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May 20, 1947 Total Solar Eclipse

This eclipse wasn't visible in Columbus - Which upcoming eclipses can be seen in your location?

What the Eclipse Looked Like Near the Maximum Point

The animation shows what the eclipse approximately looked like near the maximum point. The curvature of the Moon's path is due to the Earth's rotation.

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Where the Eclipse Was Seen

Try our new interactive eclipse maps. Zoom in and search for accurate eclipse times and visualizations for any location.


Path of the Eclipse Shadow

Regions that saw, at least, a partial eclipse: West in Asia, Africa, South America, Pacific, Atlantic, Indian Ocean.

Expand for a list of selected cities where at least part of the total eclipse was visible
Expand for a list of selected cities where the partial eclipse was visible

This eclipse wasn't visible in Columbus - Which upcoming eclipses can be seen in your location?

Eclipse Shadow Path

Portion of Sun covered by the Moon (Eclipse obscuration)

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The dark areas symbolize night and twilight.

When the Eclipse Happened Worldwide — Timeline

The eclipse started at one location and ended at another. The times below are actual times (in UTC) when the eclipse occurred. This calculation uses a Delta T value of 28.0 seconds.

Eclipse Stages WorldwideUTC TimeLocal Time in Columbus*
First location to see the partial eclipse beginMay 20 at 11:10:48May 20 at 7:10:48 am
First location to see the full eclipse beginMay 20 at 12:08:20May 20 at 8:08:20 am
Maximum EclipseMay 20 at 13:47:19May 20 at 9:47:19 am
Last location to see the full eclipse endMay 20 at 15:26:29May 20 at 11:26:29 am
Last location to see the partial eclipse endMay 20 at 16:23:52May 20 at 12:23:52 pm

* These local times do not refer to a specific location but indicate the beginning, peak, and end of the eclipse on a global scale, each line referring to a different location. This eclipse isn't visible in Columbus.

