A total solar eclipse occurred at the Moon's ascending node of orbit on Friday, October 2, 1959, with a magnitude of 1.0325. 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 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 2.4 days before perigee (on October 4, 1959, at 21:10 UTC), the Moon's apparent diameter was larger.
Totality was visible from northeastern Massachusetts and the southern tip of New Hampshire in the United States, the Canary Islands, Morocco, Spanish Sahara (today's West Sahara) including the capital city Laayoune, French Mauritania (today's Mauritania), Mali Federation (part now belonging to Mali), French Niger (today's Niger), British Nigeria (today's Nigeria), British Cameroons and French Cameroons (now belonging to Cameroon), French Chad (today's Chad) including the capital city Fort-Lamy, French Central Africa (today's Central African Republic), Sudan (part of the path of totality is now in South Sudan), Ethiopia, and the Trust Territory of Somaliland (today's Somalia). A partial eclipse was visible for parts of eastern North America, the eastern Caribbean, Europe, Africa, West Asia, and Central Asia.
Observations Totality began over Boston, Massachusetts at sunrise. Viewing the eclipse was rained out, but it was reported that the brightening of the sky after the eclipse was a startling and impressive sight. Journal of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada, Vol. 54, p.43, A few photographers captured the eclipse from airplanes above the clouds, and a multiple exposure was made atop the R. C. A. building in New York City.Sky and Telescope, Vol. XIX, No. 1, p. 4. The next total eclipse over Boston, the solar eclipse of May 1, 2079, will also be a sunrise event.The Shadowy Details of Today's Solar Eclipse | Space
The event was also observed at the Canarian Island of Fuerteventura by a team of Dutch astronomers of the university of Utrecht and Amsterdam.Report of the Netherlands expedition for the observation of the total solar eclipse on october 2, 1959. Houtgast, J., Proceedings of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences, Vol. 63, Nr. 5, p. 611 (1960)
Maurice Allais, a French polymath, reported the alleged anomalous behavior of pendulums or gravimeters, later named as Allais effect. He first reported the effect after observing the solar eclipse of June 30, 1954, and reported another observation of the effect during this solar eclipse using the paraconical pendulum he invented.
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.
+October 2, 1959 Solar Eclipse Times Event Time (UTC) First Penumbral External Contact 1959 October 2 at 09:49:42.6 UTC First Umbral External Contact 1959 October 2 at 10:50:25.8 UTC First Central Line 1959 October 2 at 10:50:55.8 UTC First Umbral Internal Contact 1959 October 2 at 10:51:25.7 UTC First Penumbral Internal Contact 1959 October 2 at 12:08:39.3 UTC Equatorial Conjunction 1959 October 2 at 12:12:52.0 UTC Greatest Eclipse 1959 October 2 at 12:27:00.1 UTC Greatest Duration 1959 October 2 at 12:29:26.6 UTC Ecliptic Conjunction 1959 October 2 at 12:31:24.6 UTC Last Penumbral Internal Contact 1959 October 2 at 12:45:44.7 UTC Last Umbral Internal Contact 1959 October 2 at 14:02:42.2 UTC Last Central Line 1959 October 2 at 14:03:14.3 UTC Last Umbral External Contact 1959 October 2 at 14:03:46.4 UTC Last Penumbral External Contact 1959 October 2 at 15:04:19.6 UTC
+October 2, 1959 Solar Eclipse Parameters Parameter Value Eclipse Magnitude 1.03251 Eclipse Obscuration 1.06608 Gamma 0.42075 Sun Right Ascension 12h31m27.3s Sun Declination -03°23'42.1" Sun Semi-Diameter 15'58.8" Sun Equatorial Horizontal Parallax 08.8" Moon Right Ascension 12h31m57.6s Moon Declination -02°59'50.0" Moon Semi-Diameter 16'15.2" Moon Equatorial Horizontal Parallax 0°59'39.0" ΔT 33.0 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 September–October 1959 September 17Descending node (full moon) October 2Ascending node (new moon) Penumbral lunar eclipseLunar Saros 117 Total solar eclipseSolar Saros 143
Related eclipses Eclipses in 1959 A partial lunar eclipse on March 24. An annular solar eclipse on April 8. A penumbral lunar eclipse on September 17. A total solar eclipse on October 2.
Metonic Preceded by: Solar eclipse of December 14, 1955 Followed by: Solar eclipse of July 20, 1963
Tzolkinex Preceded by: Solar eclipse of August 20, 1952 Followed by: Solar eclipse of November 12, 1966
Half-Saros Preceded by: Lunar eclipse of September 26, 1950 Followed by: Lunar eclipse of October 6, 1968
Tritos Preceded by: Solar eclipse of November 1, 1948 Followed by: Solar eclipse of August 31, 1970
Solar Saros 143 Preceded by: Solar eclipse of September 21, 1941 Followed by: Solar eclipse of October 12, 1977
Inex Preceded by: Solar eclipse of October 21, 1930 Followed by: Solar eclipse of September 11, 1988
Triad Preceded by: Solar eclipse of November 30, 1872 Followed by: Solar eclipse of August 2, 2046
Solar eclipses of 1957–1960
Saros 143
Metonic series
Tritos series
Inex series
See also List of solar eclipses visible from the United Kingdom 1000–2090 AD
Notes
References