Solar eclipse of December 14, 2001

An annular solar eclipse occurred at the Moon's descending node of orbit on Friday, December 14, 2001,  with a magnitude of 0.9681. A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun, thereby totally or partly obscuring the image of the Sun for a viewer on Earth. An annular solar eclipse occurs when the Moon's apparent diameter is smaller than the Sun's, blocking most of the Sun's light and causing the Sun to look like an annulus (ring). An annular eclipse appears as a partial eclipse over a region of the Earth thousands of kilometres wide. It was visible across the Pacific Ocean, southern Costa Rica, northern Nicaragua and San Andrés Island, Colombia. The central shadow passed just south of Hawaii in early morning and ended over Central America near sunset.

The moon's apparent diameter was near the average diameter because the eclipse occurred 7.9 days after perigee (December 6, 2001 at 22:49 UTC) and 6.7 days before apogee (December 21, 2001 at 13:03 UTC).

Observation
The path of annularity was mostly on the sea, so observers were concentrated in Central America, the only land covered by the path, especially in Costa Rica with the largest area covered by the path and highest solar zenith angle. However, it was cloudy or rainy in many parts of the country during the eclipse, and only a few observers saw the annular eclipse. The International Occultation Timing Association made up of scientists from different countries planned to measure the diameter of the sun with Baily's beads that appeared at the moment of the second and third contacts in Santa Rosa National Park on the northern edge of the path of annularity, but failed. A team of professors from the University of Costa Rica and abroad traveled to Ostional Mixed Wildlife Refuge, kilometres north of Nosara. The sun could be seen through the clouds after the eclipse started, but it was completely clouded out when 80% was blocked by the moon. All the stages after that, including the annularity, could not be seen.

Coincidentally, the 2001 Geminids peaked in the early morning of December 14 local time, less than 24 hours before the annular solar eclipse.

Eclipses of 2001

 * A total lunar eclipse on January 9.
 * A total solar eclipse on June 21.
 * A partial lunar eclipse on July 5.
 * An annular solar eclipse on December 14.
 * A penumbral lunar eclipse on December 30.

Metonic

 * Preceded by: Solar eclipse of February 26, 1998
 * Followed by: Solar eclipse of October 3, 2005

Tzolkinex

 * Preceded by: Solar eclipse of November 3, 1994
 * Followed by: Solar eclipse of January 26, 2009

Half-Saros

 * Preceded by: Lunar eclipse of December 9, 1992
 * Followed by: Lunar eclipse of December 21, 2010

Tritos

 * Preceded by: Solar eclipse of January 15, 1991
 * Followed by: Solar eclipse of November 13, 2012

Solar Saros 132

 * Preceded by: Solar eclipse of December 4, 1983
 * Followed by: Solar eclipse of December 26, 2019

Inex

 * Preceded by: Solar eclipse of January 4, 1973
 * Followed by: Solar eclipse of November 25, 2030

Triad

 * Preceded by: Solar eclipse of February 14, 1915
 * Followed by: Solar eclipse of October 14, 2088