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A Complete Guide to the Solar System and the Night Sky
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public Observing fromLocation: Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt
SunriseRise: 6:04  
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SunsetSet: 18:09
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Where to See the Solar Eclipse of April 20 2023

On April 20, 2023 a Hybrid Solar Eclipse will be visible across Western Australia, Timor, Papua New Guinea, Malaysia.

Hybrid Solar Eclipses are a rare phenomenon. They happen when, due to the curvature of the Earth which causes a variation of the distance of the Moon from the observing point along the eclipse path (and, consequently, a slight variation in the apparent diameter of the Moon), certain regions will observe an Annular Eclipse while other regions will observe a Total Solar Eclipse (see definition on Wikipedia). The duration of the totality phase during Hybrid Solar Eclipses is typically quite short. 

In the case of the eclipse of April 20 2023, a total eclipse will be visible along the vast majority of the eclipse path, while the annular phase will be visible from the South Western Indian Ocean at the beginning of the eclipse, and the middle Pacific ocean at the end of the eclipse. The eclipse, visible about 40km south of Timor-Leste, will have a duration of 1 minutes and 17 seconds.

Through a much wider area, including the whole Australia,  Jakarta, Sumatra, Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, Philippines Taiwan and New Zealand, a Partial Solar Eclipse will be visible. 

The animated chart below (credited to NASA) represents the movement of the shadow of the Moon during the eclipse of April 20 2023. The large light gray moving circle represents the penumbra, from where a partial eclipse will be visible. The small black dot ay the center of the large circle represents the Moon shadow at the center of the eclipse (also called umbra), from where an annular/total eclipse will be visible. 

Movement of the shadow of the Moon during the Hybrid Solar Eclipse of April 20 2023 (NASA, Public Domain)
Movement of the shadow of the Moon during the Hybrid Solar Eclipse of April 20 2023 (NASA, Public Domain)

The chart below (credited to NASA) offers a comprehensive view of the areas interested by the eclipse. The red closed lines at the left and the right represent the sun rise/set curves; the main blue line represents the totality strip (from where a total/annular eclipse will be visible); the green lines are isochrones representing the position of the shadow of the moon in Universal Time; the cyan lines represent lines of equal magnitude (see Magnitude of Eclipse definition on Wikipedia), starting from 1.0 (inside the line of totality), going to 0 at the most external lines. The greater the magnitude of the eclipse, the larger the fraction of the Sun's surface covered by the Moon.

Area interested by the Hybrid Solar Eclipse of April 20 2023 (NASA, Public Domain). The blue line represents the totality strip, i.e. the area where a total eclipse will be visible.
Area interested by the Hybrid Solar Eclipse of April 20 2023 (NASA, Public Domain). The blue line represents the totality strip, i.e. the area where a total eclipse will be visible.

Observing the Solar Eclipse of April 20 2023 from Australia

Only a tiny fraction of the whole Australia will experience a total eclipse in April 20 2023. As shown in the map below, the totality strip of the eclipse will just pass through the Western coast of Australia, crossing Cape Range National Park, Ningaloo, Learmonth, Exmouth and Barrow Island.

Totality strip of the Solar Eclipse of April 20 2023 across Western Australia. The totality area is included between the two red lines and it is approximately 42 kilometers wide. The blue line represents the line where the central eclipse will be visible (longest totality duration). (Eclipse KML paths shown in this and the following images are provided by <a href=Xavier M. Jubier)" />
Totality strip of the Solar Eclipse of April 20 2023 across Western Australia. The totality area is included between the two red lines and it is approximately 42 kilometers wide. The blue line represents the line where the central eclipse will be visible (longest totality duration). (Eclipse KML paths shown in this and the following images are provided by Xavier M. Jubier)

The following  table lists the April 20 2023 eclipse circumstances for the main locations shown in the map above.

LocationEclipse
Type
MagnitudeLocal Time of
First Contact
Local Time of
Max Eclipse
Totality
Duration
Local Time of
Last Contact
NingalooTotal1.001510:03:0411:28:2342s13:00:14
Cape Range National ParkTotal1.002510:03:4711:29:3351s13:01:24
LearmonthTotal1.003210:04:0311:29:4557s13:01:52
Exmouth Total1.003510:04:2611:30:1658s13:02:29
Barrow IslandTotal1.006110:07:1611:34:231m 7s13:07:02

From the rest of Australia, a partial eclipse will be visible. This table summarizes the eclipse circumstances for the mayor Australian cities. A more comprehensive list of cities is available here: Visibility of April 20 2023 Eclipse from the major cities of Australia.

CityEclipse
Type
Magnitude% Solar Disc
Covered
Local Time
Start Eclipse
Local Time
Max Eclipse
Local Time
End Eclipse
AdelaidePartial0.323521.03%13:23:5114:30:0615:35:31
BrisbanePartial0.269316.11%13:43:4714:45:0415:42:01
CanberraPartial0.19219.83%14:29:4515:22:0716:12:27
MelbournePartial0.205010.82%14:15:2515:09:1016:01:33
PerthPartial0.766070.71%09:59:5711:20:2912:46:34
SydneyPartial0.19109.75%14:36:5215:29:0216:18:46
HobartPartial0.12505.21%14:24:4315:06:0915:46:43
DarwinPartial0.845080.68%12:17:4513:52:2815:25:39

Observing the Solar Eclipse of April 20 2023 from Timor-Leste

As shown in the image below, the strip of totality of the April 20 2023 eclipse will cross the eastern side of Timor-Leste. The point of Greatest Eclipse will be in the Timor Sea, about 40 kilometers South of Timor. From there the Total Eclipse will have its maximum duration of 1 minutes and 17 seconds and a magnitude of 1.0067.

