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The next solar eclipse

A time-sequence composite of the Aug. 21, 2017 total solar eclipse that passed through the United States. (Photo: VW Pics/UIG via Getty Images)

The next solar eclipse will happen on July 2 and will be visible from South America and the South Pacific.

Details: The upcoming solar eclipse will be a "total" solar eclipse, per NASA. Solar eclipses happen about every 18 months and only last for a few short moments.

  • A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon moves between the sun and the Earth and blocks the light of the sun from reaching Earth, per NASA. As a result, the Moon casts a shadow onto Earth.
  • The last solar eclipse, a partial eclipse, occurred on Jan. 6.
  • The last total solar eclipse happened on Aug. 21, 2017.
    • This was also the last solar eclipse visible from the United States and passed through Kansas City, St. Louis, Nashville, Salem and Charleston. The next solar eclipse that will be visible in the U.S. isn't until 2023.

There are 3 different types of eclipses: Total solar eclipses, partial solar eclipses and annular solar eclipses.

  • A total solar eclipse is only visible from a small area and happens when the sun, Moon and Earth are in a direct line.
    • During a total solar eclipse, areas in the limited "path of totality" go completely dark as the Moon covers the sun.
  • A partial solar eclipse occurs when the 3 are not in a direct line and the sun "appears to have a dark shadow on only a small part of its surface," NASA said.
  • An annular solar eclipse happens when the Moon is farthest away from the Earth, making the Moon look particularly small. It does not block the entire view of the sun.
    • The eclipse creates what looks like a ring of fire around the Moon.

What's next: Following the July 2 eclipse, the next solar eclipses will happen on:

  • Dec. 26
    • Type: Annular
    • Visible from: Asia, Australia
  • June 21, 2020
    • Type: Annular
    • Visible from: Africa, southeast Europe, Asia
  • Dec. 14, 2020
    • Type: Total
    • Visible from: Pacific, southern South America, Antarctica

Be smart: Don't ever look directly at the sun. Always use proper equipment when looking at a solar eclipse.

Go deeper: The next lunar eclipse

Go deeper

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Scoop: Gina Haspel threatened to resign over plan to install Kash Patel as CIA deputy

CIA Director Gina Haspel. Photo: Win McNamee/Getty Images

CIA Director Gina Haspel threatened to resign in early December after President Trump cooked up a hasty plan to install loyalist Kash Patel, a former aide to Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.), as her deputy, according to three senior administration officials with direct knowledge of the matter.

Why it matters: The revelation stunned national security officials and almost blew up the leadership of the world's most powerful spy agency. Only a series of coincidences — and last minute interventions from Vice President Mike Pence and White House counsel Pat Cipollone — stopped it.

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Updated 4 hours ago - Politics & Policy

Coronavirus dashboard

Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

  1. Health: Coronavirus deaths reach 4,000 per day as hospitals remain in crisis mode — CDC warns highly transmissible coronavirus variant could become dominant in U.S. in March.
  2. Politics: Biden says, "We will manage the hell out of" vaccine distribution — Biden taps ex-FDA chief to lead Operation Warp Speed amid rollout of COVID plan — Widow of GOP congressman-elect who died of COVID-19 will run to fill his seat.
  3. Vaccine: Battling Black mistrust of the vaccines — "Pharmacy deserts" could become vaccine deserts — Instacart to give $25 to shoppers who get vaccine.
  4. Economy: Unemployment filings explode again — Fed chair: No interest rate hike coming any time soon —  Inflation rose more than expected in December.
  5. World: WHO team arrives in China to investigate pandemic origins.
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Lachlan Markay
4 hours ago - Politics & Policy

John Weaver, Lincoln Project co-founder, acknowledges “inappropriate” messages

John Weaver aboard John McCain's campaign plane in February 2000. Photo: Robert Schmidt/AFP via Getty Images)

John Weaver, a veteran Republican operative who co-founded the Lincoln Project, declared in a statement to Axios on Friday that he sent “inappropriate,” sexually charged messages to multiple men.

  • “To the men I made uncomfortable through my messages that I viewed as consensual mutual conversations at the time: I am truly sorry. They were inappropriate and it was because of my failings that this discomfort was brought on you,” Weaver said.
  • “The truth is that I'm gay,” he added. “And that I have a wife and two kids who I love. My inability to reconcile those two truths has led to this agonizing place.”
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