Where To Livestream The ‘Ring Of Fire’ Eclipse — And What Else To Know

The next eclipse is an annular solar eclipse on Oct. 2, 2024 , which will create a "ring of fire" visible from parts of the Southern Hemisphere for up to seven minutes.

It will be similar to the event an entire lunar year ago, on Oct. 14, 2023, across the U.S. Southwest. This time, just 175,000 live in the path of this eclipse, but it will cross one of the most iconic tourism destinations in the world.

Here are eight things to know about this week's annular solar eclipse, including when and where to livestream it:

Your Complete Guide To Next Week's 'Ring Of Fire' Solar Eclipse

An annular solar eclipse is essentially a perfectly aligned partial solar eclipse. During the height of the event, about 87% of the center of the sun's disk will be covered by the moon. How long that lasts depends on the exact position of the observer, but from close to the centerline, it will be about six minutes. At no point will it get dark, nor will it be possible to see the sun's corona. The whole event must be viewed through solar eclipse safety glasses.

If there's no totality, why all the fuss? Despite viewers needing to wear solar eclipse glasses to view it safely, thousands of eclipse-chasers are expected to travel for the event. Why? It crosses Easter Island (Rapa Nui), known for its giant stone statues of human figures carved by the Rapa Nui people between 1250 and 1500. Many are set on stone platforms called ahu around the island's coastline. The moai has attracted eclipse-chasers as much as the 'ring of fire.'

3. You Can Watch It Online—Here's Exactly When

The first moment of annularity — when the "ring of fire" appears — will be at 16:50 UTC and the last at 20:39 UTC, meaning a total duration of 3 hours, 48 minutes and 40 seconds. However, you'll want to be watching as the "ring of fire" appears over Easter Island, which is where most of the live streams will likely be broadcast from (a reliable one is Timeanddate's YouTube feed ). Be online at 19:03 UTC on Oct. 2 (3:03 p.m. EST and 8:03 p.m. GMT) to witness a delicate "ring of fire" above the moai monoliths lasting over six minutes ... clouds. About an hour later, at 20:18 UTC (4:18 p.m. EST and 9:18 p.m. GMT), the "ring of fire" will again be seen — and likely live-streamed — from southern Chile and Argentina.

All eclipses begin at sunrise in the east (at the western end of the path), peak high in the sky at local midday, and end at sunset in the west (at the eastern end of the path). However, if you're positioned north or south of the extreme points, it's possible to see a crescent sun rise or set. That's what will happen for those in Hawaii, where it may be possible to see the two points of a "smiley face" crescent sun poke above the horizon.

On October 2, the moon's apparent size in our sky will be too small to cover all of the sun's disk. Whether an eclipse is total or annular depends on the extremes of the distance between the Earth and the moon, with the moon's orbit being slightly elliptical. On October 2, the moon will be a little farther in its orbit, so it won't completely cover the sun, creating a brief "ring of fire" across the Pacific Ocean, Patagonia, and the Atlantic Ocean.

6. Only Two Countries Will See The 'Ring Of Fire'

Despite being 14,163 kilometers from sunrise in the Pacific Ocean south of Hawaii to sunset in the Atlantic Ocean north of South Georgia, the moon's antumbra will cross only two countries—Chile (including Easter Island, its territory) and Argentina.

Although it will not get dark during this annular solar eclipse (that only happens during a total solar eclipse), noticeable dusk will descend on areas that see about an 80% partial solar eclipse and beyond. Close to the event's peak, it may be possible to see Venus, which will be about 31 degrees east-southeast of the sun. That's about the same as the span between your pinky finger and thumb finger if you hold it at arm's length.

8. The 'Ring Of Fire' Will Stay For Over Seven Minutes

The maximum possible duration of annularity during this eclipse will be 7 minutes and 25 seconds. However, that will only take place northeast of Easter Island (Rapa Nui), where few, if any, cruise ships will be positioned. However, from Easter Island and Patagonia (in both Chile and Argentina), the "ring of fire" will last for about six minutes.

Wishing you clear skies and wide eyes.