Solar eclipse of Oct. 25: When, where and how to see it
On Tuesday, October 25, the moon will pass in front of the sun in the last solar eclipse of 2022, an event that could be visible to millions of skygazers lucky enough to be on the sight path.
The eclipse on October 25 will be a partial eclipse and the second eclipse of 2022. She will be visible primarily from Europe and parts of Africa and Asia, but you can follow her online. Find out all about the final eclipse of 2022 through the moon in our guide below.
Related: Solar eclipses 2022: when, where and how to see them
When is the solar eclipse and how to watch it online?
The exact timing of the October 25 solar eclipse depends on where you are observing from. The eclipse itself begins in the Atlantic Ocean at 08:58:20 Universal Time (GMT)that would be approx 4:58 a.m. EDT. It ends at 9:01 am EDT (1301 GMT). The moment of the highest eclipse occurs at 7 a.m. EDT (1100:09 GMT), corresponding (opens in new tab) Eclipse scientist Fred Espenak.
If you are not in view, you have several options for observing the eclipse. Our October 25th Solar Eclipse Livestream Guide has the full list so far.
TimeandDate.com will have a live webcast beginning at 4:30 a.m. EDT (0830 GMT) and runs through the event. Based in Ceccano, Italy, the Virtual Telescope Project will have its own webcast beginning at 5 p.m. EDT (0900 GMT) and the Royal Observatory Greenwich offers live commentary from experienced astronomers 5:05 am EDT (0905 GMT).
If you are looking for specific eclipse start and stop times for your city in the visibility range, This chart by Fred Espenak provides detailed times for the eclipse (opens in new tab).
What will the partial solar eclipse look like?
At its peak, the October 25 eclipse will block 82% of the Sun as the moon and star will not be perfectly aligned with Earth as they are during a total solar eclipse. This means that at best, only a shard of sun should be visible from the “point of central eclipse.” This prime vantage point is located at the North Pole, so few observers are likely to see it.
But to observers across Europe and parts of Africa, the Middle East and Asia, the Sun appears eclipsed to varying degrees, depending on how close an observer is to the eclipse’s central path. In Russia, for example, about 80% of the sun’s disc will be covered by the moon, while 70% appears to be obscured by western China. Norway and Finland see eclipses at 63% and 62% respectively.
Visibility map for the solar eclipse of October 25
The October 25 partial solar eclipse will be visible across much of Europe, Northeast Africa, the Middle East and Central Asia. It will cover vast areas of the Arctic, including the North Pole, where few observers are likely to see it.
While this eclipse’s path will begin in the North Atlantic, it will encompass most of Europe and much of Africa and Asia, where millions of sky watchers could potentially see it, weather permitting.
The webcasts provided above are from vantage points in different locations in the visibility range, hence their different start times.
Tips for viewing the eclipse safely
WARNING: Looking directly at the sun can cause blindness and other forms of permanent eye damage if you don’t wear proper eye protection. Always make sure to use the right equipment when observing the sun or a solar eclipse.
If you plan on observing the October 25th solar eclipse or any other solar event, you need to make sure you have the right gear. Observers should wear special safety goggles certified Eclipse glassesbut Here’s an important note: REGULAR SUNGLASSES WILL NOT PROTECT YOU, EVEN WITH UV PROTECTION.
Our guide to safe sun gazing has more tips on what gear you need and what to look out for.
Tips for observing the solar eclipse:
You should look for Eclipse glasses that are ISO certified, meaning they have been approved by the International Organization for Standardization as safe for solar observation. That means they’ve been tested to let no more than 0.00032% of sunlight through their light filters, be free from imperfections like scratches or blisters, be able to cover both eyes, and include their manufacturer’s name and their instructions for proper use .
The safest way to view an eclipse is to use indirect methods, such as building a pinhole camera to project the eclipse onto an external surface. You can use our guide to building a pinhole camera to get started.
If you use a camera, companies like Celestron make special camera filters that you can use on your smartphone or DSLR camera. NASA advises observers to exercise extreme caution during solar eclipse events. Always wear your glasses during partial solar eclipses. For total solar eclipses, NASA has guidance on when to take off your glasses.
Why do solar eclipses occur?
Solar eclipses occur when the moon appears to pass in front of the sun as seen from earth. They can only occur when the moon phase is in the “new moon” stage, as the moon is then between the earth and the sun. However, the moon’s orbit around the earth is tilted about 5 degrees relative to the sun, so the two don’t align at every new moon, which is why there isn’t an eclipse every month.
In a cosmic coincidence, the Sun is 400 times larger than Earth’s Moon, but the Moon orbits Earth at a distance 400 times closer than the Sun. When the Moon is perfectly aligned with the Sun as seen from Earth, it completely blocks the Sun during a total solar eclipse. These occur about every 18 months.
However, there are times when the moon appears to cross in front of the sun but does not completely obscure the star. This is when we get partial solar eclipses. Sometimes the moon is a little too far from Earth to completely block the sun, creating a dazzling “ring of fire” effect known as an annular eclipse.
When is the next solar eclipse?
After the partial solar eclipse on October 25, we’ll have to wait until 2023 for the next time the moon passes in front of the sun. In 2023 there will be two solar eclipses.
The next immediate solar eclipse will occur on April 20, 2023 and will be a so-called hybrid eclipse. This is a solar eclipse that may appear like an annular eclipse, also known as a Ring of Fire eclipse, from some parts of its track and a total eclipse from others. This eclipse will be visible from parts of Southeast Asia, East India, Australia, the Philippines and New Zealand, Indonesia and Papua New Guinea.
After the eclipse of April 20, there will be an annular eclipse on October 14, 2023. This eclipse will be visible in parts of North America, Central America, and South America, with the “ring of fire” effect visible from the western United States, Central America, Colombia, and Brazil.
If you can’t wait that long, there’s also a total lunar eclipse on November 8, 2022.
bibliography
Partial Solar Eclipse 2022, October 25, Fred Espenak, EclipseWise.com, Retrieved October 22, 2022 from https://eclipsewise.com/solar/SEprime/2001-2100/SE2022Oct25Pprime.html (opens in new tab).
Google Eclipse Map Page, Partial Solar Eclipse of Oct 25, 2022, Fred Espenak, EclipseWise.com. Retrieved October 22, 2022 from https://eclipsewise.com/solar/SEgmapx/2001-2100/SE2022Oct25Pgmapx.html (opens in new tab).
The Ultimate Guide to Observing the Sun. Celestron. Retrieved October 22, 2022 from https://www.celestron.com/blogs/knowledgebase/the-ultimate-guide-to-observing-the-sun
Solar Eclipse Glasses: Where to Buy the Best, High-Quality Eyewear Retrieved October 22, 2022 from https://www.space.com/36941-solar-eclipse-eye-protection-guide.html (opens in new tab).
Partial Solar Eclipse – October 25, 2022, TimeandDate.com, Retrieved October 22, 2022 from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0sx_vuKEGlY (opens in new tab).
Solar Eclipse LIVE | 25 October 2022, Royal Observatory Greenwich. Retrieved 22 October 2022 from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2FKh2xLo4Ek (opens in new tab).
Editor’s note: If you can get a good photo of the partial solar eclipse and want to share it with Space.com readers, send your photos, comments, and your name and location to [email protected].
Email Tariq Malik at [email protected] (opens in new tab) or follow him @tariqjmalik (opens in new tab). follow us @spacedotcom (opens in new tab), Facebook (opens in new tab) and Instagram (opens in new tab).