The first solar eclipse in 2012 will be an annular solar eclipse on May 20–21. This is the first annular eclipse visible from the United States in 18 years. The eclipse will also be seen from eastern Asia and the northern Pacific. It starts in Asia and ends in the US. Areas if totality include Mt. Shasta, California  It will not be a total eclipse in Hawaii

 The eclipse starts at 2:04 PM in Hawaii and lasts until 4:12 in Honolulu.

The annular phase of this solar eclipse is not visible in Honolulu, but it can be observed there as a partial solar eclipse.

More about the May 20 - Monday, May 21, 2012 Annular Solar Eclipse

Local times for eclipse in Honolulu on Sunday, May 20, 2012

Click on the Sun/Moon symbols in the column entitled “Looks like” to see what the eclipse looks like during the different phases of the event.

Event	Time in Honolulu	Direction	Altitude	Looks like	Comments
Partial eclipse begins	May 20 at 2:04 PM	272°	67.3°		The Moon touches the Sun's edge.
Maximum Eclipse	May 20 at 3:13 PM	276°	51.2°		Moon is closest to the center.
Partial Eclipse ends	May 20 at 4:12 PM	280°	37.5°		The Moon leaves the Sun's edge.

REMEMBER TO PROTECT YOUR EYES!

If you are planning on observing  a solar eclipse, you should make sure you protect your eyes and never look directly at the sun without proper protection.

This is because the sun’s photosphere emits intense infrared and ultraviolet (UV) radiation. Just as UV radiation causes sunburn to skin, it can also damage the retinas in the eyes, but much more quickly than skin burn.

Our eyes can suffer permanent damage if they are exposed to direct sunlight for even just a few seconds.

One safe way to view the sun is to project its image onto a screen, like normal white paper or cardboard. Projection works well with or without a telescope or binoculars.

DO NOT LOOK DIRECTLY through the telescope’s eyepiece or side-mounted finder scope when aiming a telescope or binocular at the sun to project a magnified sun’s image on a screen of white cardboard.

Many eclipse viewers and photographers use special solar filters to view the sun during a partial eclipse. It is important to use the proper type of solar filter that are designed for the task.  Check that filters do not crack under the sun’s magnified and focused intensity and avoid using photographic neutral-density filters or smoked glass (Harrington, 1997, p. 29). Solar filters must be treated with care or they can quickly become damaged and unsafe to use.