Baily Bead Predictions for the Total Solar Eclipse of 1999 August 11

for Ken Jordan

by Byron Soulsby

Calwell Lunar Observatory

Location: Amasya, Turkey some distance just N of the eclipse centre line, at Longitude 35o 51' 00"(E), Latitude 40o 39" 00"(N) and an estimated Altitude of 200 m.

1. Using David Herald's Occult.exe Windows95 program:

Maximum eclipse is at 11h 28m 50s with Totality from 11h 27m 45s to 11h 29m 54s

2. Using David Herald's BailyBead.exe Windows95 Program, the following Beads were predicted for the LEFT hand cusp (as viewed directly by a telescope) BEFORE TOTALITY:


Time (UT)

Leading Watt's Angle

(degrees)

Number of Beads

Time (UT)

Leading Watt's angle (Degrees)

Number of Beads

11h 27m 40s

120.04

3 small

11h 28m 07s

92.15

2

41s

117.80

1

09s

88.54

2

43

116.46

1

11

84.31

1

46

115.00

1 large

12

81.70

1 Extra large

50

111.05

1 large

13

81.70

2

51

111.16

1

14

80.89

3

52

108.97

1 large

15

72.01

1 large

53

109.16

2 large

16

69.66

1

54

106.77

1 large

17

67.90

7

55

106.73

1 large

18

65.35

3

58

102.81

1 large

19

64.03

2

28m 02s

99.00

1 very large

20

Totality

03

99.35

2


3. Again using David Herald's BailyBead.exe Windows95 Program, the following Beads were predicted for the RIGHT hand cusp (as viewed directly by a telescope) AFTER TOTALITY:

Time (UT)

Leading Watt's Angle

(degrees)

Number of Beads

Time (UT)

Leading Watt's angle (Degrees)

Number of Beads

11h 30m 17s

1295.28

1 small

11h 30m 38s

258.37

1

18s

282.85

2

43s

252.45

2

19

284.12

8

46

250.00

1

20

280.00

2 large

47

248.63

1

21

308.74

1

49

246.76

1

22

as above

1

59

239.08

1

25

272.04

1

31 00

237.74

1

26

270.79

2

05

234.69

1

29

268.24

1

11

232.50

1

30

as above

1

To 45

none

32

264.70

1 large

33

as above

1

37

258.37

2


Watts angle is similar to position angle and starts at N through E, so before totality the first beads appear at a Watts angle of 120 degrees E of N and after totality at 295 E of N.

I hope you or people in your group can record some of these Baily Beads. You will not observe all of the predicted events as Cathie and I did NOT see all those predicted for 1999 February 16, only about half, which was a good result I think.

Here is an image of the situation just after totality:

Produced with Maris Redshift


This page maintained by the / Calwell Lunar Observatory / Updated 1999 April 22, changed 2001 March 30.


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