April 1995 lunar eclipse
| Partial eclipse | |||||||||||||
 The Moon's hourly motion shown right to left | |||||||||||||
| Date | April 15, 1995 | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gamma | −0.9594 | ||||||||||||
| Magnitude | 0.1114 | ||||||||||||
| Saros cycle | 112 (64 of 72) | ||||||||||||
| Partiality | 73 minutes, 0 seconds | ||||||||||||
| Penumbral | 256 minutes, 17 seconds | ||||||||||||
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A partial lunar eclipse occurred at the Moon’s ascending node of orbit on Saturday, April 15, 1995,[1] with an umbral magnitude of 0.1114. A lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon moves into the Earth's shadow, causing the Moon to be darkened. A partial lunar eclipse occurs when one part of the Moon is in the Earth's umbra, while the other part is in the Earth's penumbra. Unlike a solar eclipse, which can only be viewed from a relatively small area of the world, a lunar eclipse may be viewed from anywhere on the night side of Earth. Occurring about 1.9 days before perigee (on April 17, 1995, at 9:20 UTC), the Moon's apparent diameter was larger.[2]
Visibility
[edit]The eclipse was completely visible over northeast Asia, Australia, and the western and central Pacific Ocean, seen rising over much of Asia and setting over North America and western South America.[3]
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Eclipse details
[edit]Shown below is a table displaying details about this particular solar eclipse. It describes various parameters pertaining to this eclipse.[4]
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| Penumbral Magnitude | 1.08363 |
| Umbral Magnitude | 0.11142 |
| Gamma | −0.95939 |
| Sun Right Ascension | 01h32m54.9s |
| Sun Declination | +09°42'10.2" |
| Sun Semi-Diameter | 15'56.5" |
| Sun Equatorial Horizontal Parallax | 08.8" |
| Moon Right Ascension | 13h31m50.7s |
| Moon Declination | -10°37'41.7" |
| Moon Semi-Diameter | 16'23.9" |
| Moon Equatorial Horizontal Parallax | 1°00'10.8" |
| ΔT | 61.0 s |
Eclipse season
[edit]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.
| April 15 Ascending node (full moon) |
April 29 Descending node (new moon) |
|---|---|
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| Partial lunar eclipse Lunar Saros 112 |
Annular solar eclipse Solar Saros 138 |
Related eclipses
[edit]Eclipses in 1995
[edit]- A partial lunar eclipse on April 15.
- An annular solar eclipse on April 29.
- A penumbral lunar eclipse on October 8.
- A total solar eclipse on October 24.
Metonic
[edit]- Preceded by: Lunar eclipse of June 27, 1991
- Followed by: Lunar eclipse of January 31, 1999
Tzolkinex
[edit]- Preceded by: Lunar eclipse of March 3, 1988
- Followed by: Lunar eclipse of May 26, 2002
Half-Saros
[edit]- Preceded by: Solar eclipse of April 9, 1986
- Followed by: Solar eclipse of April 19, 2004
Tritos
[edit]- Preceded by: Lunar eclipse of May 15, 1984
- Followed by: Lunar eclipse of March 14, 2006
Lunar Saros 112
[edit]- Preceded by: Lunar eclipse of April 4, 1977
- Followed by: Lunar eclipse of April 25, 2013
Inex
[edit]- Preceded by: Lunar eclipse of May 4, 1966
- Followed by: Lunar eclipse of March 25, 2024
Triad
[edit]- Preceded by: Lunar eclipse of June 14, 1908
- Followed by: Lunar eclipse of February 13, 2082
Lunar eclipses of 1995–1998
[edit]This eclipse is a member of a semester series. An eclipse in a semester series of lunar eclipses repeats approximately every 177 days and 4 hours (a semester) at alternating nodes of the Moon's orbit.[5]
The penumbral lunar eclipse on August 8, 1998 occurs in the next lunar year eclipse set.
| Lunar eclipse series sets from 1995 to 1998 | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ascending node | Descending node | |||||||
| Saros | Date Viewing |
Type Chart |
Gamma | Saros | Date Viewing |
Type Chart |
Gamma | |
| 112 | 1995 Apr 15
|
Partial
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−0.9594 | 117 | 1995 Oct 08
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Penumbral
|
1.1179 | |
122
|
1996 Apr 04
|
Total
|
−0.2534 | 127
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1996 Sep 27
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Total
|
0.3426 | |
132
|
1997 Mar 24
|
Partial
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0.4899 | 137 | 1997 Sep 16
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Total
|
−0.3768 | |
| 142 | 1998 Mar 13
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Penumbral
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1.1964 | 147 | 1998 Sep 06
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Penumbral
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−1.1058 | |
Saros 112
[edit]This eclipse is a part of Saros series 112, repeating every 18 years, 11 days, and containing 72 events. The series started with a penumbral lunar eclipse on May 20, 859 AD. It contains partial eclipses from August 3, 985 AD through March 8, 1346; total eclipses from March 18, 1364 through August 27, 1616; and a second set of partial eclipses from September 7, 1634 through April 25, 2013. The series ends at member 72 as a penumbral eclipse on July 12, 2139.