Upcoming eclipses visible in Columbus

Next Total Solar Eclipse will be on May 8 – May 9, 1948

Eclipse calculations usually accurate to a few seconds

Countries Where the Eclipse Is Visible

CountryTypeStartEndTotality Duration
Argentina
Total Solar Eclipse
8:10 am 10:35 am 11m, 41s
Benin
Total Solar Eclipse
1:24 pm GMT5:14 pm WAT6m, 19s
Brazil
Total Solar Eclipse
8:12 am BRT12:01 pm BRT40m, 38s
Cameroon
Total Solar Eclipse
2:41 pm WAT5:22 pm WAT11m, 24s
Central African Republic
Total Solar Eclipse
2:55 pm WAT5:23 pm WAT7m
Chile
Total Solar Eclipse
6:11 am CLT8:17 am CLT2m, 54s
Congo
Total Solar Eclipse
2:44 pm WAT5:22 pm WAT4m, 34s
Congo Democratic Republic
Total Solar Eclipse
2:46 pm WAT6:23 pm CAT9m, 17s
Cote d'Ivoire
Total Solar Eclipse
12:11 pm 4:07 pm GMT16m, 17s
Ghana
Total Solar Eclipse
1:09 pm GMT4:11 pm GMT13m, 49s
Kenya
Total Solar Eclipse
5:20 pm EAT5:50 pm CAT2m, 29s
Liberia
Total Solar Eclipse
12:04 pm 3:58 pm GMT10m, 33s
Nigeria
Total Solar Eclipse
2:27 pm WAT5:20 pm WAT14m, 14s
Paraguay
Total Solar Eclipse
8:11 am 9:35 am PYT7m, 5s
Tanzania
Total Solar Eclipse
4:14 pm CAT6:56 pm EAT2m, 36s
Togo
Total Solar Eclipse
1:21 pm GMT4:12 pm GMT6m, 6s
Uganda
Total Solar Eclipse
4:16 pm CAT6:31 pm 3m, 23s
Algeria
Partial Solar Eclipse
1:42 pm WET4:10 pm GMT---
Angola
Partial Solar Eclipse
2:46 pm WAT6:16 pm CAT---
Antarctica
Partial Solar Eclipse
12:07 pm 1:15 pm ---
Bahrain
Partial Solar Eclipse
7:11 pm GST7:18 pm GST---
Bolivia
Partial Solar Eclipse
7:12 am BOT9:32 am AMT---
Botswana
Partial Solar Eclipse
4:04 pm CAT6:00 pm SAST---
Burkina Faso
Partial Solar Eclipse
12:10 pm WAT4:12 pm GMT---
Burundi
Partial Solar Eclipse
4:15 pm CAT5:59 pm CAT---
Cabo Verde
Partial Solar Eclipse
10:39 am CVT1:26 pm CVT---
Chad
Partial Solar Eclipse
2:57 pm WAT5:22 pm WAT---
Colombia
Partial Solar Eclipse
6:45 am PET8:00 am PET---
Comoros
Partial Solar Eclipse
5:22 pm EAT5:48 pm EAT---
Djibouti
Partial Solar Eclipse
5:34 pm EAT6:30 pm EAT---
Ecuador
Partial Solar Eclipse
6:54 am PET7:38 am PET---
Egypt
Partial Solar Eclipse
3:29 pm CET5:09 pm CET---
Equatorial Guinea
Partial Solar Eclipse
1:30 pm GMT4:18 pm GMT---
Eritrea
Partial Solar Eclipse
5:33 pm EAT5:57 pm CAT---
Eswatini
Partial Solar Eclipse
4:15 pm SAST5:15 pm SAST---
Ethiopia
Partial Solar Eclipse
5:24 pm EAT5:59 pm CAT---
Falkland Islands
Partial Solar Eclipse
7:34 am FKT9:19 am FKT---
French Guiana
Partial Solar Eclipse
7:51 am GFT9:49 am GFT---
French Southern Territories
Partial Solar Eclipse
5:18 pm 5:47 pm ---
Gabon
Partial Solar Eclipse
2:39 pm WAT5:20 pm WAT---
Gambia
Partial Solar Eclipse
11:48 am WAT2:48 pm WAT---
Gibraltar
Partial Solar Eclipse
4:28 pm 5:08 pm ---
Guinea
Partial Solar Eclipse
11:47 am WAT3:59 pm GMT---
Guinea-Bissau
Partial Solar Eclipse
11:45 am WAT2:48 pm WAT---
Guyana
Partial Solar Eclipse
8:07 am 9:33 am AMT---
Israel
Partial Solar Eclipse
5:00 pm EET5:41 pm EET---
Italy
Partial Solar Eclipse
4:50 pm CEST5:25 pm CEST---
Jordan
Partial Solar Eclipse
5:00 pm EET5:42 pm EET---
Lesotho
Partial Solar Eclipse
4:14 pm SAST5:24 pm SAST---
Libya
Partial Solar Eclipse
2:09 pm WET5:13 pm WAT---
Madagascar
Partial Solar Eclipse
5:19 pm EAT5:36 pm EAT---
Malawi
Partial Solar Eclipse
4:16 pm CAT5:34 pm CAT---
Mali
Partial Solar Eclipse
11:58 am WAT4:12 pm GMT---
Malta
Partial Solar Eclipse
4:58 pm CEST5:20 pm CEST---
Mauritania
Partial Solar Eclipse
12:55 pm GMT3:01 pm WAT---
Mayotte
Partial Solar Eclipse
5:22 pm EAT5:39 pm EAT---
Morocco
Partial Solar Eclipse
12:10 pm WAT2:41 pm WAT---
Mozambique
Partial Solar Eclipse
4:14 pm CAT5:36 pm CAT---
Namibia
Partial Solar Eclipse
2:47 pm WAT6:01 pm SAST---
Niger
Partial Solar Eclipse
1:30 pm GMT5:19 pm WAT---
Oman
Partial Solar Eclipse
5:49 pm 6:59 pm GST---
Palestine
Partial Solar Eclipse
5:09 pm EET5:31 pm EET---
Peru
Partial Solar Eclipse
6:17 am PET8:13 am PET---
Portugal
Partial Solar Eclipse
1:43 pm 3:18 pm ---
Qatar
Partial Solar Eclipse
7:06 pm GST7:16 pm GST---
Rwanda
Partial Solar Eclipse
4:15 pm CAT6:00 pm CAT---
Saint Helena
Partial Solar Eclipse
12:00 noon 3:03 pm ---
Sao Tome and Principe
Partial Solar Eclipse
1:33 pm GMT4:15 pm GMT---
Saudi Arabia
Partial Solar Eclipse
5:41 pm AST6:59 pm AST---
Senegal
Partial Solar Eclipse
12:46 pm GMT3:53 pm GMT---
Seychelles
Partial Solar Eclipse
6:24 pm SCT6:39 pm SCT---
Sierra Leone
Partial Solar Eclipse
11:45 am WAT2:54 pm WAT---
Somalia
Partial Solar Eclipse
5:25 pm EAT6:24 pm EAT---
South Africa
Partial Solar Eclipse
4:04 pm SAST5:42 pm CAT---
South Georgia/Sandwich Is.
Partial Solar Eclipse
10:07 am GST11:20 am GST---
South Sudan
Partial Solar Eclipse
3:14 pm WAT5:23 pm WAT---
Spain
Partial Solar Eclipse
1:31 pm WET3:29 pm WET---
Sudan
Partial Solar Eclipse
3:13 pm WAT6:23 pm CAT---
Suriname
Partial Solar Eclipse
7:52 am AMT9:41 am GFT---
Tunisia
Partial Solar Eclipse
3:22 pm CET4:50 pm CET---
United Arab Emirates
Partial Solar Eclipse
6:02 pm AST7:10 pm GST---
Uruguay
Partial Solar Eclipse
8:12 am UYT10:31 am UYT---
Venezuela
Partial Solar Eclipse
7:57 am AMT8:43 am VET---
Western Sahara
Partial Solar Eclipse
12:08 pm WAT2:44 pm WAT---
Yemen
Partial Solar Eclipse
5:38 pm 6:33 pm AST---
Zambia
Partial Solar Eclipse
3:04 pm WAT6:09 pm CAT---
Zimbabwe
Partial Solar Eclipse
4:09 pm CAT5:52 pm CAT---

