Solar eclipse of May 20, 2012
Introduction The '''solar eclipse of May 20, 2012''' ('''May 21, 2012''' local time in the Eastern Hemisphere) was an annular solar eclipse that was visible in a band spanning through Eastern Asia, the Pacific Ocean, and North America. As a partial solar eclipse, it was visible from northern Greenland to Hawaii, and from eastern Indonesia at sunrise to northwestern Mexico at sunset. The moon's apparent diameter was smaller because the eclipse was occurring only 32 1/2 hours after apogee.A solar eclipse is an astronomical phenomenon that occurs when the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun, thereby totally or partly obscuring the image of the Sun for a viewer on Earth. An annular solar eclipse occurs when the Moon's apparent diameter is smaller than the Sun's, blocking most of the Sun's light and causing the Sun to look like an annulus (ring). An annular eclipse appears as a partial eclipse over a region of the Earth thousands of kilometres wide.The annular eclipse was the first visible from the contiguous United States since the solar eclipse of May 10, 1994 (Saros 128), and the first in Asia since the solar eclipse of January 15, 2010 (Saros 141). The path of the eclipse's antumbra included heavily populated regions of China and Japan, and an estimated 100 million people in those areas were capable of viewing annularity. In the western United States, its path included 8 states, and an estimated 6 million people were capable of viewing annularity. It was the 58th eclipse of the 128th Saros cycle, which began with a partial eclipse on August 29, 984 AD and will conclude with a partial eclipse on November 1, 2282.
Visibility and viewing Animation of the eclipseThe antumbra had a magnitude of .94, stretched  wide, and traveled eastbound at an average rate of  per second, remaining north of the equator throughout the event. The longest duration of annularity was 5 minutes and 46 seconds, occurring just south of the Aleutian Islands. The eclipse began on a Monday and ended on the previous Sunday, as it crossed the International Date Line.===Asia===The annular eclipse commenced over the Chinese province of Guangxi at sunrise, at 6:06 a.m. China Standard Time. Travelling northeast, the antumbra of the eclipse approached and passed over the cities of Macau, Hong Kong, Guangzhou, and Xiamen, reaching Taipei by 6:10 a.m NST. After crossing the East China Sea, it passed over much of eastern Japan, including Osaka and Tokyo at 7:28 a.m and 7:32 a.m JST respectively, before entering the Pacific Ocean. The penumbra of the eclipse was visible throughout Eastern Asia and various islands in the Pacific Ocean until noon.The path of the antumbra over highly populated areas allowed at least an estimated 100 million people to view annularity. Because the eclipse took place during the summer monsoon season in Southeast Asia, viewing conditions were not ideal in some areas, including Hong Kong.===North America===After traveling approximately 4,000 miles (6,500 kilometers) across the Pacific Ocean, the antumbra entered North America between the coastlines of Oregon and California, reaching the coastal city of Eureka, California at 6:25 p.m PDT. After passing over Medford, Oregon and Redding, California, it had reached Reno, Nevada by 6:28 p.m PDT. The eclipse continued to travel southeast, passing 30 miles (48 km) north of Las Vegas, Nevada, over St. George, Utah, and reaching the Grand Canyon by approximately 6:33 p.m MST. After passing over Albuquerque, New Mexico and Lubbock, Texas, the eclipse terminated above central Texas at sunset, 8:38 p.m. CST. An estimated 6.6 million people lived under the path of the antumbra. The penumbra was visible throughout most of North America, including the islands of Hawaii.
Related eclipses === Eclipses of 2012 ===* An annular solar eclipse on May 20. * A partial lunar eclipse on June 4. * A total solar eclipse on November 13. * A penumbral lunar eclipse on November 28.=== Solar eclipses 2011–2014 ======Saros 128====== Tritos series ===Series members between 1901 and 2100150pxMarch 29, 1903(Saros 118)150pxFebruary 25, 1914(Saros 119)150pxJanuary 24, 1925(Saros 120)150pxDecember 25, 1935(Saros 121)150pxNovember 23, 1946(Saros 122)150pxOctober 23, 1957(Saros 123)150pxSeptember 22, 1968(Saros 124)150pxAugust 22, 1979(Saros 125)150pxJuly 22, 1990(Saros 126)150pxJune 21, 2001(Saros 127)150pxMay 20, 2012(Saros 128)150pxApril 20, 2023(Saros 129)150pxMarch 20, 2034(Saros 130)150pxFebruary 16, 2045(Saros 131)150pxJanuary 16, 2056(Saros 132)150pxDecember 17, 2066(Saros 133)150pxNovember 15, 2077(Saros 134)150pxOctober 14, 2088(Saros 135)150pxSeptember 14, 2099(Saros 136)===Metonic series======Inex series=== Inex series members between 1901 and 2100:150pxJuly 20, 1925(Saros 125)150pxJune 30, 1954(Saros 126)150pxJune 11, 1983(Saros 127)150pxMay 20, 2012(Saros 128)150pxApril 30, 2041(Saros 129)150pxApril 11, 2070(Saros 130)150pxMarch 21, 2099(Saros 131)
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