Phases of an Eclipse


  • C1 - This is the start of the partial phase, when the moon takes its first very small little bite out of the sun. (Are you in the path? If not, then it won't be total!)
  • C2 (Diamond Ring) - The part you've been waiting for: The "Diamond Ring" at the beginning of totality!! This is when you can begin to remove your eclipse glasses, and (as soon as all of the sun's bright disk is covered, and you can't see anything through your eclipse glasses) watch the eclipse with your bare eyes!
  • "Mid" Maximum Eclipse (also known as "mid-eclipse") - this is the midpoint of the eclipse. If you are in the path of totality, it is the middle of the total phase.
    - This is the ONLY time it is ever safe to look at the eclipsed Sun directly! The Moon is covering all of the Sun, and the sight is not any brighter than the full Moon. THIS is what all the excitement is about, and it is why you MUST be in the path of totality to see the main event! (In fact, if you try to look at totality through your eclipse glasses during totality, you will not see anything at all!)
    - (If you are not in the path of totality, you will not see this phase at all - and in that case, you must watch the ENTIRE ECLIPSE through your eclipse glasses!)

  • C3 (Diamond Ring) - The end of totality. The moon moves on, the Diamond Ring appears again, and a very small piece of the Sun's bright disk is visible again. (It's really bright!) This is when you have to put your eclipse glasses back on, to protect your eyes.
  • C4 - The end of the partial phase. A very anticlimactic moment, to say the least.

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