Rare Solar Eclipse Visible from Southwest Sunday
"Ring of Fire" eclipse
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LOS ANGELES (KTLA) -- A rare "ring" eclipse is now visible from California and other parts of the Southwest according to astronomers.
The Griffith Observatory is holding a special eclipse-viewing event today and plans to sell affordable eclipse-viewing glasses and other devices that will project images of the eclipse on the ground.
Regular sunglasses will not protect the eyes, said observatory spokeswoman Susan Szotyori.
Telescopes equipped with special filters are available to help the public view the eclipse, officials said.
NASA has also set up an interactive Google map showing times of the eclipse -- click on the map and it'll show when the eclipse will begin and end at any given point in the world.
The times are set to "Coordinated Universal Time," which is seven hours ahead of California.
Solar eclipses occur when the moon covers the solar disk and projects its shadow on Earth.
A solar eclipse happens when the moon is in its new moon phase and is perfectly aligned with both the sun and the Earth. From our perspective, the sun is hidden.
During the astronomical phenomenon on May 20, the moon will be in one of its furthest positions from Earth, so its shadow will not be able to completely hide the sun, as would occur in a total eclipse.
That's why this phenomenon is called an annular eclipse.
Annular eclipses are different from total eclipses, where no "ring of fire" is visible.
"For this beautiful phenomenon, the sun peeks over the edges of the moon as a bright shining ring," according to the Institute.
"In the United States, the afternoon sun will become a luminous ring in places such as Medford, Oregon; Chico, California; Reno, Nevada; St. George, Utah; Albuquerque, New Mexico, and Lubbock, Texas," according to NASA.
In Los Angeles, the moon will begin to obscure the sun at 5:24 p.m. Sunday, reach its maximum coverage at 6:38 p.m., and exit the sun's path at 7:42 p.m., just 10 minutes before sunset, observatory officials said.
Other locations where partial phases of the eclipse will be visible include Alabama, Idaho, Kentucky, Oklahoma, Illinois, Missouri and New York.
The eclipse will also be visible in parts of China and Japan, according to NASA.
"It's an annular solar eclipse, the last in the U.S. in nearly 18 years."
Ring of Fire - Eclipse pic from the University of New Mexico at 9:36 PM EDT
Send us your photos of the eclipse!
The Griffith Observatory is holding a special eclipse-viewing event today and plans to sell affordable eclipse-viewing glasses and other devices that will project images of the eclipse on the ground.
Regular sunglasses will not protect the eyes, said observatory spokeswoman Susan Szotyori.
Telescopes equipped with special filters are available to help the public view the eclipse, officials said.
NASA has also set up an interactive Google map showing times of the eclipse -- click on the map and it'll show when the eclipse will begin and end at any given point in the world.
The times are set to "Coordinated Universal Time," which is seven hours ahead of California.
Solar eclipses occur when the moon covers the solar disk and projects its shadow on Earth.
A solar eclipse happens when the moon is in its new moon phase and is perfectly aligned with both the sun and the Earth. From our perspective, the sun is hidden.
During the astronomical phenomenon on May 20, the moon will be in one of its furthest positions from Earth, so its shadow will not be able to completely hide the sun, as would occur in a total eclipse.
That's why this phenomenon is called an annular eclipse.
Annular eclipses are different from total eclipses, where no "ring of fire" is visible.
"For this beautiful phenomenon, the sun peeks over the edges of the moon as a bright shining ring," according to the Institute.
"In the United States, the afternoon sun will become a luminous ring in places such as Medford, Oregon; Chico, California; Reno, Nevada; St. George, Utah; Albuquerque, New Mexico, and Lubbock, Texas," according to NASA.
In Los Angeles, the moon will begin to obscure the sun at 5:24 p.m. Sunday, reach its maximum coverage at 6:38 p.m., and exit the sun's path at 7:42 p.m., just 10 minutes before sunset, observatory officials said.
Other locations where partial phases of the eclipse will be visible include Alabama, Idaho, Kentucky, Oklahoma, Illinois, Missouri and New York.
The eclipse will also be visible in parts of China and Japan, according to NASA.
"It's an annular solar eclipse, the last in the U.S. in nearly 18 years."
Ring of Fire - Eclipse pic from the University of New Mexico at 9:36 PM EDT
Send us your photos of the eclipse!
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