Every Now and Again – John L. Fischer

Hi, my fellow solstice seekers. Welcome to Day 18.

When people say “every now and again,” what are they really implying? Do they mean occasionally? Every few years? Very rarely? Practically never?

For today’s purposes, let’s look at something that happens every 18 years. (Check this out, as it’s pretty cool!)

The main astronomical events that occur roughly every 18 years are the Saros cycle for eclipses and the major lunar standstill. (The latter happens every 18.6 years.)

The Saros cycle tracks the approximate recurrence of similar solar and lunar eclipses, and the major lunar standstill occurs when the moon reaches its most extreme rising and setting points on the horizon.

So, during that period (to be precise 18 years, 11 days and 8 hours) after which the Sun, Moon and Earth return to a similar alignment, an eclipse is very likely to occur.

Apparently, ancient cultures swore by this cycle to predict these celestial events. And while it may not accurately predict an eclipse in the exact location on Earth every time, it’s a largely reliable barometer of unusual solar and
lunar activity.

For example, “The Great American Eclipse” of 2017 and the one that is likely to occur in 2035 are part of the same Saros series, and therefore will very likely be similar in duration.

I’m not sure about you guys, but all this talk of eclipses and solar and lunar activity gets me even more charged up that we’re one step closer to the ol’ flipperoo!

Keep your eye on the prize, my compadres. We are most definitely getting there.

Note: Please review the answers to our quiz from earlier this week and check out how you did! (When you select the link, it will open up an MS Word file. If that doesn’t work, try copying the link into a separate browser window, and it should open properly.) And lastly, please let me/us know how you did by posting your results in the comment section(s) of Facebook, LinkedIn or both! (-:

JFish

JOHN L. FISCHER