Jan. 4 Perihelion, 147,102,650 km (91,405,350 mi) from the Sun

July 4 Aphelion, 152,100,360 km (94,510,780 mi) from the Sun

Equinoxes and Solstices, 2003

March 21 Vernal equinox, 01:00¹

June 21 Summer solstice, 19:10¹

Sept. 23 Autumnal equinox, 10:47¹

Dec. 22 Winter solstice, 07:04¹

Eclipses, 2003

May 16 Moon, total (begins 01:05¹), the beginning visible in Europe, southern Greenland, eastern North America, Central and South America, Africa, the western Middle East; the end visible in southern Greenland, North America (except extreme northwest), Central and South America, western Africa, southwestern Europe, part of New Zealand.

May 31 Sun, annular (begins 01:46¹), the beginning visible in northwestern North America, central Greenland, Iceland, most of Europe, central and northern Asia, the Arabian Peninsula; the end visible in extreme northeastern Africa, southwestern Asia, central Europe, Greenland, northern North America.

Nov. 8-9 Moon, total (begins 22:15¹), the beginning visible in Africa, Europe, western and central Asia, Greenland, eastern North America, Central and South America (except the southern tip); the end visible in Europe, northwestern Asia, Greenland, North America, Central and South America, Africa (except extreme eastern part), the western Middle East.

Nov. 23-24 Sun, total (begins 20:46¹), the beginning visible in the extreme southern tip of South America, Australia, New Zealand; the end visible in southern Indonesia, western Australia, the southern Indian Ocean, the southern Atlantic Ocean.

Source: The Astronomical Almanac for the Year 2003 (2002).