People traveled from far and wide to witness the Ring of Fire eclipse on Sunday May, 20th. The eclipse was visible to those in the Western United States and Southeast Asia. Only a narrow band of this area was lucky enough to see the Moon fully pass in front of the sun; outlying areas could witness the Moon cutting a ‘Pacman’ shape into the Sun.

This type of eclipse, often call the Ring of Fire, is not a full eclipse of the sun. It differs from a full eclipse in that the Moon does not completely block the Sun, instead the edge of the Sun is visible around the outer edge of the Moon. There are multiple types of eclipses due to the fact that the Moon doesn't orbit the Earth in an exact circle; instead, it is an ellipse so sometimes the moon is closer to the Earth and sometimes it is further away. When the Moon crosses in front of the Sun while it is further away, a Ring of Fire eclipse is visible. Despite the stellar blockage, the Sun's rays are still intense and harmful to the human eye, making UV-blocking sunglasses or shields a must.

The eclipse was also captured by the Hinode satellite. Hinode has a low-Earth sun-synchronous orbit and its mission is to observe the Sun. Equipped with the Solar Optical and X-ray Telescopes, scientists can study the Sun's magnetic field and how changes in this field cause solar flares and mass ejections. The Solar Optical Telescope can precisely measure changes in the magnetic field; while the X-ray Telescope is used to collect images of the Sun's outer atmosphere, termed the corona. Hinode also features the Extreme Ultraviolet Imaging Spectrometer that measures the speed of solar particles and the temperature of solar plasma; and can discern between the corona and the photosphere (or the surface of the Sun). All together, these instruments are able to monitor the Sun and the phenomena that connect our planet to this solar body. Oh, and Hinode can capture some pretty cool pictures of solar eclipses!