Solar eclipse of September 11, 1988
An annular solar eclipse occurred at the Moon's descending node of orbit on Sunday, September 11, 1988, with a magnitude of 0.9377. 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. An annular solar eclipse occurs when the Moon's apparent diameter is smaller than the Sun's, blocking most of the Sun's light and causing the Sun to look like an annulus. An annular eclipse appears as a partial eclipse over a region of the Earth thousands of kilometres wide. Occurring only 12.5 hours after apogee, the Moon's apparent diameter was smaller.
Annularity was visible in southeastern Somalia, the Indian Ocean and Macquarie Island of Australia. A partial eclipse was visible for parts of East Africa, the Middle East, South Asia, Southeast Asia, Australia, and New Zealand.
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.| Event | Time |
| First Penumbral External Contact | 1988 September 11 at 01:46:36.7 UTC |
| First Umbral External Contact | 1988 September 11 at 02:56:30.0 UTC |
| First Central Line | 1988 September 11 at 02:59:28.7 UTC |
| First Umbral Internal Contact | 1988 September 11 at 03:02:28.6 UTC |
| Greatest Duration | 1988 September 11 at 04:35:51.5 UTC |
| Greatest Eclipse | 1988 September 11 at 04:44:28.7 UTC |
| Ecliptic Conjunction | 1988 September 11 at 04:50:04.6 UTC |
| Equatorial Conjunction | 1988 September 11 at 05:15:01.8 UTC |
| Last Umbral Internal Contact | 1988 September 11 at 06:26:09.7 UTC |
| Last Central Line | 1988 September 11 at 06:29:09.8 UTC |
| Last Umbral External Contact | 1988 September 11 at 06:32:08.7 UTC |
| Last Penumbral External Contact | 1988 September 11 at 07:42:08.2 UTC |
| Parameter | Value |
| Eclipse Magnitude | 0.93768 |
| Eclipse Obscuration | 0.87924 |
| Gamma | −0.46811 |
| Sun Right Ascension | 11h18m19.4s |
| Sun Declination | +04°29'02.7" |
| Sun Semi-Diameter | 15'53.3" |
| Sun Equatorial Horizontal Parallax | 08.7" |
| Moon Right Ascension | 11h17m30.7s |
| Moon Declination | +04°06'57.9" |
| Moon Semi-Diameter | 14'42.2" |
| Moon Equatorial Horizontal Parallax | 0°53'57.6" |
| ΔT | 56.1 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.| August 27 Ascending node | September 11 Descending node |
| Partial lunar eclipse Lunar Saros 118 | Annular solar eclipse Solar Saros 144 |
Related eclipses
Eclipses in 1988
- A penumbral lunar eclipse on March 3.
- A total solar eclipse on March 18.
- A partial lunar eclipse on August 27.
- '''An annular solar eclipse on September 11.'''
Metonic
- Preceded by: Solar eclipse of November 22, 1984
- Followed by: Solar eclipse of June 30, 1992
Tzolkinex
- Preceded by: Solar eclipse of July 31, 1981
- Followed by: Solar eclipse of October 24, 1995
Half-Saros
- Preceded by: Lunar eclipse of September 6, 1979
- Followed by: Lunar eclipse of September 16, 1997
Tritos
- Preceded by: Solar eclipse of October 12, 1977
- Followed by: Solar eclipse of August 11, 1999
Solar Saros 144
- Preceded by: Solar eclipse of August 31, 1970
- Followed by: Solar eclipse of September 22, 2006
Inex
- Preceded by: Solar eclipse of October 2, 1959
- Followed by: Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017
Triad
- Preceded by: Solar eclipse of November 11, 1901
- Followed by: Solar eclipse of July 13, 2075