Solar eclipse of November 3, 1994


A total solar eclipse occurred at the Moon's ascending node of orbit on Thursday, November 3, 1994, with a magnitude of 1.0535. 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 10 hours after perigee, the Moon's apparent diameter was larger.
Totality was visible in Peru, northern Chile, Bolivia, northern Argentina, Paraguay, Brazil and Gough Island of British overseas territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha. The Iguazu Falls, one of the largest waterfalls systems in the world, lay in the path of totality. A partial eclipse was visible for parts of Central America, South America, Antarctica, and Southern Africa.

Observations

Jay Pasachoff led an observation team from Williams College in Massachusetts, observing the total eclipse at a military base near Putre, Chile, in the Atacama Desert. The team took images of the corona and measured its brightness. Teams from Japan and South Korea also conducted observations nearby. The Russian Academy of Sciences sent a team to Criciúma, Brazil, taking images of the corona in polarized light and proposing reconstruction of its ray structure.

Eclipse 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.
EventTime
First Penumbral External Contact1994 November 03 at 11:06:00.2 UTC
First Umbral External Contact1994 November 03 at 12:02:38.7 UTC
First Central Line1994 November 03 at 12:03:41.3 UTC
First Umbral Internal Contact1994 November 03 at 12:04:44.0 UTC
First Penumbral Internal Contact1994 November 03 at 13:09:15.5 UTC
Ecliptic Conjunction1994 November 03 at 13:36:30.1 UTC
Greatest Eclipse1994 November 03 at 13:40:06.0 UTC
Greatest Duration1994 November 03 at 13:42:38.8 UTC
Equatorial Conjunction1994 November 03 at 13:48:07.6 UTC
Last Penumbral Internal Contact1994 November 03 at 14:10:44.2 UTC
Last Umbral Internal Contact1994 November 03 at 15:15:21.7 UTC
Last Central Line1994 November 03 at 15:16:24.9 UTC
Last Umbral External Contact1994 November 03 at 15:17:28.1 UTC
Last Penumbral External Contact1994 November 03 at 16:14:07.1 UTC

ParameterValue
Eclipse Magnitude1.05351
Eclipse Obscuration1.10989
Gamma−0.35216
Sun Right Ascension14h33m55.8s
Sun Declination-15°05'51.1"
Sun Semi-Diameter16'07.4"
Sun Equatorial Horizontal Parallax08.9"
Moon Right Ascension14h33m36.5s
Moon Declination-15°26'53.7"
Moon Semi-Diameter16'43.0"
Moon Equatorial Horizontal Parallax1°01'21.1"
ΔT60.6 s

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.
November 3
Ascending node
November 18
Descending node
Total solar eclipse
Solar Saros 133		Penumbral lunar eclipse
Lunar Saros 145

Related eclipses

Eclipses in 1994

Metonic

Tzolkinex

Half-Saros

Tritos

Solar Saros 133

Inex

Triad