San Diegans got the chance to experience a celestial phenomenon -- at least in part -- when an annular solar eclipse known as the "ring of fire" crossed the globe.
Tens of millions of skywatchers witnessed the annular eclipse -- when the moon crosses in front of the sun at a distance that gives it a "ring" effect -- on Oct. 14, 2023.
Here in San Diego, the sun was only about 70% obscured by the sun. It took nearly three hours for the moon to fully cross the path of the sun, with the eclipse reaching maximum coverage at about 9:26 a.m.
Take a look at some of the photos people in San Diego County captured below.
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What is an annular solar eclipse?
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A solar eclipse occurs when the moon passes between the Earth and the sun. There are total solar eclipses, where the moon completely blocks out the sun (The next one of those will happen on April 8, 2024). San Diego won't get the full effect of that one either. Here, about 50% of the moon will cover the sun.
But in an annular solar eclipse, the moon is closer to Earth and doesn't fully block out the sun as it passes, creating a "ring of fire" effect around the darkness of the moon.
The next annular eclipse that's going to be visible from the contiguous United States isn't going to be until 2046, according to San Diego Fleet Science Center astronomer Dr. Lisa Will.
What was the path of the eclipse?
The solar eclipse created a path of annularity (in some cases referred to as the path of totality) about 125 miles wide, and those in the path got the full effect of the "ring of fire." The path of annularity went through North, Central and South America. In the United States, the solar eclipse passed from the northwest to the southeast, passing through Oregon, Nevada, Utah, New Mexico and Texas.
"The path of totality is extremely narrow," Will said. "And so the only people that are going to be able to see this eclipse on Saturday are going to be people pretty much in North America for the most part."
Did you miss it? NASA provided a livestream of the eclipse.
Why are eclipses so exciting?
"There is actual interesting science that you can do during eclipses," Will said. "Eclipses have been a subject of humanity's interest for a long time. Especially, you can imagine what would happen if you felt the sun disappeared for a couple of minutes, and you weren't expecting it. Now that we can predict it, they're less mysterious but still fascinating."
