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May 1939 lunar eclipse

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A total lunar eclipse took place on Wednesday, May 3, 1939. A shallow total eclipse saw the Moon in relative darkness for 1 hour and 2 minutes. The Moon was 18% of its diameter into the Earth's umbral shadow, and should have been significantly darkened. The partial eclipse lasted for 3 hours and 27 minutes in total.

Visibility

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Lunar eclipse series sets from 1937–1940
Ascending node   Descending node
Saros Date
viewing
Type
chart
Saros Date
viewing
Type
chart
110 1937 May 25
Penumbral
115 1937 Nov 18
Partial
120 1938 May 14
Total
125 1938 Nov 07
Total
130 1939 May 03
Total
135 1939 Oct 28
Partial
140 1940 Apr 22
Penumbral
145 1940 Oct 16
Penumbral

Saros series

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Lunar saros series 130, repeating every 18 years and 11 days, has a total of 71 lunar eclipse events including 56 umbral lunar eclipses (42 partial lunar eclipses and 14 total lunar eclipses). Solar Saros 137 interleaves with this lunar saros with an event occurring every 9 years 5 days alternating between each saros series.

Greatest First

The greatest eclipse of the series will occur on 2029 Jun 26, lasting 102 minutes.[1]
Penumbral Partial Total Central
1416 Jun 10 1560 Sep 4 1921 Apr 22
1957 May 13
Last
Central Total Partial Penumbral
2083 Jul 29
2155 Sep 11 2552 May 10 2678 Jul 26
1901–2200
1903 Apr 12 1921 Apr 22 1939 May 3
1957 May 13 1975 May 25 1993 Jun 4
2011 Jun 15 2029 Jun 26 2047 Jul 7
2065 Jul 17 2083 Jul 29

Inex series

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The inex series repeats eclipses 20 days short of 29 years, repeating on average every 10571.95 days. This period is equal to 358 lunations (synodic months) and 388.5 draconic months. Saros series increment by one on successive Inex events and repeat at alternate ascending and descending lunar nodes.

This period is 383.6734 anomalistic months (the period of the Moon's elliptical orbital precession). Despite the average 0.05 time-of-day shift between subsequent events, the variation of the Moon in its elliptical orbit at each event causes the actual eclipse time to vary significantly. It is a part of Lunar Inex series 35.

Series events from 1500–2500
Descending node Ascending node Descending node Ascending node
Saros Date
Chart
Saros Date
Chart
Saros Date
Chart
Saros Date
Chart
115 1505 Feb 18
116 1534 Jan 30
117 1563 Jan 9 118 1591 Dec 30
119 1620 Dec 9 120 1649 Nov 19 121 1678 Oct 29 122 1707 Oct 11
123 1736 Sep 20 124 1765 Aug 30 125 1794 Aug 11 126 1823 Jul 23
127 1852 Jul 1 128 1881 Jun 12 129 1910 May 24
130 1939 May 3
131 1968 Apr 13
132 1997 Mar 24
133 2026 Mar 3
134 2055 Feb 11
135 2084 Jan 22
136 2113 Jan 2 137 2141 Dec 13 138 2170 Nov 23
139 2199 Nov 2 140 2228 Oct 14 141 2257 Sep 24 142 2286 Sep 3
143 2315 Aug 16 144 2344 Jul 26 145 2373 Jul 5 146 2402 Jun 16
147 2431 May 27 148 2460 May 5
149 2489 Apr 16

Half-Saros cycle

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A lunar eclipse will be preceded and followed by solar eclipses by 9 years and 5.5 days (a half saros).[2] This lunar eclipse is related to two solar eclipses of Solar Saros 137.

April 28, 1930 May 9, 1948

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ Listing of Eclipses of cycle 130
  2. ^ Mathematical Astronomy Morsels, Jean Meeus, p.110, Chapter 18, The half-saros
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