The western part of the United States caught quite the show Saturday when the “ring of fire” eclipse moved through the skies.
The solar eclipse was seen in parts of Texas, Utah, New Mexico and other western states. The eclipse Saturday was different than a total solar eclipse, according to The Associated Press because the moon didn’t cover the sun up completely. Instead, it left a fire ring hence the name “ring of fire.” The moon lined up with the Earth and the Sun, leaving a border blazing around it.
The annular solar eclipse appeared over North, Central and South America and won’t be seen again in those regions until 2046, NASA said, according to CNN. There is another annular solar eclipse on June 21, 2039, but only Alaska will be able to see the Ring of Fire then.
There also will be a total solar eclipse next year, on April 8.
Below is a time chart for the solar eclipse, according to Space.com based on location, local time, and duration:
- Oregon Dunes, Oregon
- 9:15 a.m. PDT
- 4 minutes, 29 seconds
- Crater Lake National Park, Oregon
- 9:17 a.m. PDT
- 4 minutes, 19 seconds
- Great Basin National Park, Nevada
- 9:24 a.m. PDT
- 3 minutes, 46 seconds
- Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah
- 10:27 a.m. MDT
- 2 minutes, 31 seconds
- Canyonlands National Park, Utah
- 10:29 a.m. MDT
- 2 minutes, 24 seconds
- Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado
- 10:31 a.m. MDT
- 2 minutes, 57 seconds
- Albuquerque, New Mexico
- 10:34 a.m. MDT
- 4 minutes, 42 seconds
- Corpus Christi, Texas
- 11:55 a.m. CDT
- 4 minutes, 52 seconds
- Edzná Maya archaeological site, Yucatán Peninsula, Mexico
- 11:23 a.m. CST
- 4 minutes, 32 seconds
NASA streamed the entire solar event and if you missed it, you can catch it again on NASA’s website.
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s satellites tracked the shadow of the eclipse Saturday, according to a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.
And with that, #SolarEclipse2023 has traveled from Oregon to Texas.
— NOAA Satellites (@NOAASatellites) October 14, 2023
Watch the view of the shadow from @NOAA’s #GOESEast as it moves across the Pacific Northwest to the Gulf of Mexico. pic.twitter.com/jW7Iz9wPzX
A partial solar eclipse of the sun is now visible over parts of the Americas in the first stage of the rare “ring of fire” eclipse. See which areas are in its path. https://t.co/1EYVEi60Jr
— The Associated Press (@AP) October 14, 2023
We're getting our first views of the "ring of fire"!
— NASA (@NASA) October 14, 2023
Here's a look at the annular solar eclipse from Albuquerque, N.M., as the Moon nearly (but not completely) covers up the Sun. pic.twitter.com/SCW8r77FG4