''Epic View'': NASA Shares Pic Of Earth As Seen From Space During 'Ring Of Fire' Annual Eclipse

On October 14, 2023, millions of people in the Americas witnessed a spectacular astronomical treat in the form of a 'ring of fire' social eclipse. The eclipse was called the "Ring of Fire" because the Moon passed between Earth and the Sun when the Earth-Sun distance was greater than average, making the Sun appear smaller. The Moon partially obscured the Sun, creating a striking celestial ring effect.

On Tuesday, NASA shared a mesmerising picture of how the Earth looked like from space, during the celestial phenomenon. In the picture, the shadow, or umbra, from the Moon can be seen falling across the southeastern coast of Texas, near Corpus Christi, NASA said.

NASA Earth shared the picture on X and wrote, ''An EPIC view of the annular eclipse. About 1.5 million kilometers from Earth, the shadow, or umbra, from the Moon, was seen falling across the southeastern coast of Texas. @nasa's EPIC instrument on the DSCOVR satellite captured this image on Oct. 14.''

Here is the picture:

An EPIC view of the annular eclipse 😎

About 1.5 million kilometers from Earth, the shadow, or umbra, from the Moon was seen falling across the southeastern coast of Texas. @nasa's EPIC instrument on the DSCOVR satellite captured this image on Oct. 14. https://t.co/WPvQbRAFKN pic.twitter.com/QWBJFqRyBl

— NASA Earth (@NASAEarth) October 17, 2023

The image was acquired during the eclipse by NASA's EPIC (Earth Polychromatic Imaging Camera) imager aboard DSCVR (Deep Space Climate Observatory), a joint NASA, NOAA, and U.S. Air Force satellite. 

Notably, the eclipse began at 8:34 PM on October 14, 2023, and ended at 2:25 AM on October 15, 2023. It lasted for almost six hours. The eclipse was visible in parts of the United States, Mexico, and many countries in South and Central America. However, it was not visible in India. 

"An annular eclipse only happens when the moon is at its furthest away point from Earth. In perspective to us on Earth, it doesn't completely block out the light from the sun so instead you get this incredible ring of fire around the moon.

"Even though we get more excited about a total solar eclipse because you can see the Corona... it's really far more rare to see an annular solar eclipse and so it's a really cool thing to see" said Dr Nicola Fox, associate administrator for NASA's Science Mission Directorate.

The next annular solar eclipse visible from the United States will be on June 21, 2039.