Solar eclipse of June 20, 1955

Solar eclipse of June 20, 1955
Map
Type of eclipse
Nature	Total
Gamma	−0.1528
Magnitude	1.0776
Maximum eclipse
Duration	428 s (7 min 8 s)
Coordinates	14°48′N117°00′E / 14.8°N 117°E / 14.8; 117
Max. width of band	254 km (158 mi)
Times (UTC)
Greatest eclipse	4:10:42
References
Saros	136 (34 of 71)
Catalog # (SE5000)	9410

A total solar eclipse occurred on June 20, 1955. 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. With a maximum duration of 7 minutes 7.74 seconds, this is the longest solar eclipse of saros series 136, as well as the longest total solar eclipse since the 11th century, and until the 22nd century, because greatest eclipse occurred near the Equator. ^[1] Totality beginning over the Indian Ocean, British Seychelles (today's Seychelles) and Maldives, crossing Ceylon (name changed to Sri Lanka later) including the capital city Colombo, Andaman Islands, Burma, Thailand including the capital city Bangkok, Cambodia, Laos, South Vietnam (now belonging to Vietnam), Paracel Islands and Scarborough Shoal (near the greatest eclipse), moving across the Philippines including the capital city Manila, Kayangel Atoll in the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands (now belonging to Palau), Nukumanu Islands in the Territory of Papua New Guinea (today's Papua New Guinea), towards northern Ontong Java Atoll in British Solomon Islands (today's Solomon Islands) ending over Southwestern Pacific Ocean. It was the second central solar eclipse visible from Bangkok from 1948 to 1958, where it is rare for a large city to witness 4 central solar eclipses in just 9.945 years.

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Observations

The Tokyo Astronomical Observatory (now incorporated into the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan) of the University of Tokyo sent an expedition to Ceylon, but observation failed due to bad weather conditions. The Hydrographic Office of Japan (now Hydrographic and Oceanographic Department  [ ja ] of Japan Coast Guard) sent a team to the western coast of Bình Thuận  [ vi ], Bình Sơn district, Quảng Ngãi province, South Vietnam. The whole process was not affected by any clouds or fog. The team said that totality of this eclipse was particularly dark compared with previous total solar eclipses observed, and the long duration of totality was also one of the reasons. The team took many images of solar corona successfully ^[13] . A small team from the United States observed the total eclipse from Thailand. Some members of the Thai royal family also saw the eclipse from Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya province, north of the capital city Bangkok. In addition, Radio Thailand also broadcast a special program on the total solar eclipse nationally, which was the first such broadcast in Thailand ^[14] .

Related eclipses

Solar eclipses of 1953–1956

This eclipse is a member of a semester series. An eclipse in a semester series of solar eclipses repeats approximately every 177 days and 4 hours (a semester) at alternating nodes of the Moon's orbit. ^[15]

Note: Partial solar eclipse of February 14, 1953 and August 9, 1953 belong to the last lunar year set.

Solar eclipse series sets from 1953 to 1956
Descending node				Ascending node
Saros	Map	Gamma		Saros	Map	Gamma
116	1953 July 11 Partial	1.43882		121	1954 January 5 Annular	-0.92960
126	1954 June 30 Total	0.61345		131	1954 December 25 Annular	-0.25762
136	1955 June 20 Total	-0.15278		141	1955 December 14 Annular	0.42658
146	1956 June 8 Total	-0.89341		151	1956 December 2 Partial	1.09229

Saros 136

Solar Saros 136, repeating every 18 years, 11 days, contains 71 events. The series started with partial solar eclipse on June 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, 7.74 seconds. All eclipses in this series occurs at the Moon's descending node. ^[16]

Series members 29–43 occur between 1865 and 2117
29	30	31
Apr 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

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.

Inex series members between 1901 and 2100:
July 9, 1926 (Saros 135)	June 20, 1955 (Saros 136)	May 30, 1984 (Saros 137)
May 10, 2013 (Saros 138)	April 20, 2042 (Saros 139)	March 31, 2071 (Saros 140)
March 10, 2100 (Saros 141)

Metonic series

The metonic series repeats eclipses every 19 years (6939.69 days), lasting about 5 cycles. Eclipses occur in nearly the same calendar date. In addition, the octon subseries repeats 1/5 of that or every 3.8 years (1387.94 days).

