Ring of Fire solar eclipse happens on Thursday

Skywatchers will want to be on the lookout for a solar eclipse happening Thursday morning, June 10. It will be the first solar eclipse of the year, and the moon will almost entirely block the sun leaving only a little of the sun outside of the moon's shadow. The only part of the sun visible from behind the moon is a ring, which gives the eclipse its ring of fire name.

Unfortunately, only a few locations will be able to see the total eclipse. Areas include parts of Canada, Greenland, and northern Russia. Most of the world will only see a partial solar eclipse, which will be more visible in the northern hemisphere. Skywatchers in parts of the eastern US, northern Alaska, most of Canada, parts of the Caribbean, Europe, Asia, and northern Africa will see the partial solar eclipse.

A solar eclipse occurs when the moon moves between the Earth and the sun blocking some or possibly all of the light produced by the sun. During the annual eclipse, the moon is far enough from the earth that it's too small to block out the entire sun leaving a ring of light in the sky.

The eclipse will last about 100 minutes, starting at sunrise in Ontario, Canada, traveling northward until the greatest part of the eclipse happens around 8:41 AM local time in Greenland. The eclipse will end at sunset in northeastern Siberia. NASA says the "Ring of fire" phase occurs when the moon covers at least 89 percent of the sun and can last up to three minutes and 51 seconds at every point along its path.

The partial solar eclipse seen in other areas will only see part of the sun blocked. It will appear as if the moon has taken a bite out of the sun. Anyone planning to look at the eclipse should remember that you can't look directly at the sun.