Monday, October 11, 2010

Total Solar Eclipse of 2010 July 11

On Sunday, 2010 July 11, a total eclipse of the Sun is visible from within a narrow corridor that traverses Earth's southern Hemisphere. The path of the Moon's umbral shadow crosses the South Pacific Ocean where it makes no landfall except for Mangaia (Cook Islands) and Easter Island (Isla de Pascua). The path of totality ends just after reaching southern Chile and Argentina. The Moon's penumbral shadow produces a partial eclipse visible from a much larger region covering the South Pacific and southern South America

2010 Total Solar Eclipse Global Map
Click to enlarge.

This web site has been established for the purpose of providing detailed predictions, maps, figures and information about this important event. The material here is adapted from Annular and Total Solar Eclipses of 2010 (NASA/TP-2008-214171). The publication date of this document is 2008 December. It is part of NASA's official eclipse bulletin publication series. Instructions and a form for ordering a hard copy of this publication can be found at: Order Form for NASA Eclipse Bulletins.

A special Web site is also available for the Annular Solar Eclipse of 2010 January 15.


Preliminary Look at the Total Solar Eclipse of 2010 July 11

This data is from a paper presented at: IAU Symposium 233 - Solar Activity and Its Magnetic Origin

See also: Eclipse Weather and Maps (Jay Anderson)


Interactive Map of the Path of Totality

An implementation of Google Map has been created which includes the central path of the 2010 total solar eclipse. This allows the user to select any portion of the path and to zoom in using either map data or Earth satellite data.


General Map of the Eclipse Path

The following map shows the overall regions of visibility of the partial eclipse as well as the path of the total eclipse through the Pacific Ocean, Chile and Argentina. It uses high resolution coastline data from the World Data Base II (WDB). Curves of maximum eclipse are included as well as the outline of the umbral shadow.

The map is available as a high resolution (300 dpi) PDF file.

Figure
Number
Title/Description Map
File
Figure 3.1 Orthographic (Global) Map of 2010 Total Solar Eclipse PDF

From NASA Tech. Pub. Annular and Total Solar Eclipses of 2010 (NASA/TP-2008-214171).


Detailed Maps of the Path of Totality

The following maps show path of the 2010 total eclipse in greater detail. They use high resolution coastline, city and highway data from the Digital Chart of the World (DCW). Each map was chosen to isolate a specific region along the the eclipse path. Curves of maximum eclipse are included as well as the outline of the umbral shadow. Within the umbral path, curves of constant duration have been plotted for totality.

The maps are available as high resolution (300 dpi) PDF files.

Figure
Number
Title/Description Map
File
Figure 3.2 Path of Totality - Mangaia, Cook Islands PDF
Figure 3.3 Path of Totality - Tahiti PDF
Figure 3.4 Path of Totality - Tuamotu Archipelago PDF
Figure 3.5 Path of Totality - Easter Island (Isla de Pascua) PDF
Figure 3.6 Path of Totality - Chile & Argentina PDF

From NASA Tech. Pub. Annular and Total Solar Eclipses of 2010 (NASA/TP-2008-214171).


Additional Figures

The following figures depict the lunar limb profile, and meteorological data along the eclipse path.

Figure
Number
Title/Description Figure
File
Figure 3.7 Lunar Limb Profile for 2010 July 11 at 19:30 UT PDF
Figure 3.8 Typical weather Systems in July PDF
Figure 3.9 Average Cloudiness in July Along the Eclipse Path PDF
Figure 3.10 Annual Precipitation Statistics along the Eclipse Path PDF

From NASA Tech. Pub. Annular and Total Solar Eclipses of 2010 (NASA/TP-2008-214171).


Eclipse Elements, Shadow Contacts and Path of Totality

The following tables give detailed predictions including the Besselian Elements, shadow contacts with Earth, path of the umbral shadow and topocentric data (with path corrections) along the path.

From NASA Tech. Pub. Annular and Total Solar Eclipses of 2010 (NASA/TP-2008-214171).


Coordinate Tables for the Path of Totality

The following tables do not appear in the NASA 2010 Eclipse Bulletin due to page constraints. The tables provide detailed coordinates for the path of the umbral shadow as well as the zones of grazing eclipse. They are listed in a format convenient for plotting on maps.


Local Circumstances

The following table gives the local circumstances of the eclipse from various cities throughout the region of eclipse visibility. All contact times are given in the tables are in Universal Time.

From NASA Tech. Pub. Annular and Total Solar Eclipses of 2010 (NASA/TP-2008-214171).


Additional Tables

The following tables also appear in the Annular and Total Solar Eclipses of 2010 (NASA/TP-2008-214171).


Explanation of Eclipse Maps and Tables

The following links give detailed descriptions and explanations of the eclipse maps and tables.


Reproduction of Eclipse Data

All eclipse calculations are by Fred Espenak, and he assumes full responsibility for their accuracy. Permission is freely granted to reproduce this data when accompanied by an acknowledgment:

"Eclipse Predictions by Fred Espenak, NASA's GSFC"

For more information, see: NASA Copyright Information

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