Solar eclipse of September 12, 1950

A total solar eclipse occurred at the Moon's descending node of orbit between Monday, September 11, 1950 and Tuesday, September 12, 1950,[1] with a magnitude of 1.0182. A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun, thereby totally or partly obscuring the image of the Sun for a viewer on Earth. A total solar eclipse occurs when the Moon's apparent diameter is larger than the Sun's, blocking all direct sunlight, turning day into darkness. Totality occurs in a narrow path across Earth's surface, with the partial solar eclipse visible over a surrounding region thousands of kilometres wide. Occurring about 3.2 days before perigee (on September 15, 1950, at 8:20 UTC), the Moon's apparent diameter was larger.[2]

Solar eclipse of September 12, 1950
Map
Type of eclipse
NatureTotal
Gamma0.8903
Magnitude1.0182
Maximum eclipse
Duration74 s (1 min 14 s)
Coordinates54°48′N 172°18′E / 54.8°N 172.3°E / 54.8; 172.3
Max. width of band134 km (83 mi)
Times (UTC)
Greatest eclipse3:38:47
References
Saros124 (51 of 73)
Catalog # (SE5000)9399

Totality was visible from eastern Soviet Union (today's Russia) on September 12 local time and the whole Semichi Islands in Alaska on September 11 local time. A partial eclipse was visible for parts of Northeast Asia, Alaska, Hawaii, and northwest Canada.

Eclipse details

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Shown below are two tables displaying details about this particular solar eclipse. The first table outlines times at which the moon's penumbra or umbra attains the specific parameter, and the second table describes various other parameters pertaining to this eclipse.[3]

September 12, 1950 Solar Eclipse Times
Event Time (UTC)
First Penumbral External Contact 1950 September 12 at 01:23:43.1 UTC
Equatorial Conjunction 1950 September 12 at 02:46:30.5 UTC
First Umbral External Contact 1950 September 12 at 02:50:01.6 UTC
First Central Line 1950 September 12 at 02:50:40.3 UTC
First Umbral Internal Contact 1950 September 12 at 02:51:19.4 UTC
Ecliptic Conjunction 1950 September 12 at 03:29:21.7 UTC
Greatest Eclipse 1950 September 12 at 03:38:46.9 UTC
Greatest Duration 1950 September 12 at 03:40:16.3 UTC
Last Umbral Internal Contact 1950 September 12 at 04:26:44.1 UTC
Last Central Line 1950 September 12 at 04:27:25.6 UTC
Last Umbral External Contact 1950 September 12 at 04:28:06.7 UTC
Last Penumbral External Contact 1950 September 12 at 05:54:06.6 UTC
September 12, 1950 Solar Eclipse Parameters
Parameter Value
Eclipse Magnitude 1.01818
Eclipse Obscuration 1.03668
Gamma 0.89030
Sun Right Ascension 11h18m51.6s
Sun Declination +04°25'42.1"
Sun Semi-Diameter 15'53.5"
Sun Equatorial Horizontal Parallax 08.7"
Moon Right Ascension 11h20m32.5s
Moon Declination +05°11'38.3"
Moon Semi-Diameter 16'04.0"
Moon Equatorial Horizontal Parallax 0°58'57.9"
ΔT 29.4 s

Eclipse season

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This eclipse is part of an eclipse season, a period, roughly every six months, when eclipses occur. Only two (or occasionally three) eclipse seasons occur each year, and each season lasts about 35 days and repeats just short of six months (173 days) later; thus two full eclipse seasons always occur each year. Either two or three eclipses happen each eclipse season. In the sequence below, each eclipse is separated by a fortnight.

Eclipse season of September 1950
September 12
Descending node (new moon)
September 26
Ascending node (full moon)
   
Total solar eclipse
Solar Saros 124
Total lunar eclipse
Lunar Saros 136
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Eclipses in 1950

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Metonic

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Tzolkinex

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Half-Saros

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Tritos

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Solar Saros 124

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Inex

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Triad

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Solar eclipses of 1950–1953

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This eclipse is a member of a semester series. An eclipse in a semester series of solar eclipses repeats approximately every 177 days and 4 hours (a semester) at alternating nodes of the Moon's orbit.[4]

The partial solar eclipse on July 11, 1953 occurs in the next lunar year eclipse set.

Solar eclipse series sets from 1950 to 1953
Ascending node   Descending node
Saros Map Gamma Saros Map Gamma
119 March 18, 1950
 
Annular (non-central)
0.9988 124 September 12, 1950
 
Total
0.8903
129 March 7, 1951
 
Annular
−0.242 134 September 1, 1951
 
Annular
0.1557
139 February 25, 1952
 
Total
0.4697 144 August 20, 1952
 
Annular
−0.6102
149 February 14, 1953
 
Partial
1.1331 154 August 9, 1953
 
Partial
−1.344

Saros 124

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This eclipse is a part of Saros series 124, repeating every 18 years, 11 days, and containing 73 events. The series started with a partial solar eclipse on March 6, 1049. It contains total eclipses from June 12, 1211 through September 22, 1968, and a hybrid eclipse on October 3, 1986. There are no annular eclipses in this set. The series ends at member 73 as a partial eclipse on May 11, 2347. Its eclipses are tabulated in three columns; every third eclipse in the same column is one exeligmos apart, so they all cast shadows over approximately the same parts of the Earth.

