Home   Sun, Moon & Space   Eclipses   May 20–21, 2012 Annular Solar Eclipse

May 20–21, 2012 Annular Solar Eclipse

The first solar eclipse in 2012 will be an annular solar eclipse on May 20–21. This is the first annular eclipse visible from the United States in 18 years. The eclipse will also be seen from eastern Asia and the northern Pacific. It starts in Asia and ends in the US.

All eclipses for years 1900 – 2100

This eclipse wasn't visible in Washington DC - 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: North/East Europe, Much of Asia, Much of North America, Pacific, Atlantic, Arctic.

Expand for a list of selected cities where the annular eclipse was visible
Expand for a list of selected cities where the partial eclipse was visible

This eclipse wasn't visible in Washington DC - 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 66.7 seconds.

Eclipse Stages WorldwideUTC TimeLocal Time in Washington DC*
First location to see the partial eclipse beginMay 20 at 20:56:07May 20 at 4:56:07 pm
First location to see the full eclipse beginMay 20 at 22:06:19May 20 at 6:06:19 pm
Maximum EclipseMay 20 at 23:52:47May 20 at 7:52:47 pm
Last location to see the full eclipse endMay 21 at 01:39:11May 20 at 9:39:11 pm
Last location to see the partial eclipse endMay 21 at 02:49:23May 20 at 10:49:23 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 Washington DC.

Upcoming eclipses visible in Washington DC

Next Annular Solar Eclipse will be on May 9 – May 10, 2013

Eclipse calculations usually accurate to a few seconds

Countries Where the Eclipse Is Visible

CountryTypeStartEndAnnularity Duration
China
Annular Solar Eclipse
5:09 am CST11:14 am VLAT9m, 28s
Hong Kong
Annular Solar Eclipse
5:40 am HKT7:16 am CST4m, 2s
Japan
Annular Solar Eclipse
6:04 am JST9:26 am JST23m, 59s
Macau
Annular Solar Eclipse
5:43 am CST7:16 am CST3m, 47s
Taiwan
Annular Solar Eclipse
5:06 am CST7:24 am CST4m, 25s
United States
Annular Solar Eclipse
12:15 pm HST7:43 pm PDT16m, 4s
Vietnam
Annular Solar Eclipse
5:07 am ICT6:16 am ICT4m, 9s
Bangladesh
Partial Solar Eclipse
5:05 am BST5:21 am BST---
Bhutan
Partial Solar Eclipse
5:02 am BTT7:22 am CST---
Brunei
Partial Solar Eclipse
6:05 am BNT6:50 am BNT---
Cambodia
Partial Solar Eclipse
5:21 am ICT6:06 am ICT---
Canada
Partial Solar Eclipse
3:25 pm AKDT7:25 pm PDT---
East Timor
Partial Solar Eclipse
6:36 am TLT7:08 am TLT---
Finland
Partial Solar Eclipse
2:22 am EEST3:15 am EEST---
Greenland
Partial Solar Eclipse
9:34 pm WGST10:12 pm ADT---
Guam
Partial Solar Eclipse
7:00 am ChST9:15 am ChST---
India
Partial Solar Eclipse
6:38 am CST7:22 am CST---
Indonesia
Partial Solar Eclipse
6:03 am WIT5:52 am WIB---
Kazakhstan
Partial Solar Eclipse
4:21 am ALMT4:48 am UZT---
Kyrgyzstan
Partial Solar Eclipse
5:15 am ALMT5:37 am ALMT---
Laos
Partial Solar Eclipse
5:19 am ICT6:15 am ICT---
Malaysia
Partial Solar Eclipse
5:48 am MYT5:57 am ICT---
Marshall Islands
Partial Solar Eclipse
9:45 am 11:39 am ---
Mexico
Partial Solar Eclipse
5:28 pm PDT7:43 pm PDT---
Micronesia
Partial Solar Eclipse
6:57 am CHUT9:00 am CHUT---
Mongolia
Partial Solar Eclipse
5:39 am ULAT7:55 am CHOT---
Myanmar
Partial Solar Eclipse
6:34 am CST7:21 am CST---
Nepal
Partial Solar Eclipse
7:17 am CST7:23 am CST---
North Korea
Partial Solar Eclipse
6:23 am KST8:00 am CST---
Northern Mariana Islands
Partial Solar Eclipse
7:00 am ChST9:36 am ChST---
Norway
Partial Solar Eclipse
1:21 am CEST2:35 am CEST---
Palau
Partial Solar Eclipse
5:57 am 7:54 am ---
Papua New Guinea
Partial Solar Eclipse
7:23 am PGT8:10 am PGT---
Philippines
Partial Solar Eclipse
5:12 am 7:17 am ---
Russia
Partial Solar Eclipse
8:31 am VLAT1:31 pm ANAT---
South Korea
Partial Solar Eclipse
6:16 am KST8:53 am JST---
Svalbard and Jan Mayen
Partial Solar Eclipse
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Sweden
Partial Solar Eclipse
2:27 am EEST2:17 am CEST---
Thailand
Partial Solar Eclipse
5:27 am ICT5:43 am MMT---
US Minor Outlying Islands
Partial Solar Eclipse
9:34 am WAKT2:33 pm SST---

All times shown in this table are local time. (Note: more than one time zone is listed.) "Annularity duration" gives the time between the start and finish of annularity 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 eclipse2,320,000,00032.42%
At least 10% partial2,060,000,00028.82%
At least 20% partial1,910,000,00026.75%
At least 30% partial1,820,000,00025.51%
At least 40% partial1,730,000,00024.26%
At least 50% partial1,660,000,00023.24%
At least 60% partial1,410,000,00019.69%
At least 70% partial923,000,00012.90%
At least 80% partial527,000,0007.37%
Totality or annularity238,000,0003.33%

* 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 4, 2012 — Partial Lunar Eclipse