The Annular Solar Eclipse visible in Cape Town

The Mother City will experience 40% of the Sun covered this weekend

Last Updated 24 February 2017

Sunday, 26 February 2017, South Africa will be experiencing the Annular Solar eclipse. The annular eclipse will cover up to 40% of the Sun and begins at 2:10pm. It has been a while since this has been visible to us, so make sure you set an alarm for the day in order to experience this rare occasion.

A solar eclipse happens when the Moon casts a sort of shadow on the Earth. In the case of an annular solar eclipse, the Moon covers the Sun’s center, which leaves the Sun’s outer edges visible forming a “ring of fire” or annulus around the Moon.

Seeing as the Moon’s shadow is not large enough to engulf the entire planet, the shadow is limited to certain areas, as in the case with the eclipse occurring on the 26th of February. The area will change during the course of the eclipse because the Moon and Earth are in constant motion.

The maximum eclipse will occur at 4.58pm - during the entire eclipse it would not be advised to stare directly at the sun because of the damage it can have on your eyes.

Be Careful on how to view the eclipse while enjoying the last annular eclipse South Africa will experience for the next few years. Try wearing welders's googles or the filters for welder’s goggles with a rating of 14 or higher are safe to use for looking directly at the sun, and don’t cost much.

By Tarina Meiring

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Interested in places to view the phenomenon, check out our Full Moon spots overview for ideas. If you want to have a cocktail while you check out the eclipse, check out where to do this with out Sundowner spots overview.

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Keen to see Cape Town's achievements check out when we became the e-commerce hub of South Africa. 

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Have a look at how The City of Cape Town gave over a million people access to internet in 2017 with Fibre-optic cables. 

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Looking for fabulous accomadation in Cape Town, check out the Silo Hotel which opens in 2017.

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