All times shown in this table are local time. (Note: more than one time zone is listed.) "Totality duration" gives the time between the start and finish of totality within the entire country (not at one location).

How Many People Can See This Eclipse?

Number of People Seeing...Number of People*Fraction of World Population
Any part of the eclipse223,000,00014.45%
At least 10% partial187,000,00012.12%
At least 20% partial175,000,00011.34%
At least 30% partial168,000,00010.92%
At least 40% partial160,000,00010.39%
At least 50% partial148,000,0009.62%
At least 60% partial134,000,0008.72%
At least 70% partial119,000,0007.75%
At least 80% partial96,000,0006.21%
At least 90% partial70,200,0004.54%
Totality or annularity21,600,0001.40%

* The number of people refers to the resident population (as a round number) in areas where the eclipse is visible. timeanddate has calculated these numbers using raw population data provided by the Center for International Earth Science Information Network (CIESIN) at Columbia University. The raw data is based on population estimates from the year 2000 to 2020.

An Eclipse Never Comes Alone!

A solar eclipse always occurs about two weeks before or after a lunar eclipse.

Usually, there are two eclipses in a row, but other times, there are three during the same eclipse season.

All eclipses 1900 — 2199

This is the first eclipse this season.

Second eclipse this season: June 3, 1947 — Partial Lunar Eclipse