22 eclipse events, progressing from north to south between April 8, 1902 and August 31, 1989:
April 7–8	January 24–25	November 12	August 31-September 1	June 19–20
108			114	116
April 8, 1902			August 31, 1913	June 19, 1917
118	120	122	124	126
April 8, 1921	January 24, 1925	November 12, 1928	August 31, 1932	June 19, 1936
128	130	132	134	136
April 7, 1940	January 25, 1944	November 12, 1947	September 1, 1951	June 20, 1955
138	140	142	144	146
April 8, 1959	January 25, 1963	November 12, 1966	August 31, 1970	June 20, 1974
148	150	152	154
April 7, 1978	January 25, 1982	November 12, 1985	August 31, 1989

Notes

1. Fred Espenak. "Catalog of Solar Eclipses: 1001 to 1100". NASA.
2. "U.S. to Observe Eclipse of Sun April 8, 2024". Idaho State Journal. Pocatello, Idaho. 1955-06-21. p. 3. Retrieved 2023-10-17– via Newspapers.com.
3. "Longest Eclipse In 1238 Years Lasts For Seven Minutes And Blacks Out An Area Of 1276000 Square Miles". The Lexington Herald. Lexington, Kentucky. 1955-06-21. p. 1. Retrieved 2023-10-17– via Newspapers.com.
4. "Didn't See Eclipse? Catch The One In 2024". The World. Coos Bay, Oregon. 1955-06-21. p. 11. Retrieved 2023-10-17– via Newspapers.com.
5. "Long Eclipse Seen In South China Sea Area". Troy Daily News. Troy, Ohio. 1955-06-20. p. 10. Retrieved 2023-10-18– via Newspapers.com.
6. "Seven Minute Long Eclipse Darkens South China Seas". News-Pilot. San Pedro, California. 1955-06-20. p. 3. Retrieved 2023-10-18– via Newspapers.com.
7. "CLOUDS BLACK OUT ECLIPSE IN CEYLON". Coventry Evening Telegraph. Coventry, West Midlands, England. 1955-06-20. p. 14. Retrieved 2023-10-18– via Newspapers.com.
8. "Clouds black out eclipse". Hull Daily Mail. Hull, Humberside, England. 1955-06-20. p. 5. Retrieved 2023-10-18– via Newspapers.com.
9. "In tears as cloud hides the eclipse". Birmingham Evening Mail. Birmingham, West Midlands, England. 1955-06-20. p. 9. Retrieved 2023-10-18– via Newspapers.com.
10. "'Night' Fliers: Eclipse". Des Moines Tribune. Des Moines, Iowa. 1955-06-20. p. 3. Retrieved 2023-10-18– via Newspapers.com.
11. "Clouds Spoil Ceylon Show: Harvard's Team Gets Best Look at Eclipse". The Boston Globe. Boston, Massachusetts. 1955-06-20. p. 8. Retrieved 2023-10-18– via Newspapers.com.
12. "Clouds Favor Harvard Eclipse Lookout But Balk Hayden, German Photographing". The Berkshire Eagle. Pittsfield, Massachusetts. 1955-06-20. p. 1. Retrieved 2023-10-18– via Newspapers.com.
13. Kuniji Saito. "Photometry of the Solar Corona at the Eclipse on June 20, 1955". Publications of the Astronomical Society of Japan. 8: 126–141. Archived from the original on 13 May 2020.
14. "SOLAR ECLIPSES IN SIAM (THAILAND)". National Astronomical Research Institute of Thailand. Archived from the original on 30 March 2016.
15. van Gent, R.H. "Solar- and Lunar-Eclipse Predictions from Antiquity to the Present". A Catalogue of Eclipse Cycles. Utrecht University. Retrieved 6 October 2018.
16. SEsaros136 at NASA.gov

References

• Earth visibility chart and eclipse statistics Eclipse Predictions by Fred Espenak, NASA/GSFC
  • Google interactive map
  • Besselian elements
• Photometry of the Solar Corona at the Eclipse on June 20, 1955, Publications of the Astronomical Society of Japan, vol. 8, p.126 (1956).
• Nasa.gov