Partial solar eclipse photo: UK
A hefty section of the world will be able to watch the upcoming eclipse of the sun. This eclipse will take place on May 20 or 21, depending on your time zone. In the world’s Western Hemisphere – Hawaii and North America – the eclipse will occur in the afternoon hours on Sunday, May 20. For the Eastern Hemisphere – Asia and Indonesia – the eclipse will happen in the morning hours on Monday, May 21.
Eye safety during solar eclipses
As seen on the map below, the solar eclipse can be viewed from almost all over the North Pacific Ocean, much of North America, Greenland, eastern Asia and parts of Indonesia. Although a partial eclipse of the sun can be seen from a wide area that goes as far north as the Arctic and as far south as Indonesia and Mexico, only a small sliver of the globe will be in a position to see the annular eclipse (the narrow red band extending from southeast China to the southwestern United States).
Map of May 20-21 partial and annular solar eclipse
Partial solar eclipse can be seen as far north as the Arctic and as far south as Indonesia and Mexico
Image credit: Fred Espenak. Click here for a larger map
Total solar eclipse (A) on left and annular eclipse (B) on right
A partial solar eclipse differs from an annular eclipse in that the moon doesn’t quite line up with the sun during a partial eclipse. In this kind of eclipse, the moon only takes a bite out the solar disk. In contrast, the moon passes directly in front of the sun during an annular eclipse. During an annular eclipse – unlike a total solar eclipse – the moon lies too far distant from Earth to totally cover the sun, so an annulus – or ring – of sunshine circles the moon during this type of solar eclipse.
From land, the annular eclipse is visible from a rather limited portion of the world. In the Western Hemisphere, it is seen in the southwestern part of the United States, during the afternoon hours on Sunday, May 20. In the Eastern Hemisphere, the annular eclipse occurs in far southeast China, far northern Taiwan and southeast Japan in the morning hours on Monday, May 21.
Map of annular eclipse path for the Eastern Hemisphere
The annular eclipse path passes through southeast China, northern Taiwan and southeast Japan in the morning hours on May 21
Map credit: Fred Espenak. Click here for a larger map and more information
We give the local eclipse times for the annular eclipse for the Eastern Hemisphere (China, Taiwan and Japan) at the very bottom of this page. For the local annular eclipse times in the United States, scroll to the bottom of this special post on North America.
Annular eclipse of the sun for southwestern U.S. on May 20
When is the eclipse visible from my part of the world?
Annular eclipse animation Locutus Borg
To know whether a partial or an annular eclipse is visible from your part of the world, and at what times, we provide links to two great resources. Click on this worldwide map, courtesy of the NASA eclipse web site, and scroll to your part of the world. Click at where you reside on the map to obtain eclipse times. Or go to this solar eclipse computer, courtesy of the U.S. Naval Observatory.
Keep in mind that both references give the times in Universal Time, so you need to convert from Universal Time into your time. For U.S. time zones, subtract 7 hours for Pacific Daylight Time, 6 hours for Mountain Daylight Time, 5 hours for Central Daylight time and 4 hours for Eastern Daylight Time.
How do I translate Universal Time into my time?
Animation of eclipse path. large gray shadow: partial eclipse; small red dot: annular eclipse
The eclipse starts at sunrise in Asia, travels eastward across the North Pacific Ocean and ends at sunset in North America nearly six hours later. Midway between, the greatest eclipse happens at local noon, very close to the International Date Line.
We wish to remind you of the utmost importance of using proper eye protection when watching a partial or an annular solar eclipse. Click here to find out if an astronomical organization near you is hosting a public presentation of the event.
To recap: North America, the North Pacific Ocean, Greenland, eastern Asia and parts of Indonesia will be able to watch the partial solar eclipse. The annular (ring of fire) eclipse will take place over a slice of the American Southwest, southeast China, far northern Taiwan and southeast Japan. If you live on the North American side of the Pacific, the eclipse will occur in the late afternoon hours before sunset on May 20. And if you live on the Asian side of the Pacific, the eclipse will be in the morning hours after sunrise on May 21.
Eye safety during solar eclipses
Local eclipse times for the Eastern Hemisphere (China, Taiwan and Japan)
May 21, 2012
China
Guangzhou
partial solar eclipse begins before sunrise
annular solar eclipse begins: 6:07:42 a.m.
annular solar eclipse ends: 6:12:04 a.m.
partial solar eclipse ends: 7:18 a.m.
Hong Kong
partial solar eclipse begins before sunrise
annular solar eclipse begins: 6:06:46 a.m.
annular solar eclipse ends: 6:10:13 a.m.
partial solar eclipse ends: 7:16 a.m.
Taiwan
Taipei
partial solar eclipse begins: 5:07 a.m.
annular solar eclipse begins: 6:10:17 a.m.
annular solar eclipse ends: 6:11:29 a.m.
partial solar eclipse ends: 7:24 a.m.
Japan
Osaka
partial solar eclipse begins: 6:17 a.m.
annular solar eclipse begins: 7:28:23 a.m.
annular solar eclipse ends: 7:31:16 a.m.
partial solar eclipse ends: 8:54 a.m.
Tokyo
partial solar eclipse begins: 6:19 a.m.
annular solar eclipse begins: 7:32:05 a.m.
annular solar eclipse ends: 7:37:09 a.m.
partial solar eclipse ends: 9:03 a.m.
