Eclipses in November / December 2011
by Vachaspati Christina Collins
Eclipses occur at new moon and full moon. Simply put, occurring when one of the luminaries, either the Sun or the Moon is with one of the nodes, either Rahu the north, or ascending node or Ketu the south or descending node. A solar eclipse occurs with a new moon, a lunar eclipse with a full moon.
There are two eclipses yet to come in 2011. One will be a partial solar and the other, a total lunar. Both form with Rahu and Ketu, the North and South nodes of the Moon transiting in Debilitation. Rahu will continue residing in Scorpio and Ketu transiting in Taurus respectively. Nodes are always opposite and transit in the same degree.
Partial solar eclipse on November 25th (and just as Saturn reaches power at 1 degree of arc!)
Quote from NASA: The fourth and final solar eclipse of the year occurs at the Moon's ascending node in western Scorpius. The event is visible from high latitudes in the Southern Hemisphere and includes southern South Africa, Antarctica, Tasmania and most of New Zealand
Total lunar eclipse on December 10th
From Nasa: The last eclipse of 2011 is a total lunar eclipse that takes place at the Moon's descending node in eastern Taurus, four days after apogee.
The Moon's orbital trajectory takes it through the southern half of Earth's umbral shadow. Although the eclipse is not central, the total phase still lasts 51 minutes. The Moon's path through Earth's shadows as well as a map illustrating worldwide visibility of the event are shown in Figure 6. The timings of the major eclipse phases are listed below.
| Penumbral Eclipse Begins: | 11:33:32 UT |
| Partial Eclipse Begins: | 12:45:42 UT |
| Total Eclipse Begins: | 14:06:16 UT |
| Greatest Eclipse: | 14:31:49 UT |
| Total Eclipse Ends: | 14:57:24 UT |
| Partial Eclipse Ends: | 16:17:58 UT |
| Penumbral Eclipse Ends: | 17:30:00 UT |
At the instant of greatest eclipse (14:32 UT) the Moon lies at the zenith in the Pacific Ocean near Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands.
The December total lunar eclipse will be fifty one (51) minutes long. A solar eclipse, of course occurs where it is daylight, and can be seen by those, in daytime, who are under the eclipse�s path. In contrast, a lunar eclipse is seen, at night, by everyone who is experiencing nighttime! Both have strong energetic effects, and both are considered a time good for meditation, inner work, and prayer � which is exactly what I will be doing over my birthday weekend as this transit hits this year�s Varshaphala! Yikes! Let�s hope it gives death to the ego only. Wishing you all an enlightened experience!
Christina Collins
Editor in Chief
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