|XRT Home||XRT Mission Ops||YouTube| An annular solar eclipse
took place in the late hours of May 20th, into the 21st, and was
visible from the ground in southern China, Japan, and the
western United States. Annular eclipses occur when the Moon
appears smaller on the sky than the Sun, such that a ring, or
annulus, of solar surface remains visible. Since the Moon's
orbit is elliptical, its apparent diameter changes throughout
the month, and thus how much of the Sun can be blocked during an
eclipse depends on where the Moon is in its orbit. During the
second solar eclipse of 2012 on November 13th, the Moon will be
near its closest approach to Earth, so observers in Australia
and the South Pacific will be treated to a total eclipse. Of
course, the perfect alignment of observer, Moon, and Sun only
happens over a narrow stretch of Earth's surface. A much larger
swath has a less-than-perfect vantage point and sees the eclipse
as only partial. Such was the case for Hinode's view in orbit.
Though it didn't afford an