Partial solar eclipse on December 14 2020 (South Africa)
The Moon information shown here applies to Pretoria, South Africa on Monday, December 14, 2020. (Local time Africa/Johannesburg)
| Moonrise to moonset | 14h7m |
| Moonrise | 04:44 |
| Moonset | 18:51 |
| Distance to the center of the Sun | 147,246,438 km |
| Distance to the center of Earth | 366,989 km |
| Moon ilumination (at midnight) | 0.8% |
| Lunar phase | waning |
| Current zodiac sign the Moon | Sagittarius ♐ |
| Moon age (days past new moon) | 28.7 |
According to international time UTC, a solar eclipse will occur on December 14, 2020 which will be visible in some parts of the world. The following shows the cities in South Africa from which the eclipse could be visible (note that the following is a short list of some of the main cities, the eclipse may be visible from other cities not listed here). The date and local time of the event shown below.
| City | Eclipse visible? | Phase |
|---|---|---|
| Pretoria | No | - |
| Johannesburg | No | - |
| Bloemfontein | Yes | Partial |
| Cape Town | Yes | Partial |
Information about this eclipse
This is an animated image which shows the shadow of the moon and its path on the map during the solar eclipse. Only the regions shaded by the moon may view this partial solar eclipse. The date and time displayed in this image are international date and time, therefore, they might not apply to your country. However, to know the date and exact time of partial solar eclipse in your country, you can see the table below. (Click on image to enlarge it).
Information of the Greatest Eclipse
This image shows the moments of external and internal contacts with the Moon's penumbra (and Moon's umbra when applicable) as well as the horizon and geocentric coordinates of the Sun and the Moon as well as the place and moment of the greatest eclipse. Some of the information from the image has been condensed in the following table. Please regard that the information in the following table applies only to the place of maximum eclipse, latitude 40.3S and longitude 67.9W, on 2020-12-14 at 16:14:39 (UT).
| Date (UT) | 2020-12-14 |
| Time (UT) | 16:14:39 |
| Latitude | 40.3S |
| Longitude | 67.9W |
| Gamma | -0.2939 |
| Magnitude | 1.0254 |
| Saros | 142 |
| Sun alt. | 73 |
| Sun azi. | 10 |
| Path width | 90 |
| Central Dur. | 02m10s |
Eclipse schedule in South Africa
The following table shows the schedule and phases of the partial solar eclipse of December 14, 2020 in South Africa. For each city we have assigned a time zone which is very precise and it takes into account Daylight Saving Time (if applicable).
Sun Alt.: Excellent Good Low Too low
| City | Details | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Event date | Partial eclipse starts | Sun Alt. | Total eclipse starts | Max. eclipse | Sun Alt. | Azimuth | Total eclipse ends | Ends partial eclipse | Sun Alt. | Mag. | Obs. | ||||||
| Bloemfontein (UTC 2) | 2020-12-14 | 18:54:16 | 2 | - | 19:07(s) | 0(s) | 243 | - | 19:07(s) | 0(s) | 0.227(s) | 12.6% | |||||
| Cape Town (UTC 2) | 2020-12-14 | 18:51:57 | 11 | - | 19:43:28 | 1 | 242 | - | 19:50(s) | 0(s) | 0.674 | 59.3% | |||||
if present, (r) means the eclipse is in progress at sunrise, while (s) means the eclipse is in progress at sunset.
You can read the table above as follows: On December 14, 2020 in Bloemfontein (UTC 2), an eclipse of type partial solar eclipse will start at 18:54:16, the maximum eclipse will occur at 19:07(s) when the Sun reaches an altitud of 0(s)° and azymuth of 243°;this event will come to an end at 19:07(s) and will have a magnitud of 0.227(s) (the magnitude of an eclipse is the ratio of the apparent size of the Moon to the apparent size of the Sun during an eclipse) and an obscurity of 0.126(s) (the fraction of the Sun obscured).
We must take into account the altitude of the sun, for example, in Bloemfontein, due to the low altitude of the Sun (0(s) degrees) this solar eclipse will not be very obvious.
your city is not listed?
To obtain eclipse information for a particular city, you may load the interactive world map. In addition, the world map shows the path of totality and the coordinates of the greatest eclipse. (Due to some limitations, this map may sometimes not load)
Source: Eclipse Predictions by Fred Espenak and Chris O'Byrne (NASA's GSFC).
Protect your eyes
Observers must be very careful while viewing the solar eclipse. Our advice is to never look at the Sun with the naked eye.For safety, you must always use sunglasses, telescopes and binoculars with special filters. Never use these equipments without protection as the Sun's ultraviolet and infrared light may harm your eyes or cause blindness if you look at the Sun directly.
