During the afternoon of March 9, 2016, a total solar eclipse was visible in parts of southeast Asia. An eclipse occurs when the moon passes directly between Earth and the sun. The MODIS instrument on NASA's Terra Satellite captured this image of a solar eclipse moving across the South Pacific Ocean on the morning of March 9, 2016 at 01:40 UTC.
During the afternoon of March 9, 2016, a total solar eclipse was visible in parts of southeast Asia and a partial eclipse was visible in parts of Alaska, Hawaii, Guam, and America Samoa. An eclipse occurs when the moon passes directly between Earth and the sun. When the moon’s shadow falls on Earth, observers within that shadow see the moon block a portion of the sun’s light.
The MODIS instrument on NASA’s Terra Satellite captured this image of a solar eclipse moving across the South Pacific Ocean on the morning of March 9, 2016 at 01:40 UTC. NASA’s Aqua satellite took an image of the eclipse that afternoon at 03:05 UTC.
Image Credit: NASA Goddard MODIS Rapid Response Team