Annular Eclipse to be visible from much of North, Central, and South America.

An annular eclipse of the Sun (eclipse in which the Moon passes in front of the Sun, but does not completely block it, leaving visible ring of light) will be visible from parts of the United States, Mexico, Belize, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, Colombia, and Brazil, on Saturday 14 October, with a partial eclipse visible from much of the rest of the Americas, as well as parts of Western Sahara, Mauritania, Senegal, The Gambia, Guinea Bissau, and Guinea.

The Moon's shadow projected onto the Earth as the eclipse proceeds. The hemisphere of the Earth facing the Sun is shown. Contours show where various fractions of the Sun's disk is covered. Dominic Ford/In the Sky.

Eclipses are a product of the way the Earth, Moon and Sun move about one-another. The Moon orbits the Earth every 28 days, while the Earth orbits the Sun every 365 days, and because the two Sun and Moon appear roughly the same size when seen from Earth, it is quite possible for the Moon to block out the light of the Sun. At first sight this would seem likely to happen every month at the New Moon, when the Moon is on the same side of the Earth as the Sun, and therefore invisible (the Moon produced no light of its own, when we see the Moon we are seeing reflected sunlight, but this can only happen when we can see parts of the Moon illuminated by the Sun). 

The relative positions of the Sun, Moon and Earth during a Solar eclipse. Not to scale. Starry Night.

An Annular Eclipse is a type of Solar Eclipse, in which the Moon passes between the Earth and the Sun while the moon is close to aphelion (when it is furthest from the Earth). The Moon has a variable orbit, getting considerably closer and further from the Earth at different times, which alters its size as seen from the Earth. Thus, when it is at its furthest from the Earth it appears considerably smaller than the Sun so an eclipse occurring at this time will produce a ring of sunlight, rather than a period of darkness. A Partial Annular Eclipse resembles a regular Partial Eclipse, in that the light of the Sun will be partially blocked by the Moon passing in from of it, though the disk of the Moon will be smaller.

An Annular Eclipse on 20 May 2013, photographed from Middlegate, Nevada. Wikipedia.

However, the Moon does not orbit in quite the same plane as the Earth orbits the Sun, so the Eclipses only occur when the two orbital planes cross one-another; this typically happens two or three times a year, and always at the New Moon. During Total Eclipses the Moon entirely blocks the light of the Sun, however most Eclipses are Partial, the Moon only partially blocks the light of the Sun.

How the differing inclinations of the Earth and Moon's orbits prevent us having an eclipse every 28 days. Starry Skies.

Although the light of the Sun is reduced during an Eclipse, it is still extremely dangerous to look directly at the Sun, and eclipses should only be viewed with specialized equipment.

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Hybrid Solar Eclipse to be visible from Western Australia, East Timor, and parts of Indonesia.

A solar eclipse will be visible from parts of from Western Australia, East Timor on Thursday 20 April 2023. This will be a Hybrid Eclipse, a tern used to refer to an eclipse which will appear to be total (with the Moon completely blocking out the Sun) along part of its path, but annular (with the Moon directly in front of the Sun, but a ring of Sun visible all around the Moon) in other places. A partial eclipse (in which the Moon only covers part of the Sun) will be visible from other parts of Australia and Indonesia, as well as parts of Southeast Asia, South China, Taiwan, southern Japan, the Philippines, northern New Zealand, and the islands of the West Pacific. The event will occur between 1.36 and 6.59 am GMT, although local start and end times will vary within this window.

Animation following the eclipse shadow from west to east, its point of view moving around the planet at a greater speed than Earth's rotation. If you don't take into account this rapid change of perspective, it may look like Earth is spinning in the wrong direction. Time and Date.

Eclipses are a product of the way the Earth, Moon and Sun move about one-another. The Moon orbits the Earth every 28 days, while the Earth orbits the Sun every 365 days, and because the two Sun and Moon appear roughly the same size when seen from Earth, it is quite possible for the Moon to block out the light of the Sun. At first sight this would seem likely to happen every month at the New Moon, when the Moon is on the same side of the Earth as the Sun, and therefore invisible (the Moon produced no light of its own, when we see the Moon, we are seeing reflected sunlight, but this can only happen when we can see parts of the Moon illuminated by the Sun).

The relative positions of the Sun, Moon and Earth during a Solar eclipse. Starry Night.

