Did you get to see the partial solar eclipse on Saturday, October 14, 2023? Or – even better – did you stand in line with the sun and moon, and see the “ring of fire” at mid-eclipse, the outer surface of the sun in a ring around the moon? We know many had clear skies, and we wish you all did! And if you missed the eclipse due to clouds or location, we hope you’ll enjoy these amazing eclipse photos, shared by the EarthSky Community. The photos are still coming in. Check back! Have a great photo of your own to share? Submit it here!
Raúl Cortés, an EarthSky sun post author, captured these images showing the eclipse throughout its stages on October 14, 2023, from Corpus Christi, Texas. He described this composite as “the complete sequence of the ring of fire.” Thank you, Raúl!View at EarthSky Community Photos. | David Irvine was at Agathla Peak in Arizona, when he captured this glorious annular eclipse sequence on Saturday. Isn’t it great? Thank you, David! Read more about the process to create this composite and his experience here.View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Rajat Kumar Pal in Monument Valley, Utah, captured this sequence of the annular eclipse on October 14, 2023, and wrote: “I wanted to do a composite image of the annular solar eclipse and I tried this one. In the image, the foreground picture is taken just right after the sunrise, where it is seen at the left of the Sentinel Mesa at the Monument Valley, Utah. I kept this as a foreground image because it shows a beautiful diffraction of the sun rays at the mesa wall and also gives an idea where the sun started its day. The annularity is captured in the clean blue sky in the middle of the beautiful Monument Valley and its monuments and mesas. It was a beautiful time enjoying the eclipse in the serene company of my wife and other eclipse enthusiasts.” Thank you, Rajat!View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Eliot Herman of southern Arizona traveled to Albuquerque to catch a better view of the eclipse and wrote: “It was a beautiful day in New Mexico after some concerns about clouds. Nice weather, clear sky, a perfect day for this eclipse. I used 2 telescopes and with hundreds of photos there will be much work to do in the days ahead to process it all. This is the first quick look.” Thank you, Eliot!
Maximum annularity
View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Alexander Krivenyshev of WorldTimeZone.com captured these images from Araruna, Brazil, on October 14, 2023. Alexander wrote: “It was a perfect annular solar eclipse 30 minutes before the sunset in Araruna, Paraíba, Brazil, with some weather concerns about clouds and strong winds.” Thank you, Alexander!View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Jon Greif in Roswell, New Mexico, captured the ring of fire eclipse on October 14, 2023. Thank you, Jon!View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Delia Dallas in San Antonio, Texas, took this photo of the annular eclipse on October 14, 2023. Excellent shot. Also, this was Delia’s 1st submission to our community. Thank you and welcome to the EarthSky family!View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Roberto Adam in Campeche, Mexico, made this photo of the annular eclipse on October 14, 2023, and wrote: “Conditions were cloudy for the eclipse pics, however I managed to find the ‘sweet’ spot.” Thank you, Roberto!
The partial stages
View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Mimi Ditchie in Avila Beach, California, captured these images on October 14, 2023. Mimi wrote: “I took a series of images and then put them together in Photoshop to show the progression from full sun to 80% eclipsed.” Thank you, Mimi!View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Hadley Johnson shared this composite image with us and wrote: “This photo was taken at Mono Lake Park, which is adjacent to Mono Lake in the eastern Sierra of California. The weather forecast had been for sun and clouds, and as you can see from the photo, those were the conditions. Because Mono Lake was not in the central path of the eclipse, the ‘ring of fire’ did not appear. The maximum eclipse was about 87 percent. Nevertheless, it was an impressive and fun experience. It is not just the destination, but the journey.” We couldn’t agree more. What an experience! Thank you, Hadley.View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Brittany Dawkins in Branford, Florida, captured this image on October 14, 2023. Brittany wrote: “Just as soon as the eclipse started, the clouds rolled in, but they quickly (and thankfully) cleared for the beautiful dance.” Thank you, Brittany!View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Chuck Johnson shared this image with us and wrote: “A photo of the annular solar eclipse of October 14, 2023, taken from my backyard in the Los Angeles area at approximately 10 minutes past maximum.” Thank you, Chuck!View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Robert Hall in North Hancock County, Mississippi, captured this image of the eclipse on October 14, 2023. Robert wrote: “Homemade filter. I purchased some film that blocks 99.9% of the sunlight. Then attached it to an old UV filter.” Thank you, Robert!
