The Thousand Year Canon of Solar Eclipses 1501 to 2500 contains maps and data for each of the 2,389 solar eclipses occurring over the ten-century period centered on the present era. The eclipse predictions are based on the Jet Propulsion Lab's DE406 - a computer ephemeris used for calculating high precision coordinates of the Sun and Moon for thousands of years into the past and future.
Section 1 of the Canon presents fundamental concepts including eclipse classification and the visual appearance of each type of eclipse. Section 2 discusses the eclipse predictions, the constants used and Delta T. A statistical analysis of eclipse frequency, extremes in eclipse magnitude, greatest central duration and quincena combinations are covered in Section 3. A concise explanation of the data contained in the solar eclipse catalog (Appendix A) appears in Section 4 while Section 5 offers a complete description of information presented in each of the solar eclipse maps (Appendix B).
The primary content of the Thousand Year Canon of Solar Eclipses resides in the two appendices. Appendix A is a comprehensive catalog listing the essential characteristics of each eclipse. These include the calendar date and time of greatest eclipse, Delta T, lunation number, Saros series number, gamma, eclipse magnitude, geographic coordinates of greatest eclipse, Sun's altitude and azimuth, central path width and central line duration. Appendix B is an atlas of maps depicting the geographic regions of visibility of each eclipse. The zones of partial eclipse and central eclipse (if applicable) are plotted on an orthographic projection map of Earth. The 2,389 maps are arranged twelve to a page at an image scale permitting the assessment of eclipse visibility from any location on Earth. Other data on each map include the eclipse type, calendar date and time of greatest eclipse, Saros series number, lunar node, Delta T, gamma, Sun's altitude, and central eclipse duration or eclipse magnitude.
The maps and data presented in the Thousand Year Canon of Solar Eclipses form the basis of the eclipse prediction website www.EclipseWise.com. The complementary publication, Thousand Year Canon of Lunar Eclipses 1501 to 2500, contains diagrams, maps and data for all 2,424 eclipses of the Moon occurring over the same time period.
