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An occultation of the Sun by the Moon. 240 solar eclipses occur every century. Solar eclipses take place
during daylight hours and can occur only at new moon. Solar eclipses may be total or
annular. Total solar eclipses can last up to 7.6 minutes, while annular solar eclipses can last up
to 12.5 minutes.
The sequence of eclipses repeats with a period of 223 synodic months, known as the Saros
cycle. This period is 18 years, 11 days, and 8 hours if the 18 years include four leap years (or 18
years, 10 days, and 8 hours if the 18 years include five leap years).
 Annular Eclipse, Bailey's Beads, Eclipse, Lunar Eclipse, Moon, New Moon, Saros Cycle, Sun, Total Eclipse
Espenak, F. Fifty Year Canon of Solar Eclipses, 1986-2035. Cambridge, MA: Sky Publishing, 1987.
Exploratorium. "Solar Eclipses." http://www.exploratorium.edu/eclipse/.
Harrington, P. S. Eclipse! The What, Where, When, Why, and How Guide to Watching Solar and Lunar Eclipses.
New York: Wiley, 1997.
Littman, M. and Wilcox, K. Totality: Eclipses of the Sun, 2nd ed. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press, 1999.
Maunder, M. and Moore, P. The Sun in Eclipse. 1998.
Meeus, J. Elements of Solar Eclipses, 1951-2200. Richmond, VA: William-Bell, 1989.
Schaefer, B. "Solar Eclipses that Changed the World." Sky & Telescope, pp. 36-39, May 1994.
Solar Data Analysis Center. "Solar Eclipse Information at the Solar Data Analysis Center." http://umbra.nascom.nasa.gov/eclipse/.
U. S. Naval Observatory Astronomical Applications Department. "Upcoming Eclipses of the Sun and Moon."
http://aa.usno.navy.mil/data/docs/UpcomingEclipses.html.
 Weisstein, E. W. "Books about Eclipses."
http://www.ericweisstein.com/encyclopedias/books/Eclipses.html.
Zirker, J. B. Total Eclipses of the Sun, expanded ed. Princeton, NP: Princeton University Press, 1995.
© 1996-2007 Eric W. Weisstein
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