If you’re far enough north, the sun will rise like the horns of a bull on the morning of June 10th. It is an annular solar eclipse, also known as the “Ring of Fire” eclipse. It’s like a beacon for the June 21st solstice, which marks the start of astronomical summer.
The total annular solar eclipse can only be experienced by people who live in some remote locations. However, if you want to wake up at sunrise and take the right safety precautions, you can see the partial eclipse well in many places.
Where and when will the solar eclipse be visible?
On June 10, the “ring of fire” will be visible through a narrow band in the northernmost latitudes, beginning at dawn near Lake Superior in Ontario, Canada, where it begins at 5:55 am ET. It then crosses Greenland, the Arctic Ocean, and the North Pole, ending in Siberia at sunset at 7:29 a.m. ET.
Outside this streak, observers will see a rising sun or a partial solar eclipse. The closer they are to the center line, the more parts of the sun disappear. In metropolitan New York, said Mike Kentrianakis, who was director of the American Astronomical Society’s Eclipse Project during the 2017 great solar eclipse, said the sun will be about two-thirds dark by the time it rises at 5:25 a.m. Eastern Time.
“New York City will have a maximum darkness of nearly 73 percent at 5:32 am,” he wrote in an email.
He added, “It is expected that dawn will be exceptionally dark. It gets darker and darker before sunrise. But this morning it won’t be exactly like that! “
What is an annular solar eclipse?
During a total solar eclipse, the moon completely hides the sun, exposing the shy and feathered crown of our star. These events take place every two years.
But in ring-shaped eclipses, the moon is so far from the earth that it does not cover the entire photosphere, as the bright surface of the sun is called. As a result, a thin circular band of bright sun remains while the moon is centered in front of the sun, this is the “ring of fire”.
At the height of this solar eclipse, 11 percent of the photosphere is exposed.
Is it safe to observe a partial solar eclipse or an annular one?
No. Unless you are wearing special protective goggles, it is never advisable to look directly into the sun, even if it is partially, completely, or completely eclipsed.
Although you may not be able to see the sun’s infrared light, it can cause burns to the retina that may not heal. This damage can lead to permanent vision loss, depending on how much exposure you experience.
For safety, wear eclipse glasses while you watch. Do not wear sunglasses, wear special lenses. If you ran out of glasses from the “Great American Eclipse” 2017, you will find a list of suppliers here.
But if you don’t get glasses or other devices in time for Thursday’s eclipse, you can resort to other methods, such as making a cardboard pinhole camera projector or a paper plate. Here we give you some instructions.
Other websites, including Timeanddate.com and Virtual Telescope, will also be broadcasting from different locations starting at 5:00 a.m.
How rare is this type of solar eclipse?
Annular eclipses are not that uncommon. In December 2019, a “ring of fire” was sighted in the Middle East as well as in South and Southeast Asia.
An interesting feature of this solar eclipse is that it moves north and crosses the North Pole before going south. The fact that this event occurs so far north can be explained by the fact that it occurs near the summer solstice, when the northern half of the planet is most extremely tilted towards the sun.
The last time such a solar eclipse occurred in New York at dawn was in 1875, noted Kentrianakis. “And they complained, like us, that they had to get up so early,” he said.
