Saturday, October 14, will bring a special celestial display. An annular solar eclipse also known as the ‘ring of fire’ will occur on Saturday morning.

This type of eclipse happens when the Moon passes between the Sun and the Earth at its farthest point from Earth. This makes the Moon appear smaller than the Sun and does not completely block it.

When the Moon passes completely in front of the Sun, it will leave a ring of Sunlight. That little bit of sunlight that comes around the moon is what is termed ‘the ring of fire’.

The ‘ring of fire’ will be visible in the path of annularity, which will occur across Oregon, Nevada, Utah, New Mexico and Texas. In the Tennesee Valley, we will only experience about 55% of the Sun blocked by the Moon.

The eclipse will begin around 10:38 in the morning, with the maximum eclipse taking place around 12:07 in the afternoon. The eclipse will come to an end around 1:40 in the afternoon.

If you are planning to view any portion of the eclipse, be sure to use special eclipse glasses. Never look at the Sun directly, even with sunglasses on, it can cause serious damage to your eyes. It is also advisable to not take pictures or videos of the solar eclipse without a special solar filter for your camera.