Beta Release Notes

These release notes apply to the Photo Ephemeris Web beta site only (see also the production version release notes.) Please send feedback and observations via the Help button at the bottom right of the page.

Note: if you switch from the beta to production site, or vice versa, you will likely need to clear cached data in order for everything to load correctly (instructions). Avoid running multiple instances of the app in separate tabs - things will misbehave. You can open a Private or Incognito browser window if necessary to do this, or use two different browsers.

3.8.0 Aug 7 2023

• NEW: lines of partial eclipse are now shown for PRO subscribers:
  
• Note: we're still working out a few path glitches affecting certain eclipses (they're pretty obvious if you run into them and don't affect the 2023 and 2024 events)
• NEW: In the Share form, PRO subscribers now have access to a built-in link shortener with the option to create custom links in the share page, e.g. https://ephemer.is/TSE2024-NM80 links to Photo Ephemeris Web Beta showing a location on the 80% partial eclipse line at the time of max eclipse in New Mexico for April 8 2024.
• IMPROVED: In the Share form, PRO subscribers may now choose whether to link to the /start page (recommended for links shared to social media) or to the default map page (as before)

3.7.8 Aug 3 2023

• UPDATED: attempt to optimize loading and layout of /3d page (to avert the mysterious ResizeObserver error)

3.7.7 Aug 2 2023

• FIXED: false positive time zone error display on first load
• FIXED: false positive elevation error display frequency 
• FIXED: 💣 display in 3D sphere on switching to page when default map is not available at the current zoom level. You may still see the bomb icon in case of actual error response from the map tile provider or other network errors
• IMPROVED: reduced network API calls on first load
• IMPROVED: higher contrast to indicate when geodetics button is enabled

3.7.6 July 27 2023

• IMPROVED: reduced page layout shift on first load

3.7.5 July 27 2023

• FIXED: PRO badge styling (regression in 3.7.4)

3.7.4 July 26 2023

• FIXED: the Yallop crescent moon visibility code was incorrect in some circumstances (regression bug)
• UPDATED: UI refinements and fixes

3.7.3 July 25 2023

• NEW: if you share a link from the web app, the link now opens at the /start page, which provides a simplified view of the key sun and moon information. If you visit the site on a mobile phone, you'll see this page by default (the site is designed for use on desktop or laptop computers)
• FIXED: a few UI bugs that crept in during the updates for 3.7

3.7.2 July 23 2023

• NEW: a site tour is available - click Start tour to begin
• UPDATED: the 'Sphere' page has been renamed to '3D'
• UPDATED: sign in and sign up forms are now displayed as overlay modal forms (in most cases)
• UPDATED: 3D controls have been redesigned and simplified. The option to enable/disable the map has been removed (there seems little reason to disable the map nowadays)
• IMPROVED: UI clean-up in various places

3.7.1 July 15 2023

• UPDATED: web app users visiting the site for the first time without signing in are shown a location derived from their IP address, rather than being left in Timbuktu; in cases where the IP address cannot be geolocated, Timbuktu remains the fallback default location.

3.7.0 July 14 2023

• UPDATED: we've removed the account sign-in requirement for basic usage of the site. This was introduced back in 2020 when operating costs for the site had become an issue. Now, you can use free features of the site without an account, although we still recommend signing in (to save your Settings, Locations, and to access PRO and Skyfire subscription features).
• UPDATED: we've made solar eclipse information for 2023 and 2024 available to all users, with no subscription required.
• UPDATED: time zone and elevation queries are now routed via a proxy. You should see improved network response times (~33% improvement is typical)
• IMPROVED: when navigating to a place name or address search result, the map bounds and zoom level now better match the search data

3.6.13 July 1 2023

• UPDATED: Skyfire features list
• FIXED: Nature First links (thanks Michael Lauer)

3.6.12 June 29 2023

• UPDATED: Skyfire forecast selection UI

3.6.11 June 11 2023

• FIX: applying filters in Visual Search when Range was unchecked would result in a crash (regression in 3.6, fixed here)

3.6.10 June 9 2023

• FIX: rarely a solar eclipse could display one day off the correct date (May 10 2013 was the only known example, but there were likely others)
• IMPROVED: two-finger drag on the timeline no longer risks navigating one page back in browsers. Fixed for most browsers except Safari, which does not support the override behavior

3.6.9 June 8 2023

• FIX: solar eclipse obscuration value for annular eclipses was incorrect at certain times
• UPDATED: translations into supported languages
• UPDATED: while the solar eclipse paths are not directly coupled to our web app releases, since the previous release, we've made improvements to the path calculations, in particular adding support for eclipses passing over polar regions. Some glitches and edge cases remain to be resolved (of upcoming eclipses, particularly for Aug 12 2026), but the great majority of paths are working well.

