March 1988 lunar eclipse

A penumbral lunar eclipse took place on Thursday, March 3, 1988, the first of two lunar eclipses in 1988, the second being on August 27, 1988.[1] Earlier sources compute this as a 0.3% partial eclipse lasting under 14 minutes, and newest calculations list it as a penumbral eclipse that never enters the umbral shadow. In a rare total penumbral eclipse, the entire Moon was partially shaded by the Earth (though none of it was in complete shadow), and the shading across the Moon should have been quite visible at maximum eclipse. The penumbral phase lasted for 4 hours, 53 minutes and 50.6 seconds in all, though for most of it, the eclipse was extremely difficult or impossible to see. The Moon was 2.2 days after apogee (Apogee on Tuesday, March 1, 1988), making it 6.1% smaller than average.[2]

March 1988 lunar eclipse
Penumbral eclipse
Date3 March 1988
Gamma0.98855
Magnitude1.09076
Saros cycle113 (62 of 71)
Penumbral293 minutes, 50.6 seconds
Contacts (UTC)
P113:45:51.0
Greatest16:12:45.7
P418:39:41.6

This was a relatively rare total penumbral lunar eclipse with the moon passing entirely within the penumbral shadow without entering the darker umbral shadow.

The tables below contain detailed predictions and additional information on the Penumbral Lunar Eclipse of 3 March 1988.

Penumbral Magnitude: 1.09076

Umbral Magnitude: -0.00163

Gamma: 0.98855

Saros Series: 113th (62 of 71)

Date: 3 March 1988

Greatest Eclipse: 03 Mar 1988 16:12:45.7 UTC (16:13:41.5 TD)

Ecliptic Opposition: 03 Mar 1988 16:01:03.9 UTC (16:01:59.8 TD)

Equatorial Opposition: 03 Mar 1988 15:09:41.3 UTC (15:10:37.2 TD)

CoordinateSunMoon
Right Ascension22.9711
Declination-6.67.3
Diameter (arcseconds)1935.61772.0
Equatorial Horizontal Parallax (arcseconds)8.93251.6

Visibility

The total penumbral lunar eclipse was visible over Europe, Africa, Asia, Australia, northwestern North America, seen rising over the 30th meridian east and setting over the 150th meridian west on the Equator.

Relations to other lunar eclipses

Eclipses of 1988

Saros series

This eclipse is part of Saros cycle series 113.

Lunar year series
Lunar eclipse series sets from 1988–1991
Descending node   Ascending node
Saros Date Type
Viewing		 Gamma Saros Date
Viewing		 Type
Chart		 Gamma
113 1988 Mar 03
 Penumbral
 0.98855 118 1988 Aug 27
 Partial
 −0.86816
123 1989 Feb 20
 Total
0.29347 128 1989 Aug 17
 Total
 −0.14905
133 1990 Feb 09
 Total
 −0.41481 138 1990 Aug 06
 Partial
 0.63741
143 1991 Jan 30
 Penumbral
 −1.07522 148 1991 Jul 26
 Penumbral
 1.43698
Last set 1987 Apr 14 Last set 1987 Oct 07
Next set 1991 Dec 21 Next set 1991 Jun 27

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.

  1. 1988 Mar 03.675 – Partial (113)
  2. 2007 Mar 03.972 – Total (123)
  3. 2026 Mar 03.481 – Total (133)
  4. 2045 Mar 03.320 – Penumbral (143)
  1. 1988 Aug 27.461 – partial (118)
  2. 2007 Aug 28.442 – total (128)
  3. 2026 Aug 28.175 – partial (138)
  4. 2045 Aug 27.578 – penumbral (148)

Half-Saros cycle

A lunar eclipse will be preceded and followed by solar eclipses by 9 years and 5.5 days (a half saros).[3] This lunar eclipse is related to two total solar eclipses of Solar Saros 120.

February 26, 1979 March 9, 1997

See also

Notes
  1. Hermit Eclipse: Saros cycle 113
  2. Total Penumbral Lunar Eclipses, Jean Meeus, June 1980
  3. Mathematical Astronomy Morsels, Jean Meeus, p.110, Chapter 18, The half-saros


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