Will Boston see the "ring of fire" solar eclipse?
BOSTON - This Saturday we have a very exciting event known as an annular solar eclipse. This is slightly different than a total solar eclipse in that the moon does not completely cover the entire disk of the sun.
An annular solar eclipse, also known as a "ring of fire eclipse" occurs when the new moon moves directly in line, in-between the Earth and the sun.
Unlike a total solar eclipse, the moon is farther away from the Earth in its orbit during an annular eclipse, so it appears smaller in our sky. On Saturday, the Moon will cover 91% of the sun, leaving a "ring of fire" around the edges. This will only occur along a very narrow path known as the "path of annularity".
For this particular event, that path is over parts of the western United States, stretching from Oregon to western Texas.
We will be on the eastern edge of this event on Saturday here in New England. In Boston, the moon will cover a maximum of only 17% of the sun at 1:26 p.m.
The entire partial eclipse here takes place from 12:18 p.m. to 2:34 p.m.
We will have more on this to come later this week. At this point, given the weather forecast for the weekend, it appears unlikely that any of this will be visible in our area.