Solar eclipse of February 15, 2018
PreviousSolar eclipse of August 21, 2017
NextSolar eclipse of July 13, 2018

A partial solar eclipse occurred at the Moon's descending node of orbit on Thursday, February 15, 2018,[1][2][3][4] with a magnitude of 0.5991. 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 partial solar eclipse occurs in the polar regions of the Earth when the center of the Moon's shadow misses the Earth.

A partial eclipse was visible for parts of Antarctica and southern South America.

Eclipse timing

Places experiencing partial eclipse

Solar Eclipse of February 15, 2018
(Local Times)
Country or territoryCity or placeStart of partial eclipseMaximum eclipseEnd of partial eclipseDuration of eclipse (hr:min)Maximum coverage
Troll19:53:3320:49:2821:11:08 (sunset)1:1849.09%
Marambio Base17:15:4718:16:3719:14:151:5837.98%
Esperanza Base17:17:4218:18:2219:15:461:5837.38%
Carlini Base17:20:0918:20:4119:17:491:5836.04%
Orcadas Base17:24:5318:23:2119:18:411:5439.94%
King Edward Point18:38:3619:33:1319:57:49 (sunset)1:1937.40%
Punta Arenas17:40:5918:37:4919:30:471:5022.90%
Stanley17:46:4218:42:1819:34:141:4827.69%
Criciúma19:51:1720:00:4020:03:14 (sunset)0:121.53%
Porto Alegre19:47:4520:06:2320:12:18 (sunset)0:253.68%
Neuquén18:25:3719:06:3819:45:071:208.94%
Mar del Plata18:25:0619:07:0719:46:361:2312.10%
Montevideo18:34:1919:11:4219:38:29 (sunset)1:048.83%
La Plata18:35:1019:12:1119:45:33 (sunset)1:108.26%
Canelones18:35:3619:12:1919:38:19 (sunset)1:038.35%
Buenos Aires18:36:2719:12:4719:46:50 (sunset)1:107.76%
Durazno18:39:3619:14:0819:37:44 (sunset)0:586.93%
Rio Grande19:41:2420:14:2620:18:18 (sunset)0:376.64%
Pelotas19:42:2720:14:5420:18:55 (sunset)0:366.27%
Fray Bentos18:41:3719:15:0519:44:33 (sunset)1:036.09%
Rosario18:43:4319:15:5719:46:351:035.18%
Paysandú18:44:2219:16:1319:42:37 (sunset)0:585.28%
Santiago18:49:2519:16:2619:42:150:532.45%
Tacuarembó18:45:0919:16:2519:33:24 (sunset)0:485.23%
Mendoza18:50:2019:17:1819:43:060:532.54%
Rivera18:47:5219:17:2619:30:36 (sunset)0:434.47%
Salto18:47:4919:17:3419:40:54 (sunset)0:534.34%
Ciudad del Este19:13:3419:18:0219:20:31 (sunset)0:070.12%
Córdoba18:52:5019:19:0819:44:190:512.63%
Encarnación19:03:4519:22:2819:27:36 (sunset)0:241.14%
References: [1]

Eclipse details

Shown below are two tables displaying details about this particular solar eclipse. The first table outlines times at which the Moon's penumbra or umbra attains the specific parameter, and the second table describes various other parameters pertaining to this eclipse.[5]

February 15, 2018 Solar Eclipse Times
EventTime (UTC)
First Penumbral External Contact2018 February 15 at 18:56:59.4 UTC
Equatorial Conjunction2018 February 15 at 20:16:17.1 UTC
Greatest Eclipse2018 February 15 at 20:52:33.3 UTC
Ecliptic Conjunction2018 February 15 at 21:06:21.5 UTC
Last Penumbral External Contact2018 February 15 at 22:48:19.3 UTC
February 15, 2018 Solar Eclipse Parameters
ParameterValue
Eclipse Magnitude0.59911
Eclipse Obscuration0.49084
Gamma−1.21163
Sun Right Ascension21h57m18.8s
Sun Declination-12°28'07.3"
Sun Semi-Diameter16'11.4"
Sun Equatorial Horizontal Parallax08.9"
Moon Right Ascension21h58m26.9s
Moon Declination-13°32'29.9"
Moon Semi-Diameter14'59.4"
Moon Equatorial Horizontal Parallax0°55'00.9"
ΔT69.0 s

Eclipse season

See also: Eclipse cycle

This eclipse is part of an eclipse season, a period, roughly every six months, when eclipses occur. Only two (or occasionally three) eclipse seasons occur each year, and each season lasts about 35 days and repeats just short of six months (173 days) later; thus two full eclipse seasons always occur each year. Either two or three eclipses happen each eclipse season. In the sequence below, each eclipse is separated by a fortnight.

Eclipse season of January–February 2018
January 31
Ascending node (full moon)
February 15
Descending node (new moon)
Total lunar eclipse
Lunar Saros 124		Partial solar eclipse
Solar Saros 150

Eclipses in 2018

Metonic

Tzolkinex

Half-Saros

Tritos

Solar Saros 150

Inex

Triad

References

  1. ^ "February 15, 2018 Partial Solar Eclipse". timeanddate. Retrieved 12 August 2024.
  2. ^ Rao, Joe (February 14, 2018). "Partial Solar Eclipse Occurs Thursday at the Bottom of the World". Space.com
  3. ^ "Partial Solar Eclipse 2018: All You Need To Know About The Celestial Event". NDTV.com
  4. ^ "This solar eclipse 2018 was seen by NASA from space!". India Today. 15 February 2018.
  5. ^ "Partial Solar Eclipse of 2018 Feb 15". EclipseWise.com. Retrieved 12 August 2024.