An annular solar eclipse occurred at the Moon's descending node of orbit on Tuesday, May 10, 1994, with a magnitude of 0.9431. A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun, thereby totally or partly obscuring the image of the Sun for a viewer on Earth. An annular solar eclipse occurs when the Moon's apparent diameter is smaller than the Sun's, blocking most of the Sun's light and causing the Sun to look like an annulus (ring). An annular eclipse appears as a partial eclipse over a region of the Earth thousands of kilometres wide. Occurring about 1.6 days after apogee (on May 9, 1994, at 3:20 UTC), the Moon's apparent diameter was smaller. The path of annularity crossed four states of Mexico (Baja California Sur, Baja California, Sonora and Chihuahua), parts of Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine in the United States, the Canadian provinces of Ontario, Nova Scotia and the southeastern tip of Quebec, the Azores Islands except Santa Maria Island, and part of Morocco including the capital city Rabat. The eclipse reached its moment of "greatest eclipse" in the United States near Wauseon, Ohio, about 35 miles west of Toledo, Ohio. Niagara Falls was also covered by the path of annularity. A partial eclipse was visible for parts of eastern Russia, North America, Central America, the Caribbean, Western Europe, and West Africa. The Columbus Crew were originally named the "Columbus Eclipse" in their Major League Soccer bid in honor of the event.

Images

Eclipse details

Shown below are two tables displaying details about this particular solar eclipse. The first table outlines times at which the moon's penumbra or umbra attains the specific parameter, and the second table describes various other parameters pertaining to this eclipse.

Eclipse season

This eclipse is part of an eclipse season, a period, roughly every six months, when eclipses occur. Only two (or occasionally three) eclipse seasons occur each year, and each season lasts about 35 days and repeats just short of six months (173 days) later; thus two full eclipse seasons always occur each year. Either two or three eclipses happen each eclipse season. In the sequence below, each eclipse is separated by a fortnight.

Related eclipses

Eclipses in 1994

Metonic

Tzolkinex

Half-Saros

Tritos

Solar Saros 128

Inex

Triad

Solar eclipses of 1993–1996

Saros 128

Metonic series

Tritos series

Inex series