Totality strip of the Solar Eclipse of April 20 2023 across Timor-Leste. The totality area is included between the two red lines and it is approximately 49 kilometers wide. The blue line represents the line where the central eclipse will be visible (longest totality duration).
Totality strip of the Solar Eclipse of April 20 2023 across Timor-Leste. The totality area is included between the two red lines and it is approximately 49 kilometers wide. The blue line represents the line where the central eclipse will be visible (longest totality duration).

The following table shows a summary of the eclipse circumstances for the main locations shown in the map above.

LocationEclipse
Type
MagnitudeLocal Time of
First Contact
Local Time of
Max Eclipse
Totality
Duration
Local Time of
Last Contact
MacadiqueTotal1.006611:44:3913:19:581m 17s14:55:12
LacoliuTotal1.002711:45:1313:20:341m 3s14:55:49
LospalosTotal1.003711:46:1713:21:451m 9s14:56:52

Outside of the totality strip, the rest of Timor-Leste will observe a partial eclipse. The following table summarizes the eclipse circumstances for other cities in Timor-Leste. Additional information is available at: Visibility of the Solar Eclipse of April 20 2023 from Timor-Leste.

CityEclipse
Type
Magnitude% Solar Disc
Covered
Local Time
Start Eclipse
Local Time
Max Eclipse
Local Time
End Eclipse
AileuPartial0.984398.36%11:43:0713:18:0614:53:31
AinaroPartial0.988698.88%11:42:3113:17:2714:52:52
DiliPartial0.980997.94%11:43:2913:18:3014:53:53
LiquicaPartial0.976697.41%11:43:0213:17:5414:53:20
MalianaPartial0.982598.13%11:41:5913:16:4714:52:18
MaubaraPartial0.974297.11%11:42:4213:17:3314:52:58
SamePartial0.991899.25%11:42:4413:17:4214:53:07
SuaiPartial0.990099.03%11:41:2713:16:1214:51:42
VenilalePartial0.999699.99%11:44:5113:20:0614:55:22

Observing the Solar Eclipse of April 20 2023 from Papua New Guinea

From a 40 kilometers wide strip of land in West Papua (see image below), across the Teluk Cenderawasih National Park, it will be possible to observe a total eclipse on April 20 2023. 

Totality strip of the Solar Eclipse of April 20 2023 across West Papua. The totality area is included between the two red lines and it is approximately 45 kilometers wide.. The blue line represents the line where the central eclipse will be visible (longest totality duration).
Totality strip of the Solar Eclipse of April 20 2023 across West Papua. The totality area is included between the two red lines and it is approximately 45 kilometers wide.. The blue line represents the line where the central eclipse will be visible (longest totality duration).

The following table shows a summary of the eclipse circumstances for the main locations shown in the map above.

LocationEclipse
Type
MagnitudeLocal Time of
First Contact
Local Time of
Max Eclipse
Totality
Duration
Local Time of
Last Contact
AntalisaTotal1.006112:08:2913:45:121m 12s15:17:07
SoetoeriTotal1.003112:11:4413:48:261m 0s15:19:41
SalebeTotal1.005312:12:5513:49:351m 9s15:20:37
RoswarTotal1.001512:15:1913:51:5144s15:22:26
WooiTotal1.002612:18:3613:55:0157s15:24:46
JendidoriTotal1.005712:20:5313:57:101m 7s15:26:24

Additional information is available at: Visibility of the Solar Eclipse of April 20 2023 from Papua New Guinea.  

Other Mayor Cities Interested by the Solar Eclipse of April 20 2023

CityCountryEclipse
Type
Magnitude% Solar Disc
Covered
Local Time
Start Eclipse
Local Time
Max Eclipse
Local Time
End Eclipse
Kuala LumpurMalaysiaPartial0.17258.40%11:05:0511:55:0112:47:14
SingaporeSingaporePartial0.263615.65%10:54:5611:55:1312:58:42
JakartaIndonesiaPartial0.498039.03%09:29:1810:45:1612:06:38
Ho Chi Min CityVietnamPartial0.12104.98%10:36:3211:20:1312:04:51
ManilaPhilippinesPartial0.351123.70%11:44:3412:55:0314:04:03
TaipeiTaiwanPartial0.09033.22%12:34:1613:10:5813:47:02
AucklandNew ZealandPartial0.06441.94%17:34:1018:00:0318:24:54
WellingtonNew ZealandPartial0.01020.12%17:40:5417:51:1418:01:25

Other Hybrid Solar Eclipses Visible in This Century

As mentioned, hybrid solar eclipses are a rare phenomenon. Besides the eclipse of April 20 2023, only four other hybrid eclipses will happen during the 21th century:

  • November 14, 2031 (duration of totality 1 minute 9 seconds, maximum eclipse in the central Pacific Ocean)
  • November 25, 2049 (duration of totality 39 seconds, maximum eclipse in the Indian Ocean, West of Sumatra)
  • May 20, 2050 (duration of totality 22 seconds, maximum eclipse in the southern Pacific Ocean)
  • December 6, 2067 (duration of totality 48 seconds, , maximum eclipse in the Atlantic Ocean East of Brazil)
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