Eclipses 2004

Retrograde windows run from the station-retrograde day to the station-direct day, both counted, in UTC — the same windows as the 2004 retrograde calendar.

Eclipses and times of greatest eclipse are computed with astronomy-engine and checked against NASA’s eclipse catalog; see the method.

01When are the eclipses in 2004?

Partial solar: 19 Apr 2004, 29° Aries; Total lunar: 4 May 2004, 14° Scorpio; Partial solar: 14 Oct 2004, 21° Libra; Total lunar: 28 Oct 2004, 5° Taurus. Times of greatest eclipse are on this page, in UTC.

02When is eclipse season in 2004?

12 Apr 2004 to 19 May 2004 (north node); 7 Oct 2004 to 12 Nov 2004 (south node). A season here is every UTC day on which the Sun stands within 18.5° of one of the Moon’s nodes.

03Which planets were retrograde during the 2004 eclipses?

Partial solar eclipse on 19 Apr: Retrograde that day: Mercury, Jupiter and Pluto. It falls on day 14 of a 25-day Mercury retrograde. Total lunar eclipse on 4 May: Retrograde that day: Jupiter and Pluto. Partial solar eclipse on 14 Oct: Retrograde that day: Uranus and Neptune. Total lunar eclipse on 28 Oct: Retrograde that day: Uranus.

04What is an eclipse season?

The Moon’s orbit is tilted about five degrees to the Sun’s path, so most new and full moons pass above or below the Sun or Earth’s shadow. Twice a year, for about five weeks, the Sun stands near one of the two points where the orbits cross, the nodes; any new or full moon then is close enough to the node to cast or catch a shadow. Every season has at least two eclipses, a solar and a lunar, and sometimes three.