Solar eclipse of November 13, 2012

The total solar eclipse of 13 November 2012 took place largely over the South Pacific. Apart from the sea, the totality could only be seen from northern Australia, partially the darkness next to the Australian continent and New Zealand, Antarctica and the southernmost South America was seen.

Course

The umbra touched the ground for the first time east of Kakadu National Park in northern Australia. After the morning local time on 14 November was there already dawned. The darkness corridor grew to a width of 120 kilometers and crossed towards the east Arnhem Land. The eclipse took place here just after sunrise, the totality duration was 1 minute and 30 seconds. Then the umbra crossed the Gulf of Carpentaria direction east-southeast and later the Cape York Peninsula. On the east coast of the peninsula Cairns was the largest city within the zone of totality. There, the totality lasted 2 minutes and 4 seconds.

Now the umbra left the mainland and crossed first the Great Barrier Reef. South of New Caledonia crossed the shadow path the Tropic of Capricorn and passed the New Zealand to the south lying at a distance of 500 kilometers. In the North Island of New Zealand more than 80 percent of the solar disk were obscured. The maximum and all the rest of the eclipse took place over the South Pacific. The core shadow crossed the International Date Line, so that the rest of the course took place after local time on November 13 and not - as the whole previous history - on November 14. Shortly before the South American west coast of the core shadow left the Earth's surface.