Observing Blog by Kelly Beatty
May’s event is called an annular or “ring” eclipse because the Moon passes directly in front of the Sun but will cover only 88 percent of it. The undersize lunar disk results because the eclipse occurs just one day after the Moon reaches apogee, the most distant point in its orbit around Earth.
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City | Annular eclipse begins | Annular eclipse ends | Duration | Sun’s altitude |
Medford, OR | 6:24:33 | 6:27:19 | 2m 46s | 21° |
Eureka, CA | 6:25:50 | 6:29:50 | 3m 59s | 21° |
Redding, CA | 6:26:21 | 6:30:56 | 4m 35s | 20° |
Reno, NV | 6:28:32 | 6:32:58 | 4m 26s | 17° |
Grand Canyon, AZ | 6:34:01 | 6:37:26 | 3m 17s | 10° |
St. George, UT | 7:32:17 | 7:36:30 | 4m 13s | 11° |
Albuquerque, NM | 7:33:39 | 7:38:05 | 4m 26s | 5° |
Lubbock, TX | 8:33:55 | 8:38:08 | 4m 13s | 1° |
More than 30 U.S. national parks lie within or very near the path as well, and the National Parks Service is getting ready to host big crowds of expectant visitors.
WARNING: Because the Sun’s disk won’t be completely covered, you’ll need to take careful precautions when attempting to view the ring or any phase of the partial eclipse. Looking at the Sun with your bare eyes, or with an inadequate filter, can permanently damage your vision.