Re: next total eclipse at a particular location

allisonki asked:

> But if NO eclipse occurred during any of these intervals, how may I
> determine when the next instance of totality WILL occur at a particular
> location (which may well be many hundreds of years in the future, and
> hence not included in these sets of maps that focus on the current ~300
> years or so)? Is there software that can perform such a search?


If such software exists, be cautioned that solar eclipses several
centuries hence aren't predictable with precision. We indeed know
with high confidence *when* they will occur, just not exactly *where*
they will occur; the hitch is in foretelling the Earth's rotational
orientation -- a problem complicated by chaotic goings-on beneath
the crust -- so far in advance. Heck, back in 1999, nobody could've
known that the next leap second wouldn't be needed till the end of
2005!

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Mark Gingrich grinch@xxxxxxxxx San Leandro, California
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