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 mo ...
occurred on March 29, 2006. A solar eclipse 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 ...
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 surf ...
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 ...
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 visible from a narrow corridor which traversed half the
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 surf ...
. The
magnitude, that is, the ratio between the apparent sizes of the Moon and that of the Sun, was 1.052, and it was part of Saros 139.
It was the second solar eclipse visible in Africa in just
6 months.
Visibility

The path of totality of 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 ...
's shadow began at sunrise in
Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
and extended across the
Atlantic
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the "Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...
to
Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
, traveling across
Ghana
Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in Ghana–Ivory Coast border, the west, Burkina ...
, the southeastern tip of
Ivory Coast
Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire, officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital is Yamoussoukro, in the centre of the country, while its largest city and economic centre is ...
,
Togo
Togo (), officially the Togolese Republic (french: République togolaise), is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Ghana to the west, Benin to the east and Burkina Faso to the north. It extends south to the Gulf of Guinea, where its ...
,
Benin
Benin ( , ; french: Bénin , ff, Benen), officially the Republic of Benin (french: République du Bénin), and formerly Dahomey, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east, Burkina Faso to the nort ...
,
Nigeria
Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of G ...
,
Niger
)
, official_languages =
, languages_type = National languages[Chad
Chad (; ar, تشاد , ; french: Tchad, ), officially the Republic of Chad, '; ) is a landlocked country at the crossroads of North and Central Africa. It is bordered by Libya to the north, Sudan to the east, the Central African Repub ...](_blank)
,
Libya
Libya (; ar, ليبيا, Lībiyā), officially the State of Libya ( ar, دولة ليبيا, Dawlat Lībiyā), is a country in the Maghreb region in North Africa. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Su ...
, and a small corner of northwest
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Med ...
, from there across the
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the ...
to
Greece
Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders wit ...
(
Kastellórizo
Kastellorizo or Castellorizo (; el, Καστελλόριζο, Kastellórizo), officially Megisti ( ''Megísti''), is a Greek island and municipality of the Dodecanese in the Eastern Mediterranean.Bertarelli, 131 It lies roughly off the south ...
) and
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
, then across the
Black Sea
The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, ...
via
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to t ...
,
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eigh ...
, and
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental coun ...
to Western
Mongolia
Mongolia; Mongolian script: , , ; lit. "Mongol Nation" or "State of Mongolia" () is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south. It covers an area of , with a population of just 3.3 millio ...
, where it ended at sunset. A
partial eclipse was seen from the much broader path of 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 ...
's
penumbra
The umbra, penumbra and antumbra are three distinct parts of a shadow, created by any light source after impinging on an opaque object. Assuming no diffraction, for a collimated beam (such as a point source) of light, only the umbra is cast.
...
, including the northern two-thirds of
Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
, the whole of
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located enti ...
, and
Central Asia
Central Asia, also known as Middle Asia, is a region of Asia that stretches from the Caspian Sea in the west to western China and Mongolia in the east, and from Afghanistan and Iran in the south to Russia in the north. It includes the former ...
.
Observations
People around the world gathered in areas where the eclipse was visible to view the event. The
Manchester Astronomical Society
The Manchester Astronomical Society is an organisation that promotes popular and amateur astronomy in North West England. It is one of the oldest provincial astronomical societies in England. The Society is based in the Godlee Observatory loca ...
, the
Malaysian Space Agency, the
Astronomical Society of the Pacific, as well as dozens of tour groups met at the Apollo temple and the theater in
Side,
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
. The San Francisco
Exploratorium
The Exploratorium is a museum of science, technology, and arts in San Francisco, California. Characterized as "a mad scientist's penny arcade, a scientific funhouse, and an experimental laboratory all rolled into one", the participatory natur ...
featured a live webcast from the site, where thousands of observers were seated in the ancient, Roman-style theater.
Almost all actively visited areas in the path of totality had perfect weather. Many observers reported an unusually beautiful eclipse, with many or all effects visible, and a very nice
corona, despite the proximity to the
solar minimum. The partial phase of the eclipse was also visible from the
International Space Station
The International Space Station (ISS) is the largest Modular design, modular space station currently in low Earth orbit. It is a multinational collaborative project involving five participating space agencies: NASA (United States), Roscosmos ( ...
