May 20 Eclipse Could be Eclipsed by Clouds

A solar eclipse is always a spectacular site, even if it's not a full eclipse, and Wisconsin will have a chance to witness it as the sun sets on Sunday.

We will see about 50 minutes of a cosmic disappearing act – a partial solar eclipse – before the sun drops below the horizon at sunset (8:14 p.m.)  However, should the forecast prove accurate, it may be the clouds that get in the way of the sun, and not the moon.

Locally, the Milwaukee Public Museum’s Daniel M. Soref Planetarium director Bob Bonadurer will be at the Urban Ecology Center observation tower for a viewing through special planetarium telescopes.

Check out this video for skywatching tips.

According to an article from Yahoo!News, the eclipse is named the 'ring of fire' because the moon is near apogee at the moment — the most distant point in its orbit around our planet, making it too small in the sky to cover the sun's face completely. So the most optimum places will be treated to an annular solar eclipse, in which a ring of sunlight blazes around the moon's circumference.

Outside of our area and again weather permitting, the annular eclipse will be visible from parts of East Asia, the Pacific region and western North America.