Sun, Earth, and Moon will return to
the same geometry for a solar (or lunar) eclipse.
The Saros has a period of 18 years, 11 and 1/3 days.
Eclipses separated by one Saros period belong to the same numbered
Saros series and are very similar.
But the path of totality for consecutive solar eclipses
in the same Saros shifts across the Earth because the planet
rotates for an additional 8 hours during the cycle's
fractional day.
So the next solar eclipse
of
Saros 145 will also be a total eclipse,
and the narrow path of totality will track coast to coast across the
United States on
August 21, 2017.
Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell
(USRA)
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings,
and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris.
Specific
rights apply.
A service of:
LHEA at
NASA /
GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