, where the astronauts on board took spectacular pictures of the moon's shadow on
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 surf ...
's surface. It initially appeared as though an orbit correction set for the middle of March would bring the ISS into the path of totality, but this correction was postponed.
Gallery
Image:Eclipse 2006 - Nkanfoa, Ghana 3 (120171855).jpg, Cape Coast, Ghana (9:10 UTC)
Image:Libye Eclipse 700.jpg, Murzuq District, Libya (10:16 UTC)
Image:Eclipse Sol 290306 Valencia.jpg, Valencia, Spain
Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the autonomous community of Valencia and the third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is also the capital of the province of the same name. The wider urban area also ...
(10:16 UTC)
Image:Eclipse on 2006-03-29 (18215576834).jpg, Oria, Italy
Oria (or ''Orra'', la, Uria; grc, Ὑρία, translit=Huría or , '; he, אוריה, translit=uriya) is a town and ''comune'' in the Apulia region, in the province of Brindisi, in southern Italy. It is the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese ...
(10:39 UTC)
Image:Eclipse fromISS 2006-03-29.jpg, 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 ...
's shadow as seen from the International Space Station
The International Space Station (ISS) is the largest Modular design, modular space station currently in low Earth orbit. It is a multinational collaborative project involving five participating space agencies: NASA (United States), Roscosmos ( ...
(10:50 UTC)
Image:Eclipse 29032006.jpg, Berkhamsted, England
Berkhamsted ( ) is a historic market town in Hertfordshire, England, in the Bulbourne valley, north-west of London. The town is a civil parish with a town council within the borough of Dacorum which is based in the neighbouring large new tow ...
(11:01 UTC)
Image:Sun eclipse from a window in Marousi, Athens (121762574).jpg, Marousi, Greece
Marousi or Maroussi ( el, Μαρούσι, also Αμαρούσιο ''Amarousio'') is a suburb in the northeastern part of the Athens agglomeration, Greece. Marousi dates back to the era of the ancient Athenian Republic; its ancient name was Athmon ...
(11:01 UTC)
Image:Eclipse krasnoyarsk 29 03 2006.jpg, Krasnoyarsk, Russia (11:20 UTC)
Image:Zatm lagan.jpg, Lagan, Russia (11:23 UTC)
Image:Eclipsenovosib.jpg, Novosibirsk, Russia
Novosibirsk (, also ; rus, Новосиби́рск, p=nəvəsʲɪˈbʲirsk, a=ru-Новосибирск.ogg) is the largest city and administrative centre of Novosibirsk Oblast and Siberian Federal District in Russia. As of the 2021 Censu ...
(11:42 UTC)
Image:Nirats - Eclipse (by-sa).jpg, Kathmandu, Nepal
, pushpin_map = Nepal Bagmati Province#Nepal#Asia
, coordinates =
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name =
, subdivision_type1 = Province
, subdivision_name1 = Bagmati Prov ...
(12:01 UTC)
Image:20060329sequence.jpg, Degania A, Israel: Partial Solar Eclipse
File:Animation eclipse.gif, Animation from Sallum
Sallum ( ar, السلوم, translit=as-Sallūm various transliterations include ''El Salloum'', ''As Sallum'' or ''Sollum'') is a harbourside village or town in Egypt. It is along the Egypt/Libyan short north–south aligned coast of the Mediterra ...
, Egypt
Satellite failure
The satellite responsible for
SKY Network Television, a New Zealand pay TV company, failed the day after this eclipse at around 1900 local time. While SKY didn't directly attribute the failure to the eclipse, they said in a media release that it took longer to resolve the issue because of it, but this claim was refuted by astronomers. The main reason for the failure was because of an aging and increasingly faulty satellite.
[Press release by Sky TV]
Solar eclipse interferes with satellite restoration
Friday, 31 March 2006.
Related eclipses
Eclipses of 2006
*
A penumbral lunar eclipse on March 14.
* A total solar eclipse on March 29.
*
A partial lunar eclipse on September 7.
*
An annular solar eclipse on September 22.
This solar eclipse was preceded by the
penumbral lunar eclipse on March 14, 2006.
