Solar eclipse of May 6, 1883

Solar eclipse of May 6, 1883
An artist's depiction of the total solar eclipse, observed from Caroline Atoll, Caroline Islands.
Map
Type of eclipse
Nature	Total
Gamma	-0.425
Magnitude	1.0634
Maximum eclipse
Duration	358 sec (5 m 58 s)
Coordinates	8°06′S 144°36′W / 8.1°S 144.6°W
Max. width of band	229 km (142 mi)
Times (UTC)
Greatest eclipse	21:53:49
References
Saros	136 (30 of 71)
Catalog # (SE5000)	9241

A total solar eclipse occurred on May 6, 1883. 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. The path of totality fell across the southern Pacific Ocean with no major landfall. Partiality was visible from far eastern Australia at sunrise, and New Zealand, as well as western South America and southern Mexico near sunset. This eclipse is a member of Solar Saros 136, and its maximum duration was 5 minutes and 58 seconds.

Observations

An expedition of American astronomers traveled from Peru to Caroline Island aboard the USS Hartford to observe the total solar eclipse. A French expedition also observed the eclipse from Caroline, and the United States Navy mapped the atoll.^[1] Johann Palisa, a member of the expedition, discovered an asteroid later that year which he named Carolina "in remembrance of his visit to [the] island."^[2]

Related eclipses

Saros 136

Solar Saros 136, repeating every 18 years, 11 days, contains 71 events. The series started with partial solar eclipse on Jun 14, 1360, and reached a first annular eclipse on September 8, 1504. It was a hybrid event from November 22, 1612, through January 17, 1703, and total eclipses from January 27, 1721 through May 13, 2496. The series ends at member 71 as a partial eclipse on July 30, 2622, with the entire series lasting 1262 years. The longest eclipse occurred on June 20, 1955, with a maximum duration of totality at 7 minutes, 8 seconds.^[3]

Series members 29–43 occur between 1865 and 2117:  29 30 31 April 25, 1865 May 6, 1883 May 18, 1901 32 33 34 May 29, 1919 Jun 8, 1937 Jun 20, 1955 35 36 37 Jun 30, 1973 Jul 11, 1991 Jul 22, 2009 38 39 40 Aug 2, 2027 Aug 12, 2045 Aug. 24, 2063 41 42 43 Sep. 3, 2081 Sep. 14, 2099 Sep. 26, 2117

Notes

1. Bryan, E.H. (1942). American Polynesia and the Hawaiian Chain. Honolulu: Tongg Publishing Company.
2. Schmadel, L.D. (2000). Dictionary of Minor Planet Names (4th ed.). Berlin: Springer-Verlag Telos. ISBN 3-540-66292-8.
3. SEsaros136 at NASA.gov

References

• NASA graphic
  • Googlemap
  • NASA Besselian elements
• The Total Solar Eclipse of 16th April, 1893. Report on Results Obtained with the Slit Spectroscopes, by E. H. Hills, 1894, The Royal Society.
• Scientific American: The Solar Eclipse Of May 6, 1883, Professor C. S. Hastings, of the Johns Hopkins University, also includes many interesting details in his account of the trip
• The total solar eclipse of May 6, 1883, Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, Vol. 44, p. 180
• Some of the Meteorological Results of the Total Solar Eclipse of May 6, 1883, Nature 31, 601-601 (30 April 1885)