Some general observations on the Diary

  The Astronomical Diary for 2002 (giving times of equinoxes, solstices, a lunar eclipse, New and Full Moon phases, and beginning/ending dates of Daylight Savings time) is tabulated below.  It reports these in the time format most useful to Maine, i.e. all times are given in Eastern Time (Standard or Daylight Savings, as appropriate).  Some almanacs and calendars are casual about this time change, and/or give the data in Universal Time (Greenwich Mean Time).

   The lunar and solar events given do not depend on one's location on Earth. Therefore the times are the moments (in Eastern Time) when they precisely occur.  However, sunrise, sunset, moonrise and moonset do depend on location.  Link to the U.S. Naval Observatory's Astronomical Applications: Data Online page to calculate these at need.

   There is one New Moon and one Full Moon per month in 2002.  You may say "So what, isn't that the way it always is?"   Not necessarily so.  The moon's synodic period of revolution around the Earth is approximately 29.5 days.  This year, by an infrequent coincidence of the two cycles, solar and lunar, we have exactly one of each per month.  In some years,  for example when either a New or Full Moon occurs in the very first days of January, we would have thirteen New Moons (or thirteen Full Moons) and thus one of the months would have two of a particular lunar phase.

   Just for fun I note that there is no New Moon on a Saturday this year.  This is strictly a coincidence of the 7-day cycle of the weeks and the lunar cycle.  There is no cosmic significance to this, nor to the occurrence of New Moons on three Sundays, and Full Moons on three Mondays this year!

   There are usually two periods a year (called "eclipse seasons") when the alignment of Sun, Earth and Moon allow lunar and solar eclipses.  This year, they occur in late May/early June and Mid-November/early December.   Maine is favored for none of these as, in the case of the solar eclipse of June 10-11, the event occurs before local daylight, and on December 4 the Moon's shadow falls far west of us.  Also, the two lunar eclipses are "penumbral" where the Moon falls only into partial shadow, which may be barely noticeable.  So no eclipses are detailed this year in the Astronomical Diary for Maine.

Astronomical diary for 2002 for Maine

All times and dates in Eastern Time

date

event

time

8:29 am EST

 5:50 pm EST

2:41 am EST

4:17 am EST

9:02 pm EST

2:16 pm EST

1:25 pm EST

3:21 pm EDST

11:00 pm EDST

6:45 am EDST

7:51 am EDST

7:46 pm EDST

9:24 am EDST

5:42 pm EDST

 6:26 am EDST

5:07 am EDST

3:15 pm EDST

6:29 pm EDST

11:10 pm EDST

 9:59 am EDST

12:55 am EDST

 7:18 am EDST

3:20 am EDST

3:34 pm EST

8:34 pm EST

2:34 am EST

2:10 pm EST

8:14 pm EST

Adapted by Frank Wihbey from: Astronomical Phenomena for the Year 2002, U. S. Naval Observatory and Royal Greenwich Observatory