Partial Solar Eclipse Is a Christmas Gift

As celestial events go, it was no Star of Bethlehem. But sky watchers in much of North America were treated Monday to a rarity: a partial solar eclipse on Christmas Day.

People in the Northeast saw the moon blot out as much as 60% of the sun around midday. The solar disc looked like a yellow crescent.

Viewing was best in New England and the upper Midwest, while clouds got in the way across much of the nation’s midsection.

How unusual is a Christmas solar eclipse?

The last one occurred in 1954 and was visible only in parts of Africa. The next partial Christmas eclipse, according to Fred Espenak of NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, will occur in 2307.

In Boston, where the temperature barely reached 20 degrees, only a few die-hards were out on Boston Common to watch the eclipse.

“It seemed important--just the coincidence of it being on Christmas Day,” said Pat Rowell, talking through her scarf.

Looking at a solar eclipse with the naked eye can be dangerous. Experts recommend using special equipment, such as a welder’s lens or a pinhole projector, to prevent eye damage and to get the best view.

Ron Jencks of Providence, R.I., was in awe when he finally made out the bite the moon had taken out of the sun.

“That’s amazing,” he said. “That whole piece is gone.”

Lauren Likkel, an assistant professor of physics and astronomy at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, said solar eclipses usually are visible from any particular spot on Earth only once or twice a decade.

“What are the odds of having a partial eclipse on the last Christmas Day of the millennium?” Likkel asked.

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Times staff writer Mitchell Landsberg in Los Angeles contributed to this story.