2012 Solar Eclipse Blaze a "Ring of Fire" May 20th

People that are located in Southeastern Asia and the western United States this weekend will have a chance to get a glimpse of the first annular solar eclipse of this kind since 1994, that is according to NASA. Rather than a complete blocking out of the sun, as seen in a total eclipse, a "ring of fire" will radiate from behind the moon as it passes in front of the fiery sun.

This eclipse will begin on Sunday as the moon makes its voyage across the sun; at one point, as much as a whopping 94 percent of the sun will be covered, says NASA.


"Hundreds of millions of people will be able to witness the event," NASA Science's Tony Phillips wrote on NASA's Science News Web page. "The eclipse zone stretches from southeast Asia across the Pacific Ocean to western parts of North America."

Typically these types of eclipses happen twice a year but usually can only be seen from few places on Earth. Those in Southeast Asia will be able to see the eclipse on Monday, and people in the U.S. states of Oregon, California, Nevada, Arizona, Utah, New Mexico, and Texas will be able to start viewing around 5:30 p.m. PT on Sunday. The entire show should last about two hours with the "ring of fire" happening in the U.S. around 6:30 p.m. PT and lasting up to 4.5 minutes in some locations, according to NASA.


"Because some of the sun is always exposed during the eclipse, ambient daylight won't seem much different than usual," Phillips wrote. "Instead, the event will reveal itself in the shadows. Look on the ground beneath leafy trees for crescent-shaped sunbeams and rings of light."