Solar Eclipse on May 31, 2003
News story originally written on June 6, 2003

This diagram shows the positions of the Sun, Moon, and Earth during a solar eclipse. Click on image for full size (221K JPG ) Windows to the Universe original artwork

A solar eclipse was visible from a small area on Earth on May 31, 2003. Parts of Scotland, the Faeroe Islands, Iceland, and Greenland were within the central section of the Moon's shadow that produced the maximum eclipse.

A solar eclipse happens when the Moon passes between the Sun and the Earth, and the Moon's shadow sweeps across a narrow area of our planet. Viewers within the shadow briefly see the Sun disappear behind the Moon. This eclipse was an unusual "annular eclipse". Because the orbit of the Moon is an ellipse, not a perfect circle, the Moon is slightly further from Earth at certain times during its orbit than at other times. If the Moon is at a far point in its orbit when a solar eclipse occurs, the Moon appears a little smaller than usual, and is not large enough to entirely cover the Sun during the eclipse. During an annular eclipse, a thin ring of sunlight, called an "annulus", shines around the edges of the Moon.

If you missed this eclipse, you will have another chance later in 2003. The next solar eclipse will occur on November 23rd. It will be a total solar eclipse, lasting about two minutes. The eclipse will be visible from Antarctica, so mark that date on your calendar if you will be vacationing with penguins later this year!

This eclipse was closely related to the total lunar eclipse that happened two weeks ago, when the Sun, Earth, and Moon were also lined up. A lunar eclipse happens when Earth's shadow falls on the Moon.

This diagram shows the positions of the Sun, Moon, and Earth during a solar eclipse. Click on image for full size (221K JPG) Windows to the Universe original artwork

A solar eclipse could be seen from a small area on Earth on May 31, 2003. Parts of Scotland, the Faeroe Islands, Iceland, and Greenland were within the part of the Moon's shadow that caused the eclipse.

A solar eclipse happens when the Moon passes between the Sun and the Earth. The Moon's shadow darkens a narrow area on our planet. Viewers within the shadow see the Sun disappear behind the Moon for a short while. This eclipse was an unusual "annular eclipse". Because the orbit of the Moon is an oval, not a perfect circle, sometimes the Moon is a little further from Earth. If the Moon is at a far point in its orbit when a solar eclipse happens, the Moon appears a little smaller than usual. When the Moon looks smaller, it is not large enough to completely cover the Sun during the eclipse. During such an annular eclipse, a thin ring of sunlight shines around the edges of the Moon.

If you missed this eclipse, you will have another chance later in 2003. The next solar eclipse will occur on November 23rd. It will be a total solar eclipse, lasting about two minutes. But you may not be in the right place to see it, unless you really like penguins. The eclipse will be visible from Antarctica!

This picture shows the Sun, Moon, and Earth during an eclipse of the Sun. Click on image for full size (221K JPG) Windows to the Universe original artwork

An eclipse of the Sun could be seen from a small area on Earth on May 31, 2003. People in Scotland, Iceland, and Greenland had a chance to see the eclipse.

An eclipse of the Sun happens when the Moon moves between the Sun and the Earth. If you were in the right place to see an eclipse, you would see the Sun hide behind the Moon. This eclipse was a strange kind of eclipse. Sometimes the Moon looks a little smaller than usual because it is further away. That happened during this eclipse. The Moon didn't quite cover up the Sun the whole way.

Did you miss this eclipse? If so, there is another one later this year. But you may have to be a penguin to see it! The next eclipse of the Sun will be in November. The only place to see it will be in Antarctica!