However, the Moon does not orbit in quite the same plane as the Earth orbits the Sun, so the Eclipses only occur when the two orbital planes cross one-another; this typically happens two or three times a year, and always at the New Moon. During Total Eclipses the Moon entirely blocks the light of the Sun, however most Eclipses are Partial, the Moon only partially blocks the light of the Sun.

How the differing inclinations of the Earth and Moon's orbits prevent us having an eclipse every 28 days. Starry Skies.

Although the light of the Sun is reduced during an Eclipse, it is still extremely dangerous to look directly at the Sun, and viewing eclipses should not be undertaken without appropriate equipment.

The path of the 20 April 2023 Solar Eclipse. The outermost red contour on the map above traces where in the world the eclipse will be visible – i.e., where the Moon will cover any part of the Sun's disk. Within this, the thinner red contours show where the Moon will cover at least 20%, 40%, 60% and 80% of the Sun at the moment of greatest eclipse. The central red (total) and blue (annular) lines show the narrow track where the hybrid eclipse will be visible. In-The-Sky/Hill Top Views.

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Annular Solar Eclipse to be visible from parts of Africa and Asia, 21 June 2020.

An annular eclipse of the Sun (eclipse in which the Moon passes in front of the Sun, but does not completely block it, leaving visible ring of light) will be visible from parts of the Democratic Republic of Congo, South Sudan, Ethiopia, Djibouti, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Pakistan, India, China and Taiwan, on Sunday 21 June 2020, with a partial eclipse visible from much of the rest of Africa, Italy and the Balkan Peninsula, all of Asia except northern Russia, the islands of the eastern Mediterranean, and the Indian and eastern Pacific oceans, as well as  parts of northern Australia.

The path of the 21 June 2020 Annular Solar Eclipse. The annular eclipse will be visible along the central dark grey path. A partial eclipse will be visible from the shaded areas; in the lighters area the full eclipse will not be visible as it will have started before dawn (west) or will continue after sunset (east). The solid red lines are the Equator and the Greenwich Meridian, the dotted red lines are the Topics of Cancer (north) and Capricorn (south). HM Nautical Almanac Office.

Eclipses are a product of the way the Earth, Moon and Sun move about one-another. The Moon orbits the Earth every 28 days, while the Earth orbits the Sun every 365 days, and because the two Sun and Moon appear roughly the same size when seen from Earth, it is quite possible for the Moon to block out the light of the Sun. At first sight this would seem likely to happen every month at the New Moon, when the Moon is on the same side of the Earth as the Sun, and therefore invisible (the Moon produced no light of its own, when we see the Moon we are seeing reflected sunlight, but this can only happen when we can see parts of the Moon illuminated by the Sun). 

 The relative positions of the Sun, Moon and Earth during a Solar eclipse. Not to scale. Starry Night.

An Annular Eclipse is a type of Solar Eclipse, in which the Moon passes between the Earth and the Sun while the moon is close to aphelion (when it is furthest from the Earth). The Moon has a variable orbit, getting considerably closer and further from the Earth at different times, which alters its size as seen from the Earth. Thus when it is at its furthest from the Earth it appears considerably smaller than the Sun so an eclipse occurring at this time will produce a ring of sunlight, rather than a period of darkness. A Partial Annular Eclipse resembles a regular Partial Eclipse, in that the light of the Sun will be partially blocked by the Moon passing in from of it, though the disk of the Moon will be smaller.

An Annular Eclipse on 20 May 2013, photographed from Middlegate, Nevada. Wikipedia.

However the Moon does not orbit in quite the same plane as the Earth orbits the Sun, so the Eclipses only occur when the two orbital planes cross one-another; this typically happens two or three times a year, and always at the New Moon. During Total Eclipses the Moon entirely blocks the light of the Sun, however most Eclipses are Partial, the Moon only partially blocks the light of the Sun.

How the differing inclinations of the Earth and Moon's orbits prevent us having an eclipse every 28 days. Starry Skies.

  

Although the light of the Sun is reduced during an Eclipse, it is still extremely dangerous to look directly at the Sun, and eclipses should only be viewed with specialized equipment.

Animation showing the shadow of the Moon at five minute intervals on Sunday 21 June 2020. Andrew Sinclair/HM Nautical Almanac.

  

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Annular Eclipse to be visible from Africa, Antarctica and South America.

