This is the last annular solar eclipse until 2039 in the United States.
A rare annular eclipse is set to take place on Saturday morning—the last event until 2039.
An annular eclipse is different from a total eclipse, such as the 2017 “Great American Eclipse”, where the sun is completely covered by the moon as it passes between the earth and the sun.
During an annular solar eclipse, the moon appears smaller than the sun, so it doesn’t block the entire disk, according to space.com. The sun peeking through the edges of the moon is what gave the event the “Ring of Fire” moniker.
Only the far northeastern corner of California is in the path of the event’s greatest viewing, where the moon will cover the entire day except for the outer edges. Regardless, the rest of Northern California will be in a good position to see the solar eclipse. The path of the eclipse will span eight states, from Oregon to Texas.
In Sacramento, 80% of the sun will be blocked by the moon on Saturday morning, with the eclipse beginning at 8:05 am, peaking at 9:20 am, and ending at 10:43 am, possibly on Saturday morning.
Like the total solar eclipse of 2017, the sky will darken as the moon begins to block direct sunlight from reaching the earth. Even with cloud cover, the eerie darkness of the sun associated with eclipses is still noticeable, according to NASA.
Eye protection is especially important when viewing the eclipse. “It is never safe to look directly at the sun during an annular eclipse without wearing solar viewing or eclipse glasses,” NASA said.
