Solar eclipse of February 15, 1961
| Solar eclipse of February 15, 1961 | |
|---|---|
 Map | |
| Type of eclipse | |
| Nature | Total |
| Gamma | 0.883 |
| Magnitude | 1.036 |
| Maximum eclipse | |
| Duration | 165 sec (2 m 45 s) |
| Coordinates | 47°24′N 40°00′E / 47.4°N 40°E |
| Max. width of band | 258 km (160 mi) |
| Times (UTC) | |
| Greatest eclipse | 8:19:48 |
| References | |
| Saros | 120 (58 of 71) |
| Catalog # (SE5000) | 9422 |
A total solar eclipse occurred on February 15, 1961. 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.
Related eclipses
Solar eclipses of 1961-1964
Each member 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.
| Descending node | Ascending node | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saros | Map | Saros | Map | |||
| 120 | February 15, 1961 Total |
125 |  August 11, 1961 Annular | |||
| 130 |  February 5, 1962 Total |
135 |  July 31, 1962 Annular | |||
| 140 |  January 25, 1963 Annular |
145 |  July 20, 1963 Total | |||
| 150 |  January 14, 1964 Partial |
155 |  July 9, 1964 Partial | |||
| Partial solar eclipses of June 10, 1964 and December 4, 1964 belong in the next lunar year set. | ||||||
Saros 120
It is a part of Saros cycle 120, repeating every 18 years, 11 days, containing 71 events. The series started with partial solar eclipse on May 27, 933 AD, and reached an annular eclipse on August 11, 1059. It was a hybrid event for 3 dates: May 8, 1510, through May 29, 1546, and total eclipses from June 8, 1564, through March 30, 2033. The series ends at member 71 as a partial eclipse on July 7, 2195. The longest duration of totality was 2 minutes, 50 seconds on March 9, 1997.[1]
| Series members 55–65 occur between 1901 and 2100 | ||
|---|---|---|
| 55 | 56 | 57 |
 January 14, 1907 |
 January 24, 1925 |
 February 4, 1943 |
| 58 | 59 | 60 |
February 15, 1961 |
 February 26, 1979 |
 March 9, 1997 |
| 61 | 62 | 63 |
 March 20, 2015 |
 March 30, 2033 |
 April 11, 2051 |
| 64 | 65 | |
 April 21, 2069 |
 May 2, 2087 | |
Metonic series
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).
| 21 eclipse events, progressing from north to south between July 11, 1953 and July 11, 2029 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| July 10-11 | April 29-30 | February 15-16 | December 4 | September 21-23 |
| 116 | 118 | 120 | 122 | 124 |
 July 11, 1953 |
 April 30, 1957 |
February 15, 1961 |
 December 4, 1964 |
 September 22, 1968 |
| 126 | 128 | 130 | 132 | 134 |
 July 10, 1972 |
 April 29, 1976 |
 February 16, 1980 |
 December 4, 1983 |
 September 23, 1987 |
| 136 | 138 | 140 | 142 | 144 |
 July 11, 1991 |
 April 29, 1995 |
 February 16, 1999 |
 December 4, 2002 |
 September 22, 2006 |
| 146 | 148 | 150 | 152 | 154 |
 July 11, 2010 |
 April 29, 2014 |
 February 15, 2018 |
 December 4, 2021 |
 September 21, 2025 |
| 156 | ||||
 July 11, 2029 | ||||
See also
Notes
References
- Earth visibility chart and eclipse statistics Eclipse Predictions by Fred Espenak, NASA/GSFC
- Solar eclipse of February 15, 1961 in Russia
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