Solar Lunar Tables

    Solunar time charts show the best time to hunt and fish. Based on a scientific method.


Click here to see the chart.

I have been reading a lot about the Solunar Theory and this is what I’ve found….this is my first draft……2/3/09 Paul

Every good fisherman knows that fish do not feed all the time. They are influenced considerably by external forces. My own personal theory is that I go fishing at whatever time I can. But there are scientifically proven influences that affect the fishing activity and can help you plan your trip. I have started using this idea to plan the days I pick to go fishing and the days I stay home and do my chores. One practical example is that after looking at the table, I know I'll be on vacation for a week in July. July 4th I'm grilling burgers and July 5th I'm going fishing. in part, this is because I do not want to be on the water that day. The other is that the tables suggest that the 5th will be a better fishing day.

Nature cycles under the effects of the sun and moon. There are times when fish seem to bite almost anything for awhile and then just “turn off.” According to John Arden Knight, these are called Solunar Periods. To the inexpert fisherman this appears to occasionally be sunrise and sunset, but other times it may be during a seemingly random time of the day. If the weather and feeding conditions are favorable, these Solunar feeding periods may last one to two hours.

In 1926 John Alden Knight devised a theory related to prediction of best fishing times, giving it the name Solunar, (Sol) for sun and (Lunar) for moon. He created and refined the "folk lore" idea he had heard of from Florida. Initially he looked at 33 items that he believed would have an effect on the day-to-day activities of fresh and saltwater fish feeding patters. He eventually excluded all but three: sun, moon, & tides. You can find this book on sale for about $20 at Amazon.com.



One experiment conducted by Dr Frank Brown, Northwestern University, was to observe oysters opening their shells. In nature, oysters open their shells at high tide. In the lab they were placed in the dark for two weeks. For the first week they opened and closed in sync with the tide from their home many miles away. The second week they began to open to the time that the moon was directly overhead or underfoot. This suggested that the force triggering the oyster’s opening was the direct force of the moon’s gravitational pull, not the tide or the sun.

The exact times on the table are according to latitude and longitude, so that within a give time zone, there may be substantial differences in Texas. In SC there is not as much difference and the difference is mainly due to the east-west direction more than the north-south direction. I found that from Myrtle Beach to McClellanville there was a difference of only 2 minutes.

John Arden Knights research includes calculating the times and large numbers of fish caught at specific locations. He found that an extremely high percentage of catches were made during the New Moon, when the moon is the darkest and the Solunar effect is the greatest. To be more specific, the greatest number was caught during these Solunar periods of time. He initially studied fish, but later found that the same held true for animals and birds.

The sun and moon exert major gravitational forces on the earth. The closer we are to each, the more the influence is realized. “Peak days” are NEW MOON and FULL MOON. A “peak month”, like JUNE, has more combined sun and moon influence than any other month. During a full moon in June, the sun and moon opposite each other, such that when the sun is rising, the moon is setting. During new moon, they travel through the sky together. Since the sun and moon travel at different speeds, no two days or months are ever exactly alike.

Solunar “peak times” will happen when a Solunar period is 30-60 minutes from sunrise or sunset. When there is a moonrise or moonset during a Solunar period, there will be even greater action! If this rise or set occurs during a new moon or full moon, then will be the best time of the season.

So what are the best days to go hunting or fishing? If you are one that prefers to fish at sunrise or sunset, then the best days for you will be major and minor Solunar Periods that occur near sunrise or sunset on the days of a full moon or new moon.

Of course, changes in local weather conditions will also affect the fishing activity. For example, when the barometer is falling, the bite tends to turn of. Such as occurs when a cold front is moving in. the Solunar theory may point to the best time of day but are of course no guarantee that the day will be a success. Other favorable weather factors to watch are a steady or rising barometer and an air temperature 15 degrees higher than water temperature. If these weather conditions occur, then one can expect an active Solunar Period.

I know saltwater anglers will argue that the tides affect the fishing more than the moon itself. One should understand that the tides are under the influence of the moon. Both the position and the phase of the moon have an influence on the tides. Research shows that fish have a different “day” than people do. Their biological clock seems to correspond more to a lunar clock and we tend to be on solar time. A tidal day lasts 24 hours and 53 minutes. This can cause fish to feed about an hour later from one day to the next.

The key to calculating Solunar times is in determining the relationship of the sun to the moon. During minor periods they will be 90 or 270 degrees apart. During major periods, the sun and moon will be either 0 or 180 degrees apart. Times calculate on the chart are usually accurate to 1 minute. The time will change 1 minute for each 12 miles you move either east or west from the base point.

I have subscribed to a Solunar service that allows me to share it with you on the GoFishSC.com website. If anyone has any experience with Solunar tables or if this helps, please let the rest of us know.