3.6.8 June 2 2023

• FIX: Yallop new moon visibility codes were not displayed (regression in 3.6)

3.6.7 May 28 2023

• FIX: incorrect Skyfire forecast displayed (regression in 3.6)

3.6.6 May 26 2023

• FIX: crash on Safari 14.1 fixed (hopefully - please test!)
• FIX: console error messages ('t.t0 is null' or similar)
• UPDATE: open eye safety page in new tab when link clicked

3.6.5 May 24 2023

• UPDATED: add eye protection warning symbol and link during partial and annular phases of a solar eclipse
• Time to next contact updates with 1/10th of a second resolution
• Don't show the eclipse simulator after sunset
• Add link to Help Center article (not yet published)
• Fixes to timeline logic to determine if an event occurs when the sun is risen
• Updated German translations

3.6.4 May 23 2023

• UPDATED: additional information is presented in the eclipse simulator
• Instantaneous magnitude of the eclipse (a unitless value representing the fraction of the solar diameter covered by the Moon). This is <0 when no eclipse is in progress, between 0 and 1 during partial or annular eclipses, and >1 during totality
• Obscuration: a percentage representing the proportion of the Sun's disk that is obscured by the Moon. 0% when no eclipse is in progress, 100% during totality, otherwise a value between 0% and 100%
• Time to next contact: this is a convenient way to see the duration of different phases of the eclipse. For example, if you set the time to that of second contact (C2 - the start of totality or annularity), the next contact will be C3 (end of totality/annularity), the the duration shown is the observable length of the total eclipse
• Delta T: we display the value adopted in the Besselian elements used to calculate the eclipse circumstances and path. This is provided primarily for comparability of our results with other sources.

3.6.3 May 20 2023

• NEW: paths of totality for solar eclipses are now displayed on the map when a date with a total or annular solar eclipse is selected. The central line of the eclipse is indicated by a heavy pink solid line. The thinner lines and the pink shaded areas to the north and south show the area in which totality can be observed.
• Pink is used as we don't use that color anywhere else in the app, and it is chosen to match the color of the sun's chromosphere and prominences observed during a solar eclipse; it also tends to stand our clearly against various map types.
• Paths are calculated for an observer at sea level. If you're observing at a location significantly above sea level, the path locations may shift by a few hundred yards/meters north or south, depending on the circumstances. Path locations are also sensitive to the value of deltaT used in the Besselian Elements. Inaccuracy in deltaT may result in shifts of the eclipse path eastwards or westwards (i.e. Earth rotated into place either slightly before or after the time expected in the eclipse prediction, so to speak).
• If you are planning to observe an eclipse from a location on the edge of the path of totality, it would be prudent to consult multiple sources to validate your plans. An error in the wrong direction may result in you not quite observing totality. Lunar limb profiles, deltaT assumptions and elevation above sea level are all significant considerations at path edge locations.
• Eclipse paths do not require a PRO subscription
• Known issues (work in progress):
  • Paths are not displayed for non-central (partial only) eclipses
  • Some eclipse paths are currently missing, incomplete or rendered incorrectly (e.g. Feb 17 2026, Aug 12 2026)
  • With default maps (Leaflet), certain eclipse paths which span the anti-meridian (e.g. Apr 20 2023) may be positioned in a way that does not permit the map pin to be dropped reliably on all parts of the path
  • The beginning and end of the path (at sunrise or sunset) may be slightly curtailed in some cases. The maximum error in longitude should not exceed 0.1 degrees.
  • Paths are not currently displayed for partial eclipses.

3.6.2 May 14 2023

• NEW: solar eclipse simulations (requires PRO subscription). If you select a time and location for which a solar eclipse is predicted (e.g. the annular eclipse of Oct 14 2023, or the total solar eclipse of Apr 8 2024), a simulation of how the eclipse is expected to appear is displayed at the lower right of the map.
• You can independently animate the simulation by clicking the play button (three playback speeds are available).
• You can zoom in or out to control the size of the sun/moon using two fingers on a trackpad, or the scroll wheel on a mouse.
• You can choose a contact time (C1, C2, Max, C3, C4) to control the displayed instant. For total and annular eclipses, you can click the arrow to the left of C2 or to the right of C3 to view from 5 seconds before or after the actual contact time (typically, this is when the 'diamond ring' would be visible in a total eclipse, or when the moon moves 'in' or 'out' of the sun's disk for an annular eclipse). For partial eclipses, the arrow to the left of the 'Max' indication sets the time to 2 minutes before the eclipse reaches its greatest magnitude.
• The simulation accounts for: passage of the moon in front of the sun, with positions and semidiameters derived from the Besselian elements; display of the diamond ring effect at the predicted contact position angles; a simulation of the corona, chromosphere and solar prominences; darkening and lightening of the sky; the position of the horizon for eclipses near sunrise or sunset; changes in the parallactic angle and the physical ephemeris of the sun over time.
• The simulation does NOT account for libration and variations in the lunar limb profile. These factors can affect predicted contact times by a few seconds and position angles by a few degrees, and also the appearance of Baily's Beads.
• The images used for the simulation come from the 2017 total solar eclipse (credit: Alison Craig and Stephen Trainor). The actual appearance of the corona and solar prominences varies over time and will not exactly match the simulation. The appearance, shape, and brightness of both the diamond ring and corona vary significantly based on your shot exposure.
• Further refinements and visualization enhancements to come...
• NEW: improvements in accuracy of sun and moon calculated coordinates. The improvements are in the order of 2-3 hundredths of a degree, which is significant during solar eclipses.
• FIXED: incorrect sunrise and sunset times displayed in conjunction with Skyfire forecasts in the Location page.

