A total solar eclipse occurred at the Moon's descending node of orbit on Monday, February 26, 1979, with a magnitude of 1.0391. A solar eclipse is an astronomical phenomenon that 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. Occurring about 19 hours after perigee (on February 25, 1979, at 22:20 UTC), the Moon's apparent diameter was larger.
The central shadow of the Moon passed through Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana (where totality covered almost the entire state), North Dakota, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, the Northwest Territories of Canada (the portion that is now Nunavut), and Greenland. A partial eclipse was visible for parts of North America, Central America, the Caribbean, and Western Europe.
Visibility
United States Many visitors traveled to the Pacific Northwest to view the Monday morning eclipse, as it was the last chance to view a total solar eclipse in the contiguous United States for 38 years, 5 months, 26 days. The next opportunity was on August 21, 2017. Several cities, including Lewiston, Idaho, and Goldendale, Washington, organized viewing events amid an expected bump in tourist traffic. Television station KING-TV of Seattle produced a live broadcast of the eclipse from Goldendale and other cities in the Northwest.
Although the path of totality passed through Portland shortly after sunrise (maximum at it was not directly observable due to overcast skies in northwestern Oregon. At the Goldendale Observatory State Park in Washington, an estimated 10,000 people were able to view the eclipse after the overcast skies parted during totality. Over 1,000 aircraft were guided around the path of totality by local air traffic control offices; the volume of flights in the area caused delays to passenger service at Seattle–Tacoma International Airport and Portland International Airport. The Seattle-based Pacific Science Center chartered a Boeing 727 with 94 passengers to chase the eclipse.
Canada About a half hour later, the path of totality was in Manitoba and passed through cloudless Winnipeg in the late morning, maximum was at The greatest eclipse occurred seven minutes later at 10:55 am CST.
Canada's next total solar eclipse took place on August 1, 2008, after which Canada did not see another total solar eclipse until April 8, 2024.
Observations Portland, Oregon was the largest city within the path of totality. However, the thick clouds made observation unsuccessful. Only some areas outside the city could see the Sun through the holes in the clouds. There were also charter flights allowing passengers to observe from the air. Clouds covered most areas of the states of Oregon and Washington, and there were some clouds in western Montana. Observations were successful in places including North Dakota. Jay Pasachoff led a team from Williams College in Massachusetts to Brandon University in Manitoba, Canada and successfully observed the total eclipse there.
In literature Writer Annie Dillard viewed the eclipse from the Yakima River Valley in central Washington state. She described her impressions of the eclipse in an essay, "Total Eclipse", first published in the magazine Antaeus and then in her collection, Teaching a Stone to Talk (1982). It was later selected for inclusion in The Best American Essays of the [20th] Century (2000). Dillard describes a nearly overwhelming emotional experience, as suggested in this quotation: "I pray you will never see anything more awful in the sky." Describing the reactions of other onlookers, she relates "I heard screams."
The 1979 eclipse was also referenced in the opening pages of Douglas Coupland's novel, Generation X.
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.
+February 26, 1979 Solar Eclipse Times Event Time (UTC) First Penumbral External Contact 1979 February 26 at 14:46:04.0 UTC First Umbral External Contact 1979 February 26 at 16:08:06.6 UTC First Central Line 1979 February 26 at 16:10:02.8 UTC First Umbral Internal Contact 1979 February 26 at 16:12:03.2 UTC Ecliptic Conjunction 1979 February 26 at 16:46:02.6 UTC Greatest Duration 1979 February 26 at 16:54:19.3 UTC Greatest Eclipse 1979 February 26 at 16:55:05.7 UTC Equatorial Conjunction 1979 February 26 at 17:22:11.4 UTC Last Umbral Internal Contact 1979 February 26 at 17:37:49.2 UTC Last Central Line 1979 February 26 at 17:39:48.9 UTC Last Umbral External Contact 1979 February 26 at 17:41:44.4 UTC Last Penumbral External Contact 1979 February 26 at 19:03:56.4 UTC
+February 26, 1979 Solar Eclipse Parameters Parameter Value Eclipse Magnitude 1.03907 Eclipse Obscuration 1.07966 Gamma 0.89811 Sun Right Ascension 22h36m45.5s Sun Declination -08°45'23.7" Sun Semi-Diameter 16'09.1" Sun Equatorial Horizontal Parallax 08.9" Moon Right Ascension 22h35m43.5s Moon Declination -07°52'47.4" Moon Semi-Diameter 16'39.8" Moon Equatorial Horizontal Parallax 1°01'09.4" ΔT 49.7 s
Eclipse season
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 February–March 1979 February 26Descending node (new moon) March 13Ascending node (full moon) Total solar eclipseSolar Saros 120 Partial lunar eclipseLunar Saros 132
Related eclipses Eclipses in 1979 A total solar eclipse on February 26. A partial lunar eclipse on March 13. An annular solar eclipse on August 22. A total lunar eclipse on September 6.
Metonic Preceded by: Solar eclipse of May 11, 1975 Followed by: Solar eclipse of December 15, 1982
Tzolkinex Preceded by: Solar eclipse of January 16, 1972 Followed by: Solar eclipse of April 9, 1986
Half-Saros Preceded by: Lunar eclipse of February 21, 1970 Followed by: Lunar eclipse of March 3, 1988
Tritos Preceded by: Solar eclipse of March 28, 1968 Followed by: Solar eclipse of January 26, 1990
Solar Saros 120 Preceded by: Solar eclipse of February 15, 1961 Followed by: Solar eclipse of March 9, 1997
Inex Preceded by: Solar eclipse of March 18, 1950 Followed by: Solar eclipse of February 7, 2008
Triad Preceded by: Solar eclipse of April 26, 1892 Followed by: Solar eclipse of December 27, 2065
Solar eclipses of 1979–1982
Saros 120
Metonic series
Tritos series
Inex series
Notes
References
eclipse.org.uk Total Eclipse of the Sun: 1979 February 26 Predictions for the 1979 solar eclipse Royal Astronomical Society of Canada, Journal, vol. 72, June 1978, pp. 149–161 Fred Espenak
External links
Photos/observations: Eclipse Chaser's Journal: Part 1, My First Total Solar Eclipse: February 26. 1979, Jeffrey R. Charles http://nicmosis.as.arizona.edu:8000/ECLIPSE_WEB/ECLIPSE_79/ECLIPSE_79.html 1979 Solar Eclipse – ABC News Coverage Excerpts from an ABC News Special Report that aired at 11:00–11:29 a.m. EST on Monday, Feb. 26, 1979 1979 Total Solar Eclipse Report on CBS News with Walter Cronkite The February 26, 1979, total solar eclipse story as reported on the CBS Evening News with Walter Cronkite. Solar Eclipse Photo Gallery 1, 1970 – 1984 Fred Espenak Solar eclipse 1979, Manitoba, Canada
Narrative Descriptions: Total Eclipse, Annie Dillard