An annular eclipse of the Sun (eclipse in which the Moon passes in front of the Sun, but does not completely block it, leaving visible ring of light) will be visible from parts of Angola, Argentina and Chile on Sunday 26 February 2017, with a partial eclipse visible from much of the rest of Sub-Saharan Africa, Antarctica, the southern half of South America and the islands of the South Atlantic.

The path of the 26 February 2017 Annular Solar Eclipse. The annular eclipse will be visible along the central dark grey path. A partial eclipse will be visible from the shaded areas; in the lighters area the full eclipse will not be visible as it will have started before dawn (west) or will continue after sunset (east). The solid red lines are the Equator and the Greenwich Meridian, the dotted red lines are the Topics of Cancer (north) and Capricorn (south). HM Nautical Almanac Office.

Eclipses are a product of the way the Earth, Moon and Sun move about one-another. The Moon orbits the Earth every 28 days, while the Earth orbits the Sun every 365 days, and because the two Sun and Moon appear roughly the same size when seen from Earth, it is quite possible for the Moon to block out the light of the Sun. At first sight this would seem likely to happen every month at the New Moon, when the Moon is on the same side of the Earth as the Sun, and therefore invisible (the Moon produced no light of its own, when we see the Moon we are seeing reflected sunlight, but this can only happen when we can see parts of the Moon illuminated by the Sun). 

The relative positions of the Sun, Moon and Earth during a Solar eclipse. Starry Night.

An Annular Eclipse is a type of Solar Eclipse, in which the Moon passes between the Earth and the Sun while the moon is close to aphelion (when it is furthest from the Earth). The Moon has a variable orbit, getting considerably closer and further from the Earth at different times, which alters its size as seen from the Earth. Thus when it is at its furthest from the Earth it appears considerably smaller than the Sun so an eclipse occurring at this time will produce a ring of sunlight, rather than a period of darkness. A Partial Annular Eclipse resembles a regular Partial Eclipse, in that the light of the Sun will be partially blocked by the Moon passing in from of it, though the disk of the Moon will be smaller.

An Annular Eclipse on 20 May 2013, photographed from Middlegate, Nevada. Wikipedia.

However the Moon does not orbit in quite the same plane as the Earth orbits the Sun, so the Eclipses only occur when the two orbital planes cross one-another; this typically happens two or three times a year, and always at the New Moon. During Total Eclipses the Moon entirely blocks the light of the Sun, however most Eclipses are Partial, the Moon only partially blocks the light of the Sun.

How the differing inclinations of the Earth and Moon's orbits prevent us having an eclipse every 28 days. Starry Skies.

Although the light of the Sun is reduced during an Eclipse, it is still extremely dangerous to look directly at the Sun, and eclipses should only be viewed with specialized equipment.

 Animation showing the shadow of the Moon at five minute intervals on Sunday 26 February 2017. Andrew Sinclair/HM Nautical Almanac.

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Annular Eclipse to be visible from Australia, Antarctica and the southern Indian Ocean, 29 April 2014.

An Annular Eclipse will occur on Tuesday 29 April 2014, starting at about 3.52 am GMT. It will be visible from Australia, much of Antarctica and the southern Indian Ocean, eastern Java and the islands of the Bali, Flores and Savu Seas, though a full Annular Eclipse will only be visible from a small area of Antarctica.

Map showing the areas from which the 29 April 2014 Annular Eclipse will be visible. A total Annular Eclipse will only be visible from the dark grey semi-circle on Antarctica. The full extent of the eclipse will be visible as a Partial Eclipse from the dark grey area; in the light grey area it will either begin before dawn or continue after sunset. HM Nautical Almanac Office.

An Annular Eclipse is a type of Solar Eclipse, that is to say an eclipse in which the Moon passes between the Earth and the Sun, but one which occurs while the moon is close to aphelion (when it is furthest from the Earth). The Moon has a variable orbit, getting considerably closer and further from the Earth at different times, which alters its size as seen from the Earth. Thus when it is at its furthest from the Earth it appears considerably smaller than the Sun so an eclipse occurring at this time will produce a ring of sunlight, rather than a period of darkness. A Partial Annular Eclipse resembles a regular Partial Eclipse, in that the light of the Sun will be partially blocked by the Moon passing in from of it, though the disk of the Moon will be smaller.

An Annular Eclipse on 20 May 2013, photographed from Middlegate, Nevada. Wikipedia.

See also...

 Total Lunar Eclipse on 15 April 2014.

 The planet Mars passes the Earth.

 The March Equinox.

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