A total

solar eclipse A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun, thereby obscuring the view of the Sun from a small part of the Earth, totally or partially. Such an alignment occurs during an eclipse season, approximately every six mon ...

took place on 13–14 November 2012 ( UTC). Because it crossed the

International Date Line The International Date Line (IDL) is an internationally accepted demarcation on the surface of Earth, running between the South and North Poles and serving as the boundary between one calendar day and the next. It passes through the Pacific ...

it began in

local time Local time is the time observed in a specific locality. There is no canonical definition. Originally it was mean solar time, but since the introduction of time zones it is generally the time as determined by the time zone in effect, with daylight s ...

on November 14 west of the date line over northern

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

, and ended in local time on November 13 east of the date line near the west coast of

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the sou ...

. Its greatest magnitude was 1.0500, occurring only 12 hours before

perigee An apsis (; ) is the farthest or nearest point in the orbit of a planetary body about its primary body. For example, the apsides of the Earth are called the aphelion and perihelion. General description There are two apsides in any el ...

(Perigee on 2012 Nov 14 at 10:11:48 UTC), with greatest eclipse totality lasting just over four minutes. A

occurs when the

Moon The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It is the fifth largest satellite in the Solar System and the largest and most massive relative to its parent planet, with a diameter about one-quarter that of Earth (comparable to the width of ...

passes between

Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's sur ...

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 The angular diameter, angular size, apparent diameter, or apparent size is an angular distance describing how large a sphere or circle appears from a given point of view. In the vision sciences, it is called the visual angle, and in optics, it ...

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. It was the 45th eclipse of the 133rd

Saros cycle The saros () is a period of exactly 223 synodic months, approximately 6585.3211 days, or 18 years, 10, 11, or 12 days (depending on the number of leap years), and 8 hours, that can be used to predict eclipses of the Sun and Moon. One saros period ...

, which began with a partial eclipse on July 13, 1219 and will conclude with a partial eclipse on September 5, 2499.

Summary of the Total Solar Eclipse of 13 November 2012

Eclipse Characteristics

Eclipse Magnitude = 1.05004 Eclipse Obscuration = 1.10259 Gamma = -0.37189 Saros Series = 133rd (45 of 72)

Conjunction Times

Greatest Eclipse = 13 Nov 2012 22:11:48.2 UTC (22:12:55.2 TD) Ecliptic Conjunction = 13 Nov 2012 22:07:59.9 UTC (22:09:06.9 TD) Equatorial Conjunction = 13 Nov 2012 22:18:04.7 UTC (22:19:11.7 TD)

Geocentric Coordinates of Sun and Moon

Sun right ascension = 15 hours, 18 minutes, 6.7 seconds Moon right ascension = 15 hours, 17 minutes, 51.2 seconds Earth's shadow right ascension = 3 hours, 18 minutes, 6.7 seconds Sun declination = 18 degrees, 15 minutes, 2.6 seconds south of Celestial Equator Moon declination = 18 degrees, 37 minutes, 29.5 seconds south of Celestial Equator Earth's shadow declination = 18 degrees, 15 minutes, 2.6 seconds north of Celestial Equator Sun diameter = 1939.8 arcseconds Moon diameter = 2004.8 arcseconds

Geocentric Libration of Moon

Latitude: 1.0 degrees south Longitude: 0.5 degrees east Direction: 16.5 (NNE)

Visibility

For this eclipse, totality was visible from northern Australia to about 470 km north of the Chilean

Juan Fernández Islands The Juan Fernández Islands ( es, Archipiélago Juan Fernández) are a sparsely inhabited series of islands in the South Pacific Ocean reliant on tourism and fishing. Situated off the coast of Chile, they are composed of three main volcanic ...

in the southern Pacific Ocean where totality ended. The most populous city to experience totality was

Cairns Cairns (, ) is a city in Queensland, Australia, on the tropical north east coast of Far North Queensland. The population in June 2019 was 153,952, having grown on average 1.02% annually over the preceding five years. The city is the 5th-most-p ...

, which had around 2 minutes of totality an hour after daybreak (06:39

AEST Australia uses three main time zones: Australian Western Standard Time (AWST; UTC+08:00), Australian Central Standard Time (ACST; UTC+09:30), and Australian Eastern Standard Time (AEST; UTC+10:00). Time is regulated by the individual state ...

, 20:39 UTC) with the sun at an

altitude Altitude or height (also sometimes known as depth) is a distance measurement, usually in the vertical or "up" direction, between a reference datum and a point or object. The exact definition and reference datum varies according to the context ...

of 14°.

Norfolk Island Norfolk Island (, ; Norfuk: ''Norf'k Ailen'') is an external territory of Australia located in the Pacific Ocean between New Zealand and New Caledonia, directly east of Australia's Evans Head and about from Lord Howe Island. Together wit ...

, a small Pacific island east of Australia, experienced a partial eclipse with a maximum eclipse of 98% of the sun obscured at 08:37 NFT and an altitude of 42°.

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island coun ...

experienced a partial eclipse.

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about I ...

had 84.8% of the sun obscured, whereas

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by ...

