2012年5月20日新墨西哥上空的日环食 Annular eclipse over New Mexico, May 20, 2012 (© ssucsy/Getty Images)

2012年5月20日新墨西哥上空的日环食 Annular eclipse over New Mexico, May 20, 2012 (© ssucsy/Getty Images)

Ring of fire

No, this isn't some kind of early promo for 'Halo: Infinite.' Today's homepage image shows an annular solar eclipse captured in New Mexico in 2012. ('Annular' is just a fancy word for doughnut-shaped.) It's not unlike the eclipse some northerly parts of the world will enjoy today.

Annular eclipses like today's occur when the moon is at its apogee, or the furthest distance in its orbit from Earth. Since the moon looks its smallest to us now, it can't fully cover the sun—but the lucky few living in far northern Canada, Scandinavia, and Siberia will have tickets to a one-ring solar circus once everything lines up just right.

火环

不，这不是“光环：无限”的早期宣传。今天的主页图片显示了2012年在新墨西哥州拍摄的一次日环食。（“日环食”只是甜甜圈形状的一个花哨的词。）这和今天世界上一些偏北地区将享受的日食没什么不同。

像今天这样的环食发生在月球的最远点，或者说是其轨道上离地球最远的地方。由于月球现在看起来是最小的，它不能完全遮住太阳，但生活在遥远的加拿大北部、斯堪的纳维亚半岛和西伯利亚的少数幸运儿，一旦一切都安排得恰到好处，就会有单圈太阳马戏团的票。