3.6.0 Apr 24 2023

• NEW: app now includes solar eclipse events in the events list and local circumstances in the timeline (requires PRO subscription). Some examples: the annular eclipse of Oct 14 2023 as viewed in Belize, or the total solar eclipse of Apr 8 2024 which crosses Mexico, the US and northeast Canada.
• The events list shows the time of greatest eclipse globally. To view local circumstances for the eclipse (what you see depends on where you are located), selected the date of the eclipse and see the timeline. Events shown include the four contact times (C1, C2, C3, C4, where C1 and C4 represent the start and end of partial eclipse, C2 and C3 the start and end of totality) and the time of maximum eclipse, when the sun is most obscured by the moon.
• UPDATED: the disc size of the moon is now relative to average rather than minimum, so "super moons" will appear to be around +7% rather than +14%. This feels like a less sensationalist approach.
• UPDATED: as part of this release, we've completely rebuilt the internal astronomical algorithm library. There should be virtually no detectable differences to the end user, although the new version results in a smaller download size for the site, and benefits from some subtle fixes along with an expanded test suite to make sure we're getting the right results. You may notice some improvements to Visual Search results (the new library appears to avoid both incomplete results for range searches and most duplicate result cases that would occasionally happen previously)
• UPDATED: the timeline events now occupy whatever width is required to display the title text (previously this was truncated in some cases)

3.5.4 Feb 13 2023

• FIXED: sharing URLs were not correctly generated - now fixed (regression in 3.5.2)

3.5.2 Feb 11 2023

• IMPROVED: better handling of query parameters in URLs (app no longer 'swallows' all query parameters upon loading)
• Bug fixes

3.5.0 Jan 21 2023

• NEW: adds PlanIGN and OrthoIGN map types for PRO subscribers. These are, respectively, a regional combined street + topographic and satellite maps focussed on France (up to zoom level 19). Reduced maximum zoom levels available outside of France

3.4.3 Jan 21 2023

• FIXED: occasional crash on enabling Skyfire layers
• FIXED: stray '0' displayed near elevation value; misaligned text at top right of page

3.4.1 Jan 18 2023

• NEW: PRO subscribers can now include elevation offsets in saved locations, making it easy to store particular shooting locations (e.g. the observation deck of a particular skyscraper) or subjects (e.g. the height of the tip of radio antenna). Any elevation offset greater than 2m will be displayed in the locations list.

3.4.0 Jan 17 2023

• CHANGED: primary pin elevation offset is now taken into account when observer elevation above the horizon is calculated. For example, if you're shooting from the 71st floor of a skyscraper, you can set the elevation offset for the primary pin (enable geodetics, then edit the offsets, PRO account required), then enable Height above the Horizon. Rise/set times are now adjusted for the observer (i.e. camera) elevation above the horizon. This also means that Visual Search can now account more easily for situations where the camera is elevated above the ground and the target altitude is a negative value.
• IMPROVED: UI cleaned up for elevation at horizon controls/form
• IMPROVED: If elevation offset is set for primary pin (via Edit Geodetics form), the value is displayed next to the primary pin elevation above sea level when Geodetics is disabled
• CHANGED: Visual Search on/off switch has moved to the top right of the Sphere display to make room for the additional horizon and primary elevation offset data display
• CHANGED: Magnetic north control has moved to the Settings page to de-clutter the Map page UI. Also added a link to the Help Article page explaining when magnetic north should be enabled (short version: very rarely)
• CHANGED: minimum altitude in Visual Search has been changed to -5 degrees. This should account for pretty much any situation and should also reduce the incidence of form validation warnings without affecting the search results. -5 degrees corresponds to the greatest negative horizon altitude that is ever likely to be encountered (unless you're in outer space).