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon Rive ...

and

Dunedin Dunedin ( ; mi, Ōtepoti) is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand (after Christchurch), and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from , the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. Th ...

respectively had 71.2%, 61.9% and 52.9% of the sun obscured. Maximum eclipse over New Zealand occurred around 10:30 NZDT (21:30 UTC), with Auckland at 10:27, Wellington at 10:34, Christchurch at 10:35 and Dunedin at 10:36. Most of

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the eas ...

and parts of

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest ...

saw a partial eclipse at sunset. In some places over half the sun was obscured. In Chile,

Talcahuano Talcahuano () (From Mapudungun ''Tralkawenu'', "Thundering Sky") is a port city and commune in the Biobío Region of Chile. It is part of the Greater Concepción conurbation. Talcahuano is located in the south of the Central Zone of Chile. Geo ...

in Biobío saw 72% obscured, Castro in Los Lagos saw 56% obscured. Chilean coastal locations were ideally situated to observe an eclipsing sunset over the Pacific Ocean. Points further north, up to about

Chañaral Chañaral is a small coastal city and commune in the Atacama Region, Chile and capital of the Chañaral Province. It is largely unknown by tourists, who generally head straight for towns such as San Pedro de Atacama. The town has no high rise b ...

, saw the eclipse begin as the sun was setting. West of the

the eclipse took place on the morning of November 14. The maximum eclipse totality, of duration 4 min 2 sec, occurred east of the International Date Line on November 13, approximately 2,000 km east of New Zealand, and 9,600 km west of Chile. On the morning of November 14, skies in Auckland were cloudy, obscuring much of the eclipse, which peaked at 10:27 NZDT. Cloud also obscured the moment of totality at Cairns, disappointing many tourists that had flocked to the area. Eclipse chasers along the northern beaches up through to Port Douglas generally got a clear view however.

Photo gallery

File:Solar Eclipse - November 13, 2012 (video).webm, Video of total eclipse in

Far North Queensland Far North Queensland (FNQ) is the northernmost part of the Australian state of Queensland. Its largest city is Cairns and it is dominated geographically by Cape York Peninsula, which stretches north to the Torres Strait, and west to the Gulf Co ...

File:Nasaeclipse13nov2012.png, Screenshot of

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeedin ...

video viewed from

northern Australia The unofficial geographic term Northern Australia includes those parts of Queensland and Western Australia north of latitude 26° and all of the Northern Territory. Those local government areas of Western Australia and Queensland that lie p ...

File:Corona detail from the 2012 total solar eclipse (8215152495).jpg, Totality from

Mount Carbine, Queensland Mount Carbine is a rural town and locality in the Shire of Mareeba, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Mount Carbine had a population of 101 people. Geography The locality is bounded to the east by the ridge of the Great Dividing ...

, 20:33 UTC File:Corona (8195008803).jpg, Totality from

Mount Mulligan, Queensland Mount Mulligan is a former mining town and now a rural locality in the Shire of Mareeba, Queensland, Australia. In the Mount Mulligan had a population of 4 people. It is the site of the Mount Mulligan mine disaster, Queensland's worst mining ...

, 20:39 UTC File:Totality through cloud (8183604850).jpg, Totality from Port Douglas, Queensland, 20:40 UTC File:Diamond Ring ) (8201566986).jpg, Totality with Baily's beads in

Mossman Gorge, Queensland Mossman Gorge is a rural locality in the Shire of Douglas, Queensland, Australia. In the , Mossman Gorge had a population of 246 people. The locality takes its name from the valley Mossman Gorge created by the Mossman River through the Daintr ...

, 20:40 UTC File:Totality through the cloud! (8196169082).jpg, Totality from

Trinity Beach, Queensland Trinity Beach is a coastal suburb of Cairns in the Cairns Region, Queensland, Australia. At the , Trinity Beach had a population of 5,488. Geography Trinity Beach is approximately from the Cairns city centre and approximately 6.6 km ...

, 20:41 UTC File:Photo out of Telescope of Solar Eclipse-11 (8184637649).jpg, Partial from Redcliffe, Queensland, 20:46 UTC File:Eclipse (8183366631).jpg, Partial from

Adelaide, Australia Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...

, 20:47 UTC File:Solar Eclipse (8185958410).jpg, Partial from

Brisbane, Australia Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...

, 21:07 UTC File:Solar Eclipse (8297188934).jpg, Partial from Eltham, Victoria, 21:07 UTC File:Eclipse (2ème photo) (8183360973).jpg, Partial from Nouméa, New Caledonia, 21:09 UTC File:Eclipse (8183262108).jpg, Partial from

Melbourne, Australia Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a metr ...

, 21:12 UTC File:Solar Eclipse-4810.jpg, Partial from Tauranga, New Zealand, 21:23 UTC File:2012 Nov eclipse in Christchurch.jpg, Partial from Christchurch, New Zealand, 21:29 UTC File:Partial solar eclipse via binoculars (8199471198).jpg, Eclipse projection from

Wellington, New Zealand Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

File:Solar Eclipse seen from Auckland, New Zealand.jpg, Progression from

Auckland, New Zealand Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about I ...

Related eclipses

Eclipses of 2012

* An annular solar eclipse on May 20. * A partial lunar eclipse on June 4. * A total solar eclipse on November 13. * A penumbral lunar eclipse on November 28.

Solar eclipses of 2011–2014

Saros 133

Inex series

Tritos series

Metonic series

Notes

References

External links

www.eclipser.ca: Jay Anderson 2012 November 13 Total Solar Eclipse

timeanddate.com Nov 13 - Nov 14, 2012 Total Solar Eclipse
— Animated eclipse viewer

{{DEFAULTSORT:Solar Eclipse Of November 13, 2012 2012 11 13 2012 in science 2012 11 13 November 2012 events 2012 in Australia