November 2003 lunar eclipse

A total lunar eclipse occurred at the Moon’s ascending node of orbit on Sunday, November 9, 2003, with an umbral magnitude of 1.0197. A lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon moves into the Earth's shadow, causing the Moon to be darkened. A total lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon's near side entirely passes into the Earth's umbral shadow. Unlike a solar eclipse, which can only be viewed from a relatively small area of the world, a lunar eclipse may be viewed from anywhere on the night side of Earth. A total lunar eclipse can last up to nearly two hours, while a total solar eclipse lasts only a few minutes at any given place, because the Moon's shadow is smaller. Occurring about 1.2 days before apogee (on November 10, 2003, at 7:00 UTC), the Moon's apparent diameter was smaller.

This lunar eclipse is the second of a tetrad, with four total lunar eclipses in series, the others being on May 16, 2003; May 4, 2004; and October 28, 2004.

This was the last of 14 total lunar eclipses of Lunar Saros 126, which started on June 19, 1769 and ended on November 9, 2003.

Visibility

The eclipse was completely visible over eastern North and South America, much of Africa, and Europe, seen rising over western North and South America and the Pacific Ocean and setting over east Africa and west, central, and south Asia.

Gallery

• Grand Rapids, MI, 0:58 UT
• Minneapolis, MN, 1:00 UT
• Oudenaarde, Belgium, 1:08 UT
• Minneapolis, MN, 1:24 UT
• Grand Rapids, MI, 2:28 UT

Eclipse details

Shown below is a table displaying details about this particular lunar eclipse. It describes various parameters pertaining to this eclipse.

Eclipse season

This eclipse is part of an eclipse season, a period, roughly every six months, when eclipses occur. Only two (or occasionally three) eclipse seasons occur each year, and each season lasts about 35 days and repeats just short of six months (173 days) 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.

Related eclipses

Eclipses in 2003

• A total lunar eclipse on May 16.
• An annular solar eclipse on May 31.
• A total lunar eclipse on November 9.
• A total solar eclipse on November 23.

Metonic

• Preceded by: Lunar eclipse of January 21, 2000
• Followed by: Lunar eclipse of August 28, 2007

Tzolkinex

• Preceded by: Lunar eclipse of September 27, 1996
• Followed by: Lunar eclipse of December 21, 2010

Half-Saros

• Preceded by: Solar eclipse of November 3, 1994
• Followed by: Solar eclipse of November 13, 2012

Tritos

• Preceded by: Lunar eclipse of December 9, 1992
• Followed by: Lunar eclipse of October 8, 2014

Lunar Saros 126

• Preceded by: Lunar eclipse of October 28, 1985
• Followed by: Lunar eclipse of November 19, 2021

Inex

• Preceded by: Lunar eclipse of November 29, 1974
• Followed by: Lunar eclipse of October 18, 2032

Triad

• Preceded by: Lunar eclipse of January 8, 1917
• Followed by: Lunar eclipse of September 8, 2090

Lunar eclipses of 2002–2005

This eclipse is a member of a semester series. An eclipse in a semester series of lunar eclipses repeats approximately every 177 days and 4 hours (a semester) at alternating nodes of the Moon's orbit.

The penumbral lunar eclipse on June 24, 2002 occurs in the previous lunar year eclipse set.

Metonic series

The Metonic cycle repeats nearly exactly every 19 years and represents a Saros cycle plus one lunar year. Because it occurs on the same calendar date, the Earth's shadow will be in nearly the same location relative to the background stars.

Saros 126

This eclipse is a part of Saros series 126, repeating every 18 years, 11 days, and containing 70 events. The series started with a penumbral lunar eclipse on July 18, 1228. It contains partial eclipses from March 24, 1625 through June 9, 1751; total eclipses from June 19, 1769 through November 9, 2003; and a second set of partial eclipses from November 19, 2021 through June 5, 2346. The series ends at member 70 as a penumbral eclipse on August 19, 2472.

The longest duration of totality was produced by member 36 at 106 minutes, 27 seconds on August 13, 1859. All eclipses in this series occur at the Moon’s ascending node of orbit.

Eclipses are tabulated in three columns; every third eclipse in the same column is one exeligmos apart, so they all cast shadows over approximately the same parts of the Earth.

Tritos series

This eclipse is a part of a tritos cycle, repeating at alternating nodes every 135 synodic months (≈ 3986.63 days, or 11 years minus 1 month). Their appearance and longitude are irregular due to a lack of synchronization with the anomalistic month (period of perigee), but groupings of 3 tritos cycles (≈ 33 years minus 3 months) come close (≈ 434.044 anomalistic months), so eclipses are similar in these groupings.

Inex series

This eclipse is a part of the long period inex cycle, repeating at alternating nodes, every 358 synodic months (≈ 10,571.95 days, or 29 years minus 20 days). Their appearance and longitude are irregular due to a lack of synchronization with the anomalistic month (period of perigee). However, groupings of 3 inex cycles (≈ 87 years minus 2 months) comes close (≈ 1,151.02 anomalistic months), so eclipses are similar in these groupings.

Half-Saros cycle

A lunar eclipse will be preceded and followed by solar eclipses by 9 years and 5.5 days (a half saros). This lunar eclipse is related to two total solar eclipses of Solar Saros 133.

See also

• List of lunar eclipses and List of 21st-century lunar eclipses
• Solar eclipse of 23 November 2003
• May 2003 lunar eclipse
• May 2004 lunar eclipse
• October 2004 lunar eclipse

External links

• Eclipse Predictions by Fred Espenak, NASA/GSFC