The longest duration of totality was produced by member 36 at 99 minutes, 51 seconds on June 2, 1490. All eclipses in this series occur at the Moon’s ascending node of orbit.[6]
| Greatest | First | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The greatest eclipse of the series occurred on 1490 Jun 02, lasting 99 minutes, 51 seconds.[7] | Penumbral | Partial | Total | Central |
| 859 May 20 |
985 Aug 03 |
1364 Mar 18 |
1436 Apr 30 | |
| Last | ||||
| Central | Total | Partial | Penumbral | |
| 1562 Jul 16 |
1616 Aug 27 |
2013 Apr 25
|
2139 Jul 12 | |
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.
| Series members 54–72 occur between 1801 and 2139: | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 54 | 55 | 56 | |||
| 1814 Dec 26 | 1833 Jan 06 | 1851 Jan 17 | |||
| 57 | 58 | 59 | |||
| 1869 Jan 28 | 1887 Feb 08 | 1905 Feb 19 | |||
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| 60 | 61 | 62 | |||
| 1923 Mar 03 | 1941 Mar 13 | 1959 Mar 24 | |||
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| 63 | 64 | 65 | |||
| 1977 Apr 04 | 1995 Apr 15 | 2013 Apr 25 | |||
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| 66 | 67 | 68 | |||
| 2031 May 07 | 2049 May 17 | 2067 May 28 | |||
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| 69 | 70 | 71 | |||
| 2085 Jun 08 | 2103 Jun 20 | 2121 Jun 30 | |||
| 72 | |||||
| 2139 Jul 12 | |||||
Tritos series
[edit]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 1886 and 2200 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1886 Feb 18 (Saros 102) |
1897 Jan 18 (Saros 103) |
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| 1951 Aug 17 (Saros 108) |
1962 Jul 17 (Saros 109) |
1973 Jun 15 (Saros 110) |
1984 May 15 (Saros 111) | ||||||
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| 1995 Apr 15 (Saros 112) |
2006 Mar 14 (Saros 113) |
2017 Feb 11 (Saros 114) |
2028 Jan 12 (Saros 115) |
2038 Dec 11 (Saros 116) | |||||
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| 2049 Nov 09 (Saros 117) |
2060 Oct 09 (Saros 118) |
2071 Sep 09 (Saros 119) |
2082 Aug 08 (Saros 120) |
2093 Jul 08 (Saros 121) | |||||
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| 2104 Jun 08 (Saros 122) |
2115 May 08 (Saros 123) |
2126 Apr 07 (Saros 124) |
2137 Mar 07 (Saros 125) |
2148 Feb 04 (Saros 126) | |||||
| 2159 Jan 04 (Saros 127) |
2169 Dec 04 (Saros 128) |
2180 Nov 02 (Saros 129) |
2191 Oct 02 (Saros 130) | ||||||
Half-Saros cycle
[edit]A lunar eclipse will be preceded and followed by solar eclipses by 9 years and 5.5 days (a half saros).[8] This lunar eclipse is related to two partial solar eclipses of Solar Saros 119.
| April 9, 1986 | April 19, 2004 |
|---|---|
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See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "April 15, 1995 Partial Lunar Eclipse". timeanddate. Retrieved 9 January 2025.
- ^ "Moon Distances for London, United Kingdom, England". timeanddate. Retrieved 9 January 2025.
- ^ "Partial Lunar Eclipse of 1995 Apr 15" (PDF). NASA. Retrieved 9 January 2025.
- ^ "Partial Lunar Eclipse of 1995 Apr 15". EclipseWise.com. Retrieved 9 January 2025.
- ^ 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.
- ^ "NASA - Catalog of Lunar Eclipses of Saros 112". eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov.
- ^ Listing of Eclipses of series 112
- ^ Mathematical Astronomy Morsels, Jean Meeus, p.110, Chapter 18, The half-saros
External links
[edit]- Saros cycle 112
- 1995 Apr 15 chart Eclipse Predictions by Fred Espenak, NASA/GSFC
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