A total eclipse of the Sun occurred on Monday 21 September, 1903 UT (8 Sep, 1903 Old Style), with maximum eclipse at 04:39 UT. A dramatic total eclipse plunged the Sun into darkness for 2 minutes and 12 seconds at maximum, creating an amazing spectacle for observers in a very broad path, 241 km wide at maximum.

The total eclipse lasted for 2 minutes and 12 seconds. Maximum eclipse was at 04:39:50 UT.

During this eclipse the Sun was 0.531° in apparent diameter, 0.4% smaller than average. The Moon was just 2 days past perigee, making it relatively large. At the start and end of the eclipse the Moon was 0.544°, and at maximum eclipse 0.548°, which is 3.2% larger than average; hence it covered the Sun, making this a total eclipse. The statistics page has information on the ranges of the sizes of the Sun and Moon, and the Moon data page displays detailed information on the Moon's key dates.

Interactive Map

This map shows the visibility of the eclipse. The shaded area saw the total solar eclipse; however, near the edges of this area, the eclipse was very short. The bold line shows the centre of the path, where the eclipse lasted longest.

Use the zoom controls to zoom in and out; hover your mouse over any point on the centreline to see the time and duration of the eclipse at that point. You can pan and zoom the map to see detail for any part of the eclipse path.

The interactive map is currently not available.

Overview Map

This map sourced from NASA Goddard Space flight Center: GSFC Eclipse Web SiteGSFC Eclipse Web Site
The primary source of all the information on eclipses presented here at Hermit Eclipse. (NASA Goddard Space flight Center)
https://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/eclipse.html
shows the visibility of the total solar eclipse. It also shows the broader area in which a partial eclipse was seen. (Click on it for the full-sized version.)

Eclipse Season and Saros Series

This eclipse season contains 2 eclipses:

This was the 47th eclipse in solar Saros series 123.The surrounding eclipses in this Saros series are:

This Saros series, solar Saros series 123, is linked to lunar Saros series 116. The nearest partner eclipses in that series are:

Eclipse Parameters

UT Date/time (max) 04:39:50 on 21 Sep UT TDT Date/time (max) 04:39:52 on 21 Sep TDT
Saros Series 123 Number in Series 47
Penumbral Magnitiude Central Magnitiude 1.0316
Gamma -0.8967 Path Width (km) 241
Delta T 0m02s Error ± 0m00s (95%)
Penumbral Duration Partial Duration
Total Duration 2m12s
Partial Rating Total Rating
Sun Distance 150182778 km (63.9%) Moon Distance 366101 km (19.3%)
Sun Diameter 0.531° Moon Diameter 0.544° - 0.548°
Perigee 02:04 on 19 Sep UT Apogee 22:31 on 30 Sep UT

Note that while all dates and times on this site (except where noted) are in UT, which is within a second of civil time, the dates and times shown in NASA's eclipse listingsGSFC Eclipse Web Site
The primary source of all the information on eclipses presented here at Hermit Eclipse. (NASA Goddard Space flight Center)
https://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/eclipse.html
are in the TDT timescale.

The Sun and Moon distances are shown in km, and as a percentage of their minimum - maximum distances; hence 0% is the closest possible (Earth's perihelion, or the Moon's closest possible perigee) and 100% is the farthest (aphelion, the farthest apogee). The statistics page has information on the ranges of sizes of the Sun and Moon, and the Moon data page displays detailed information on the Moon's key dates.

Data last updated: 2015-06-21 22:11:46 UTC.