The longest duration of totality was produced by member 39 at 5 minutes, 46 seconds on May 3, 1734. All eclipses in this series occur at the Moon’s descending node of orbit.[5]

Series members 43–64 occur between 1801 and 2200:
43 44 45
 
June 16, 1806
 
June 26, 1824
 
July 8, 1842
46 47 48
 
July 18, 1860
 
July 29, 1878
 
August 9, 1896
49 50 51
 
August 21, 1914
 
August 31, 1932
 
September 12, 1950
52 53 54
 
September 22, 1968
 
October 3, 1986
 
October 14, 2004
55 56 57
 
October 25, 2022
 
November 4, 2040
 
November 16, 2058
58 59 60
 
November 26, 2076
 
December 7, 2094
 
December 19, 2112
61 62 63
 
December 30, 2130
 
January 9, 2149
 
January 21, 2167
64
 
January 31, 2185

Metonic series

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The metonic series repeats eclipses every 19 years (6939.69 days), lasting about 5 cycles. Eclipses occur in nearly the same calendar date. In addition, the octon subseries repeats 1/5 of that or every 3.8 years (1387.94 days). All eclipses in this table occur at the Moon's descending node.

22 eclipse events between September 12, 1931 and July 1, 2011
September 11–12 June 30–July 1 April 17–19 February 4–5 November 22–23
114 116 118 120 122
 
September 12, 1931
 
June 30, 1935
 
April 19, 1939
 
February 4, 1943
 
November 23, 1946
124 126 128 130 132
 
September 12, 1950
 
June 30, 1954
 
April 19, 1958
 
February 5, 1962
 
November 23, 1965
134 136 138 140 142
 
September 11, 1969
 
June 30, 1973
 
April 18, 1977
 
February 4, 1981
 
November 22, 1984
144 146 148 150 152
 
September 11, 1988
 
June 30, 1992
 
April 17, 1996
 
February 5, 2000
 
November 23, 2003
154 156
 
September 11, 2007
 
July 1, 2011

Tritos series

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This eclipse is a part of a tritos cycle, repeating at alternating nodes every 135 synodic months (≈ 3986.63 days, or 11 years minus 1 month). Their appearance and longitude are irregular due to a lack of synchronization with the anomalistic month (period of perigee), but groupings of 3 tritos cycles (≈ 33 years minus 3 months) come close (≈ 434.044 anomalistic months), so eclipses are similar in these groupings.

Series members between 1801 and 2200
 
October 19, 1808
(Saros 111)
 
September 19, 1819
(Saros 112)
 
August 18, 1830
(Saros 113)
 
July 18, 1841
(Saros 114)
 
June 17, 1852
(Saros 115)
 
May 17, 1863
(Saros 116)
 
April 16, 1874
(Saros 117)
 
March 16, 1885
(Saros 118)
 
February 13, 1896
(Saros 119)
 
January 14, 1907
(Saros 120)
 
December 14, 1917
(Saros 121)
 
November 12, 1928
(Saros 122)
 
October 12, 1939
(Saros 123)
 
September 12, 1950
(Saros 124)
 
August 11, 1961
(Saros 125)
 
July 10, 1972
(Saros 126)
 
June 11, 1983
(Saros 127)
 
May 10, 1994
(Saros 128)
 
April 8, 2005
(Saros 129)
 
March 9, 2016
(Saros 130)
 
February 6, 2027
(Saros 131)
 
January 5, 2038
(Saros 132)
 
December 5, 2048
(Saros 133)
 
November 5, 2059
(Saros 134)
 
October 4, 2070
(Saros 135)
 
September 3, 2081
(Saros 136)
 
August 3, 2092
(Saros 137)
 
July 4, 2103
(Saros 138)
 
June 3, 2114
(Saros 139)
 
May 3, 2125
(Saros 140)
 
April 1, 2136
(Saros 141)
 
March 2, 2147
(Saros 142)
 
January 30, 2158
(Saros 143)
 
December 29, 2168
(Saros 144)
 
November 28, 2179
(Saros 145)
 
October 29, 2190
(Saros 146)

Inex series

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This eclipse is a part of the long period inex cycle, repeating at alternating nodes, every 358 synodic months (≈ 10,571.95 days, or 29 years minus 20 days). Their appearance and longitude are irregular due to a lack of synchronization with the anomalistic month (period of perigee). However, groupings of 3 inex cycles (≈ 87 years minus 2 months) comes close (≈ 1,151.02 anomalistic months), so eclipses are similar in these groupings.

Series members between 1801 and 2200
 
December 21, 1805
(Saros 119)
 
November 30, 1834
(Saros 120)
 
November 11, 1863
(Saros 121)
 
October 20, 1892
(Saros 122)
 
October 1, 1921
(Saros 123)
 
September 12, 1950
(Saros 124)
 
August 22, 1979
(Saros 125)
 
August 1, 2008
(Saros 126)
 
July 13, 2037
(Saros 127)
 
June 22, 2066
(Saros 128)
 
June 2, 2095
(Saros 129)
 
May 14, 2124
(Saros 130)
 
April 23, 2153
(Saros 131)
 
April 3, 2182
(Saros 132)

Notes

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  1. ^ "September 12, 1950 Total Solar Eclipse". timeanddate. Retrieved 4 August 2024.
  2. ^ "Moon Distances for London, United Kingdom, England". timeanddate. Retrieved 4 August 2024.
  3. ^ "Total Solar Eclipse of 1950 Sep 12". EclipseWise.com. Retrieved 4 August 2024.
  4. ^ van Gent, R.H. "Solar- and Lunar-Eclipse Predictions from Antiquity to the Present". A Catalogue of Eclipse Cycles. Utrecht University. Retrieved 6 October 2018.
  5. ^ "NASA - Catalog of Solar Eclipses of Saros 124". eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov.

References

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