On October 14th, a Annular Solar Eclipse is set to move across parts of the United States and create a rare “ring of fire” appearance at the center path in the western and southwestern United States.
The “ring of fire” is a unique phenomenon where the moon appears to have a ring of fire around it, due to its position fitting in the center of the sun when aligned just right. This phenomenon can be viewed with appropriate eclipse eye protection, and lens covers.
So what is an annular eclipse and why does the moon appear to fit in the middle of the sun?
Annular Solar Eclipses occur when the moon is at this most farthest point from the earth, appearing much smaller in appearance before it goes between the earth and the sun. Because the moon appears smaller, it does not fully hide the sun behind it, leading to the ring of fire appearance when it aligns between the earth and the sun.
This eclipse it expected to move from Northwest to Southeast through states from Oregon all the way to southwest Texas. For our North Texas coverage areas and Northwest Arkansas coverage areas, we will not see the full ring of fire appearance as these locations will be far from the center of its main path. However, we will see roughly between a 70% to 80% view of the eclipse from North Texas, and about a 65% to 70% view from Northwest Arkansas.
The eclipse on October 14th will be a great teaser before
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