The Gospels say that when Jesus was crucified, Passover was being celebrated, and that the sky went dark when he died. Assuming the dark sky is a solar eclipse, couldn't astronomers find an overlap between eclipses and Passover in order to find the exact date that Jesus died?

by WaterfrontSunrise

I mean, if we follow what the Gospels are saying, we know:

  • it was the day before a sabbath (Friday)
  • the sky went dark (which I've often heard explained as an eclipse)
  • it was during Passover (which occurs based off of a lunar cycle)

Wouldn't all of these requirements narrow down the options for a possible exact date?

talondearg

Yes, yes it narrows it down.

  1. Pontius Pilatus acted as procurator in Judea between 26-36 AD.
  2. All four gospels agree that he died a few hours before the start of the Sabbath, thus on a Friday afternoon
  3. All four gospels agree that it was at the time of Passover, with some disagreement about the day it falls.
  4. There is some debate about the Last Supper, and how it relates to Passover, and whether the Synoptics or John should be given preference in understanding the other. In either case, Passover occurs with the slaughter of the lambs on the 14th of Nisan. Depending on how you interpret this data, the crucifixion occurs on the 14th or 15th Nisan, in either case it should be a Friday.
  5. Depending on how you interpret point 4, this gives you possible dates of 27, 30, 33, 34 AD, in order that 14th or 15th Nisan be a Friday; 34 AD requires a leap month.
  6. 27 AD is likely too early, as Luke 3:1-2 correlates the start of John the Baptist's ministry to the 15th year of Tiberus, which is either autumn 28/29 or spring 29/30.
  7. 34 AD is unlikely, as it requires bad weather, and if one dates Paul's conversion to 34 AD on other grounds, it would be problematic.
  8. If a lunar eclipse is being described (it is by no means certain), the only relevant lunar eclipse (one occurring around passover and visible from Jerusalem) can be calculated as Friday, 3rd April, 33AD.

There is some debate about this, but from my reading I would suggest this is "reasonable best estimation" for dating the crucifixion.

For the astronomical calculation, see Humphreys and Waddinginton 'The Date of the Crucifixion' Journal of the American Scientific Affiliation, 37 (Mar 1985), 2-10.