Solar eclipse of March 20, 2034
A total solar eclipse will occur at the Moon's descending node of orbit on Monday, March 20, 2034, with a magnitude of 1.0458. 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 1.3 days before perigee, the Moon's apparent diameter will be larger.
Totality will be visible from the extreme southern tip of Benin, Nigeria, northern Cameroon, Chad, Sudan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, northern India, and western China. A partial eclipse will be visible for parts of eastern Brazil, Africa, Europe, the Middle East, Central Asia, and South Asia. Coincidentally, The eclipse passes through many Islamic countries around the date of Islamic New Year, and also passes through Iran only a few hours before the vernal equinox, marking the beginning of the Persian New Year. Since the Islamic lunar year is 11–12 days shorter than the solar year that the Iranian calendar observes, the Islamic New Year rotates through the seasons of the year, while the Persian one is on nearly fixed date on Gregorian calendar. It is an extremely rare case that the two new years meet.
Images
Animated pathEclipse details
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.| Event | Time |
| First Penumbral External Contact | 2034 March 20 at 07:41:11.9 UTC |
| First Umbral External Contact | 2034 March 20 at 08:38:09.7 UTC |
| First Central Line | 2034 March 20 at 08:38:58.0 UTC |
| First Umbral Internal Contact | 2034 March 20 at 08:39:46.4 UTC |
| First Penumbral Internal Contact | 2034 March 20 at 09:41:21.7 UTC |
| Ecliptic Conjunction | 2034 March 20 at 10:15:45.2 UTC |
| Greatest Eclipse | 2034 March 20 at 10:18:45.2 UTC |
| Greatest Duration | 2034 March 20 at 10:19:41.8 UTC |
| Equatorial Conjunction | 2034 March 20 at 10:28:24.9 UTC |
| Last Penumbral Internal Contact | 2034 March 20 at 10:55:53.9 UTC |
| Last Umbral Internal Contact | 2034 March 20 at 11:57:34.8 UTC |
| Last Central Line | 2034 March 20 at 11:58:24.9 UTC |
| Last Umbral External Contact | 2034 March 20 at 11:59:14.9 UTC |
| Last Penumbral External Contact | 2034 March 20 at 12:56:10.5 UTC |
| Parameter | Value |
| Eclipse Magnitude | 1.04582 |
| Eclipse Obscuration | 1.09374 |
| Gamma | 0.28942 |
| Sun Right Ascension | 23h59m32.7s |
| Sun Declination | -00°02'58.0" |
| Sun Semi-Diameter | 16'03.7" |
| Sun Equatorial Horizontal Parallax | 08.8" |
| Moon Right Ascension | 23h59m11.3s |
| Moon Declination | +00°13'42.6" |
| Moon Semi-Diameter | 16'31.6" |
| Moon Equatorial Horizontal Parallax | 1°00'39.3" |
| ΔT | 75.7 s |
Characteristics
Eclipse path intersections
The path of the March 30, 2034 eclipse will cross the path of another solar eclipse less than 7 years earlier, the August 2027 solar eclipse, at a location on the southeastern coast of Egypt. This is similar to the intersection in the paths of the August 2017 and April 2024 total solar eclipses in the United States, over southern Illinois, and in Turkey during the August 1999 and March 2006 solar eclipses; the intersections within these pairs of total eclipses also occurred about 7 years apart. This phenomenon is considered to be unusual, since the average interval for any given spot on Earth to observe a total solar eclipse is about once every 375 years. The intersection patterns are caused by the dynamics of the Saros cycle.Eclipse season
This eclipse is part of an eclipse season, a period, roughly every six months, when eclipses occur. Only two eclipse seasons occur each year, and each season lasts about 35 days and repeats just short of six months 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.| March 20 Descending node | April 3 Ascending node |
| Total solar eclipse Solar Saros 130 | Penumbral lunar eclipse Lunar Saros 142 |
Related eclipses
Eclipses in 2034
A total solar eclipse on March 20.- A penumbral lunar eclipse on April 3.
- An annular solar eclipse on September 12.
- A partial lunar eclipse on September 28.
Metonic
- Preceded by: Solar eclipse of June 1, 2030
- Followed by: Solar eclipse of January 5, 2038
Tzolkinex
- Preceded by: Solar eclipse of February 6, 2027
- Followed by: Solar eclipse of April 30, 2041
Half-Saros
- Preceded by: Lunar eclipse of March 14, 2025
- Followed by: Lunar eclipse of March 25, 2043
Tritos
- Preceded by: Solar eclipse of April 20, 2023
- Followed by: Solar eclipse of February 16, 2045
Solar Saros 130
- Preceded by: Solar eclipse of March 9, 2016
- Followed by: Solar eclipse of March 30, 2052
Inex
- Preceded by: Solar eclipse of April 8, 2005
- Followed by: Solar eclipse of February 28, 2063
Triad
- Preceded by: Solar eclipse of May 20, 1947
- Followed by: Solar eclipse of January 19, 2121