Solar eclipse of July 2, 2019
Solar eclipse of July 2, 2019 | |
---|---|
classification | |
Type | Total |
area | South Pacific , South America Total: South Pacific , Pitcairn Islands , Chile , Argentina |
Saros cycle | 127 (58 of 82) |
Gamma value | −0.6464 |
Greatest eclipse | |
Duration | 4 minutes 33 seconds |
place | South pacific |
location | 17 ° 23 ′ S , 108 ° 59 ′ W |
time | July 2, 2019 7:22:53 PM UT |
size | 1.0459 |
The total solar eclipse of July 2, 2019 occurred mainly over the southern Pacific Ocean . Towards the end of the eclipse the umbra of the moon swept the South American continent from west to east, the eclipse ended near the Río de la Plata .
The previous total solar eclipse took place on August 21, 2017 , almost two years before. In between there was a relatively long period without a central eclipse, but four partial solar eclipses occurred in which the shadow cone of the moon only grazed the earth .
course
The umbra first hit the earth 2000 kilometers east-northeast of New Zealand . Then the shadow path crossed the Pacific and hardly touched the mainland, the uninhabited atoll Oeno was in the totality zone. The maximum of the eclipse occurred at 19:23 UT ( Universal Time ) in the middle of the Pacific ( 17 ° 23 ′ S , 108 ° 59 ′ W ). On the central line, the maximum duration of 4 minutes and 33 seconds totality was achieved, the umbra was 201 kilometers wide.
Around 20:40 UT the umbra in northern Chile reached the South American mainland. The afternoon sun (4:30 p.m. local time) was only about 14 degrees above the horizon, as July is winter in the southern hemisphere. The duration of totality has then already decreased to 2 minutes and 30 seconds. Then the shadow path crossed the South American continent, reached Argentina and the umbra left the earth a little southwest of Buenos Aires .
In Chile's capital Santiago de Chile , the sun has been eclipsed to 92%. In the capital of Argentina Buenos Aires, which lies just north of the totality zone, the sun was eclipsed to 99.7%, with the sun going down a few minutes after the maximum of the eclipse.
Places in the totality zone
country | place | Duration | Time ( UT ) | comment |
---|---|---|---|---|
Pitcairn Islands | Oeno | 2m 54s | 18:25 | |
Chile | La Serena | 2m 15s | 20:39 | |
Chile | Coquimbo | 2m 1s | 20:39 | |
Argentina | Bella Vista (San Juan) | 2m 30s | 20:41 | |
Argentina | San Juan | 0m 15s | 20:40 | Only north-eastern districts in the totality zone |
Argentina | Río Cuarto | 1m 58s | 20:42 | The sun goes down partially eclipsed |
Argentina | Buenos Aires Ezeiza Airport | 0m 53s | 20:44 | Soon after the end of totality, the sun sets partially eclipsed |
Weather outlook
Overall, the weather outlook in the totality zone of the wintry South American continent at the beginning of July is mixed. In Chile, a cloudiness probability of around 40% is to be expected, in the Andes over 60%. In a narrow band in the slipstream of the Andes on the Argentine side, there are clouding probabilities of a little under 30%, which then gradually increase to over 50% towards the Atlantic.
Observations and research results
Also on the path of the umbra was the La Silla Observatory , which celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2019, a rare event at the site of large telescopes that has only happened twice in recent years, 1961 at the Observatoire de Haute-Provence and 1991 at Mauna-Kea in Hawaii .
There were several research projects, including observations on the sun's corona and a repetition of the experiment to confirm the general theory of relativity a hundred years earlier (Eddington experiment).
Web links
- solar-eclipse.de: The total solar eclipse of July 2nd, 2019
- Astro Corner: 07/02/2019 - Total solar eclipse
- NASA: Total Solar Eclipse of 2019 Jul 2
- NASA: Google Maps and Solar Eclipse Paths: 2001–2020
- NASA: Solar Eclipses of Saros 127
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b The duration of totality and the time of the middle of totality were determined with the interactive map of NASA ( Total Solar Eclipse of 2019 Jul 02 - Google Maps and Solar Eclipse Paths )
- ↑ Jay Anderson: Climatology and weather for celestial events, Total Solar Eclipse - July 2, 2019
- ↑ La Silla's 50th anniversary culminates in a total solar eclipse , ESO press release, July 3, 2019.