Tzolkinex
* Preceded:
Solar eclipse of February 16, 1999
* Followed:
Solar eclipse of May 10, 2013
Half-Saros
* Preceded:
Lunar eclipse of March 24, 1997
* Followed:
Lunar eclipse of April 4, 2015
Tritos
* Preceded:
Solar eclipse of April 29, 1995
* Followed:
Solar eclipse of February 26, 2017
An annular solar eclipse took place on February 26, 2017. 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. An annular solar eclipse occurs when t ...
Solar Saros 139
* Preceded:
Solar eclipse of March 18, 1988
A total solar eclipse occurred on March 18, 1988. 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 a ...
* Followed:
Solar eclipse of April 8, 2024
Inex
* Preceded:
Solar eclipse of April 18, 1977
* Followed:
Solar eclipse of March 9, 2035
Solar eclipses 2004–2007
Saros 139
Inex series
Metonic series
Notes
References
*
Fred Espenak and Jay Anderson. "
Total Solar Eclipse of 2006 March 29'".
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, succeedi ...
Technical publication (NASA/TP-2004-212762), November 2004.
NASA – Total Solar Eclipse of 2006 March 29
solar-eclipse-2006.info Information about the March 29th Solar Eclipse.*
ttps://web.archive.org/web/20060114090539/http://www.eclipse.za.net/html/2006_maps.html Eclipse.za.net Umbral Paths of March 29 Eclipse in Africa
Photos:
Prof. Druckmüller's eclipse photography site. Turkey, CappadociaTotal eclipse photographs from TurkeyAnother set of total eclipse photographs from TurkeyPhoto gallery from TurkeyPhases of solar eclipse view from AntalyaPictures taken from Smolyan, BulgariaNASA video of eclipseSolar eclipse images and videos from Libya by traveling NASA employees and scientistsImages by Crayford Manor House Astronomical Society from Libya and Turkey APOD, March 30, 2006, When Diamonds Aren't Forever, totality from Greek island of Kastelorizo in the eastern Aegean
Antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov APOD, April 4, 2006, A Total Solar Eclipse over Turkey, totality from
Adrasan, Kumluca
Adrasan, also known as Çavuşköy, is a village in the District of Kumluca, Antalya Province, Turkey. A collection of smaller villages and hamlets, Adrasan extends along a 2.5 Kilometer stretch of coast - most of which is sand and shingle b ...
,
Antalya Province
Antalya Province ( tr, ) is located on the Mediterranean coast of south-west Turkey, between the Taurus Mountains and the Mediterranean Sea.
Antalya Province is the centre of Turkey's tourism industry, attracting 30% of foreign tourists vi ...
, Turkey
Antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov APOD, April 7, 2006, totality from
Side, Turkey, a larger version of the same picture chosen as APOD again on July 26, 2009
The Big Corona APOD, April 8, 2006, Vanishing Umbra, from
Mount Hasan
Mount Hasan ( tr, Hasan Dağı) is a volcano in Anatolia, Turkey. It has two summits, the high eastern Small Hasan Dagi and the high Big Hasan Dagi, and rises about above the surrounding terrain. It consists of various volcanic deposits, includ ...
southeast of
İncesu, Aksaray
İncesu is a village in the Aksaray District, Aksaray Province, Turkey. Its population is 1,654 (2021). Before the 2013 reorganisation, it was a town (''belde''). , Turkey
The 2006 Eclipse in TurkeyUniversity of Athens – Solar Eclipse 29/3/2006, Solar Party 29 March 2006 Total Solar Eclipse,
Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey
The Scientific and Technological Research Institution of Turkey ( tr, Türkiye Bilimsel ve Teknolojik Araştırma Kurumu, TÜBİTAK) is a national agency of Turkey whose stated goal is to develop "science, technology and innovation" (STI) policies ...
(TÜBİTAK)
Solar Eclipse over Kemer, Turkey 060329
External links
{{Solar eclipses
2006 03 29
2006 in science
2006 03 29
March 2006 events
2006 in Ghana
2006 in Togo
2006 in Benin
2006 in Nigeria
2006 in Niger
2006 in Chad
2006 in Libya
2006 in Egypt
2006 in Turkey
2006 in Georgia (country)
2006 in Russia
2006 in Kazakhstan