An annular solar eclipse occurred at the Moon’s ascending node of orbit on Sunday, June 21, 2020, with a magnitude of 0.994. A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun, thereby totally or partly obscuring 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. Occurring about 6.2 days after apogee (on June 15, 2020, at 1:55 UTC), the Moon's apparent diameter was smaller.
Path
The path of this annular eclipse passed through parts of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, South Sudan, Ethiopia, and Eritrea in Africa; the southern Arabian Peninsula, including Yemen, Oman, and southern Saudi Arabia; parts of South Asia and the Himalayas, including southern Pakistan and northern India; and parts of East Asia, including South China and Taiwan. A partial eclipse was visible throughout much of the rest of Africa, Southeast Europe, most of Asia, and in New Guinea and northern Australia just before sunset. In Europe, the partial eclipse was visible to places southeast of the line passing through parts of Italy, Hungary, Ukraine, and southwestern Russia.
Eclipse details
Shown below are two tables displaying details about this particular solar eclipse. The first table outlines times at which the Moon's penumbra or umbra attains the specific parameter, and the second table describes various other parameters pertaining to this eclipse.
Eclipse season
This eclipse is part of an eclipse season, a period, roughly every six months, when eclipses occur. Only two (or occasionally three) eclipse seasons occur each year, and each season lasts about 35 days and repeats just short of six months (173 days) later; thus two full eclipse seasons always occur each year. Either two or three eclipses happen each eclipse season. In the sequence below, each eclipse is separated by a fortnight. The first and last eclipse in this sequence is separated by one synodic month.
Eclipses in 2020
- A penumbral lunar eclipse on January 10.
- A penumbral lunar eclipse on June 5.
- An annular solar eclipse on June 21.
- A penumbral lunar eclipse on July 5.
- A penumbral lunar eclipse on November 30.
- A total solar eclipse on December 14.
Metonic
- Preceded by: Solar eclipse of September 1, 2016
- Followed by: Solar eclipse of April 8, 2024
Tzolkinex
- Preceded by: Solar eclipse of May 10, 2013
- Followed by: Solar eclipse of August 2, 2027
Half-Saros
- Preceded by: Lunar eclipse of June 15, 2011
- Followed by: Lunar eclipse of June 26, 2029
Tritos
- Preceded by: Solar eclipse of July 22, 2009
- Followed by: Solar eclipse of May 21, 2031
Solar Saros 137
- Preceded by: Solar eclipse of June 10, 2002
- Followed by: Solar eclipse of July 2, 2038
Inex
- Preceded by: Solar eclipse of July 11, 1991
- Followed by: Solar eclipse of May 31, 2049
Triad
- Preceded by: Solar eclipse of August 21, 1933
- Followed by: Solar eclipse of April 23, 2107
Solar eclipses of 2018–2021
This eclipse is a member of a semester series. An eclipse in a semester series of solar eclipses repeats approximately every 177 days and 4 hours (a semester) at alternating nodes of the Moon's orbit.
The partial solar eclipses on February 15, 2018 and August 11, 2018 occur in the previous lunar year eclipse set.
Saros 137
This eclipse is a part of Saros series 137, repeating every 18 years, 11 days, and containing 70 events. The series started with a partial solar eclipse on May 25, 1389. It contains total eclipses from August 20, 1533 through December 6, 1695; the first set of hybrid eclipses from December 17, 1713 through February 11, 1804; the first set of annular eclipses from February 21, 1822 through March 25, 1876; the second set of hybrid eclipses from April 6, 1894 through April 28, 1930; and the second set of annular eclipses from May 9, 1948 through April 13, 2507. The series ends at member 70 as a partial eclipse on June 28, 2633. Its eclipses are tabulated in three columns; every third eclipse in the same column is one exeligmos apart, so they all cast shadows over approximately the same parts of the Earth.
The longest duration of totality was produced by member 11 at 2 minutes, 55 seconds on September 10, 1569, and the longest duration of annularity will be produced by member 59 at 7 minutes, 5 seconds on February 28, 2435. All eclipses in this series occur at the Moon’s ascending node of orbit.
Metonic series
The metonic series repeats eclipses every 19 years (6939.69 days), lasting about 5 cycles. Eclipses occur in nearly the same calendar date. In addition, the octon subseries repeats 1/5 of that or every 3.8 years (1387.94 days). All eclipses in this table occur at the Moon's ascending node.
Tritos series
This eclipse is a part of a tritos cycle, repeating at alternating nodes every 135 synodic months (≈ 3986.63 days, or 11 years minus 1 month). Their appearance and longitude are irregular due to a lack of synchronization with the anomalistic month (period of perigee), but groupings of 3 tritos cycles (≈ 33 years minus 3 months) come close (≈ 434.044 anomalistic months), so eclipses are similar in these groupings.
Inex series
This eclipse is a part of the long period inex cycle, repeating at alternating nodes, every 358 synodic months (≈ 10,571.95 days, or 29 years minus 20 days). Their appearance and longitude are irregular due to a lack of synchronization with the anomalistic month (period of perigee). However, groupings of 3 inex cycles (≈ 87 years minus 2 months) comes close (≈ 1,151.02 anomalistic months), so eclipses are similar in these groupings.