"Ring of Fire" Solar Eclipse This Sunday, May 20
This unusual phenomenon will put on a good show for West Coasters!
Residents of the West Coast of the United States will be treated to a rare event this Sunday at 5:24PM: a "ring of fire" solar eclipse. Technically called an annular solar eclipse, the "ring of fire" effect happens because of the moon's position between the sun and the Earth.
In a typical solar eclipse, the moon completely obscures the sun, from our perspective. Although the moon is considerably smaller than the sun, it is also a lot closer to us. It's the same reason why you can hold up your thumb, and (seemingly) completely obscure a distant skyscraper.
