Solar Eclipse--The View From Above

Solar Eclipse--The View From Above

On July 2nd a total solar eclipse occurred over parts of the South Pacific.  During a total solar eclipse the new moon covers the full solar disk and consequently casts its umbra on the Earth.  The event was captured by the US geostationary environmental satellites GOES-16 (stationed in the western Atlantic) and GOES-17 (eastern Pacific), and is shown here in a two-satellite composite.

In the composite open ocean is black, vegetated land is green, low clouds are yellow and higher ice-particle clouds are bluish and white.  The moon's darkest shadow is apparent as it marches eastward across the image scene (from left to right). 

Most of the total eclipse took place over sparsely inhabited ocean waters but it was visible from sections of Argentina and Chile.  A partial eclipse was visible over many more Pacific and South American locations including Paraguay, Uruguay, Ecuador and Brazil.