Rare type of solar eclipse on Sunday

A rare “hybrid eclipse” of the sun will occur Sunday, visible as a total eclipse in some places and in others as an annular eclipse, in which the sun appears as a bright ring around the dark moon.

The phenomenon will be visible as a partial eclipse on the U.S. East Coast around sunrise on Sunday, and as a total and annular eclipse over the Atlantic Ocean and parts of Africa. Southern Europe will also be exposed to a partial eclipse.

When the moon fully blocks the sun it is called a total eclipse, and when the moon blocks the sun but appears smaller, leaving the outline of a solar ring, it is called an annular eclipse. When both occur it is known as a hybrid eclipse.

The main phase of Sunday’s eclipse will take place at 12:37 GMT over the Atlantic Ocean, 205 miles southwest of Liberia, according to a NASA website that tracks eclipses.

In the eastern United States, viewers may witness a partial eclipse at 6:30 a.m. EST.

The African nation of Gabon will get peak viewing of the total eclipse as it sweeps over a path about 37 miles wide.

"The eclipse will then continue across Africa through the Congos until it passes through northern Uganda and northern Kenya, ending in southern Ethiopia and Somalia," the International Astronomical Union said.

Weather permitting, partial phases of the eclipse may be seen in southern Europe, including parts of Spain, Italy and Greece.

Experts said people should not look directly at the sun during the eclipse unless they use special welder's glass or view it indirectly with a pinhole projector. Regular sunglasses will not protect the eyes.

A safe way to view an eclipse is by making a pinhole camera – a 3-millimeter hole in a piece of paper – then turning one’s back to the sun and using the pierced page to project the image of the sun on another sheet of paper.

Al Jazeera and Agence France-Presse