February 1990 lunar eclipse
| Total eclipse | |||||||||||||||||
 The Moon's hourly motion shown right to left | |||||||||||||||||
| Date | February 9, 1990 | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gamma | −0.4148 | ||||||||||||||||
| Magnitude | 1.0750 | ||||||||||||||||
| Saros cycle | 133 (25 of 71) | ||||||||||||||||
| Totality | 42 minutes, 19 seconds | ||||||||||||||||
| Partiality | 204 minutes, 17 seconds | ||||||||||||||||
| Penumbral | 339 minutes, 35 seconds | ||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||
A total lunar eclipse occurred at the Moon’s descending node of orbit on Friday, February 9, 1990,[1] with an umbral magnitude of 1.0750. A lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon moves into the Earth's shadow, causing the Moon to be darkened. A total lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon's near side entirely passes into the Earth's umbral shadow. Unlike a solar eclipse, which can only be viewed from a relatively small area of the world, a lunar eclipse may be viewed from anywhere on the night side of Earth. A total lunar eclipse can last up to nearly two hours, while a total solar eclipse lasts only a few minutes at any given place, because the Moon's shadow is smaller. The Moon's apparent diameter will be near the average diameter because it will occur 7.7 days after perigee (on February 2, 1990, at 2:40 UTC) and 6.75 days before apogee (on February 16, 1990, at 13:05 UTC).[2]
Visibility
[edit]The eclipse was completely visible over east Africa, eastern Europe, and Asia, seen rising over northeastern North America, eastern South America, western Europe and west and central Africa and setting over Australia, northwestern North America, and the western and central Pacific Ocean.[3]
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Eclipse details
[edit]Shown below is a table displaying details about this particular solar eclipse. It describes various parameters pertaining to this eclipse.[4]
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| Penumbral Magnitude | 2.11912 |
| Umbral Magnitude | 1.07499 |
| Gamma | −0.41481 |
| Sun Right Ascension | 21h32m41.8s |
| Sun Declination | -14°34'08.6" |
| Sun Semi-Diameter | 16'12.6" |
| Sun Equatorial Horizontal Parallax | 08.9" |
| Moon Right Ascension | 09h32m01.7s |
| Moon Declination | +14°12'35.9" |
| Moon Semi-Diameter | 15'31.5" |
| Moon Equatorial Horizontal Parallax | 0°56'58.5" |
| ΔT | 56.9 s |
Eclipse season
[edit]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.
| January 26 Ascending node (new moon) |
February 9 Descending node (full moon) |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Annular solar eclipse Solar Saros 121 |
Total lunar eclipse Lunar Saros 133 |
Related eclipses
[edit]Eclipses in 1990
[edit]- An annular solar eclipse on January 26.
- A total lunar eclipse on February 9.
- A total solar eclipse on July 22.
- A partial lunar eclipse on August 6.
Metonic
[edit]- Preceded by: Lunar eclipse of April 24, 1986
- Followed by: Lunar eclipse of November 29, 1993
Tzolkinex
[edit]- Preceded by: Lunar eclipse of December 30, 1982
- Followed by: Lunar eclipse of March 24, 1997
Half-Saros
[edit]- Preceded by: Solar eclipse of February 4, 1981
- Followed by: Solar eclipse of February 16, 1999
Tritos
[edit]- Preceded by: Lunar eclipse of March 13, 1979
- Followed by: Lunar eclipse of January 9, 2001
Lunar Saros 133
[edit]- Preceded by: Lunar eclipse of January 30, 1972
- Followed by: Lunar eclipse of February 21, 2008
Inex
[edit]- Preceded by: Lunar eclipse of March 2, 1961
- Followed by: Lunar eclipse of January 21, 2019
Triad
[edit]- Preceded by: Lunar eclipse of April 12, 1903
- Followed by: Lunar eclipse of December 10, 2076
Lunar eclipses of 1988–1991
[edit]| Lunar eclipse series sets from 1988–1991 | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Descending node | Ascending node | |||||||
| Saros | Date viewing |
Type chart |
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 | |||||
Saros 133
[edit]This lunar eclipse is part of series 133 of the Saros cycle, which repeats every 18 years and 11 days. Series 133 runs from the year 1557 until 2819. The previous eclipse of this series occurred on January 30, 1972 and the next will occur on February 21, 2008.
It is the 5th of 21 total lunar eclipses in series 133. The first was on December 28, 1917. The last (21st) will be on August 3, 2278. The longest two occurrences of this series (14th and 15th) will last for a total of 1 hour and 42 minutes on May 18, 2152 and May 30, 2170. Solar saros 140 interleaves with this lunar saros with an event occurring every 9 years 5 days alternating between each saros series.
Half-Saros cycle
[edit]A lunar eclipse will be preceded and followed by solar eclipses by 9 years and 5.5 days (a half saros).[5] This lunar eclipse is related to two annular solar eclipses of Solar Saros 140.
| February 4, 1981 | February 16, 1999 |
|---|---|
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See also
[edit]Notes
[edit]- ^ "February 9–10, 1990 Total Lunar Eclipse (Blood Moon)". timeanddate. Retrieved 7 January 2025.
- ^ "Moon Distances for London, United Kingdom, England". timeanddate. Retrieved 7 January 2025.
- ^ "Total Lunar Eclipse of 1990 Feb 09" (PDF). NASA. Retrieved 7 January 2025.
- ^ "Total Lunar Eclipse of 1990 Feb 09". EclipseWise.com. Retrieved 7 January 2025.
- ^ Mathematical Astronomy Morsels, Jean Meeus, p.110, Chapter 18, The half-saros
External links
[edit]- 1990 Feb 09 chart Eclipse Predictions by Fred Espenak, NASA/GSFC
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