Nature’s crescents
Bob Asher in Artesia, New Mexico, captured these images of the sun in a ring around the moon – at mid-eclipse – on October 14, 2023. When you see crescents dancing under the trees during an eclipse of the sun, it’s because tree leaves are creating natural pinhole cameras that project the image of the sun and moon. Image used with permission. Thank you, Bob!View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Prisella Hodge in Hobbs, New Mexico, took this photo on Saturday, October 14, 2023, and wrote: “Sat outside the public library and enjoyed the eclipse.” Thank you, Prisella!EarthSky’s Dave Adalian used a kitchen colander to cast tiny crescents – the moon in front of the sun – on the ground in Central California. Dave wrote: “Straining the sun.” Thank you, Dave!View at EarthSky Community Photos. | EarthSky’s Deborah Byrd captured this eclipse selfie from Texas on October 14, 2023. “After keeping my 3 grandkids overnight,” she wrote, “and having the whole family over for an eclipse party Saturday morning, I was just so thrilled to have seen it … and to get a moment to lie down amidst these lovely crescents.”View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Mary Ellen Jackson in Prosper, Texas, captured these eclipse crescents on October 14, 2023. Mary Ellen wrote: “Neighbor dog Callie (a tripod rescue) ‘wearing’ the eclipse.” Thank you, Mary Ellen!
And rings, too! The annular eclipse produced rings or spirals during maximum for those in the path of annularity.
Sunspots on eclipse day
View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Catherine Hyde in Cambria, California, captured the cool image of spots on the sun during the eclipse on October 14, 2023. Catherine wrote: “I wanted to share an image that shows 2 prominent active regions on the sun. They are AR3464 and AR3465.” Thank you, Catherine!View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Patricio Leon of Santiago, Chile, wrote: “My modest 3.7% eclipse. Note the sunspots and the moon’s southern rugged terrain.” Thank you, Patricio!
More eclipse fun
NASA heliophysicist C. Alex Young – co-author of EarthSky’s daily sun post – shared his eclipse insights with The Weather Channel in San Antonio during the October 14, 2023, eclipse. Cool!EarthSky’s Claudia Crowley caught a glimpse of the solar eclipse from farther north in Texas. Yay, Claudia!EarthSky’s Marcy Curran and her husband Martin Curran captured the eclipse from Cheyenne, Wyoming, including this shot looking down at the eyepiece. Thank you, Marcy and Martin!View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Sheryl R Garrison in southern Alberta, Canada, wrote: “Lacking the necessary solar filters to photograph the eclipse, I met up with the local astronomy society and took advantage of their telescopes to photograph this shot of the eclipse using my cellphone. Thanks, EarthSky, for all of the detailed information leading up to the event!” You’re welcome, Sheryl! Thank you for all your great photos!
A great event for family and friends
View at EarthSky Community Photos. | EarthSky’s Joni Stewart wrote: “Cousins! And the littlest astronomers in Austin, Texas. They loved it!” Thanks, Joni!A team called the Astros from Sport of Cheer in Austin, Texas, got a break from practice to enjoy the solar eclipse! They were blown away! They gave a huge thank you to EarthSky for donating the eclipse glasses. Our pleasure, y’all! All photos used with parental permissions.Raúl Cortés – a co-author of EarthSky’s daily sun post – is the one on the top right in this photo. He lives in Mexico. But he and his family traveled to Corpus Christi, Texas, to place themselves in the path of the annular eclipse on October 14, 2023. Thank you, Raúl!
Bottom line: Check out these amazing eclipse photos from the EarthSky community. From the partial phase to annularity to eclipse crescents on the ground, see great moments here!
Kelly Kizer Whitt has been a science writer specializing in astronomy for more than two decades. She began her career at Astronomy Magazine, and she has made regular contributions to AstronomyToday and the Sierra Club, among other outlets. Her children’s picture book, Solar System Forecast, was published in 2012. She has also written a young adult dystopian novel titled A Different Sky. When she is not reading or writing about astronomy and staring up at the stars, she enjoys traveling to the national parks, creating crossword puzzles, running, tennis, and paddleboarding. Kelly lives in Wisconsin.
Deborah Byrd created the EarthSky radio series in 1991 and founded EarthSky.org in 1994. Prior to that, she had worked for the University of Texas McDonald Observatory since 1976, and created and produced their Star Date radio series. Today, she serves as Editor-in-Chief of this website. She has won a galaxy of awards from the broadcasting and science communities, including having an asteroid named 3505 Byrd in her honor. In 2020, she won the Education Prize from the American Astronomical Society, the largest organization of professional astronomers in North America. A science communicator and educator since 1976, Byrd believes in science as a force for good in the world and a vital tool for the 21st century. "Being an EarthSky editor is like hosting a big global party for cool nature-lovers," she says.
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