• A rare hybrid solar eclipse will occur over the South Pacific today and won't happen again until 2031.
  • NASA and Space.com are both hosting livestreams of the eclipse starting at 9:36pm EDT tonight.
  • Hybrid solar eclipses are the rarest type of eclipse and look different depending on your location.

A rare hybrid solar eclipse will occur today over the South Pacific, covering some regions in blackout darkness and showing others a "ring of fire" encircling a shadowy moon.

But if you're not located in western Australia, East Timor, or Indonesia, don't worry — you can still witness this historical event thanks to a variety of online livestreams. 

NASA's broadcast will begin at 9:36pm EDT on YouTube. You can watch the livestream below. 

You can also catch several other livestreams at the following links:

  • Space.com is hosting a live stream, which audiences can watch at this link. 
  • TimeAndDate.com will be hosting a livestream on their YouTube channel.
  • The Gravity Discovery Centre & Observatory in Australia will also host a livestream on their YouTube channel.

What is a hybrid solar eclipse?

Image of a diamond ring during a total solar eclipse.
During a hybrid eclipse observers can see both a total and annular eclipse.
kdshutterman / Getty Images

A hybrid solar eclipse is a rare type of eclipse that changes depending on where you're watching it. There are four types of solar eclipses: total, partial, annular, and hybrid.

Hybrid eclipses are the rarest because the moon must cross in front of the sun at just the right distance for all parts of its shadow to hit Earth.

There will only be seven hybrid eclipses in the 21st century, according to NASA's eclipse catalogue.

During a hybrid eclipse, all three of the other eclipses occur at the same time. That's why hybrid eclipses are also called annular/total eclipses, according to TimeAndDate.com.

In the single minute of totality, some observers will see a total solar eclipse — when the moon's full shadow, or "umbra," completely blocks the sun.

total solar eclipse shows dark circle of moon's shadow with purple ring around it where the sun is hiding
In a total solar eclipse, the moon completely blocks the sun and casts observers in total darkness.
Miloslav Druckmüller/NASA

Others will see an annular eclipse, where the edge of the sun remains visible and makes a ring around the moon. They're in the "antumbra," because the moon is at just the right distance for the Earth's curvature to bring some people close enough to the moon to see the sun peeking out around it.

annular solar eclipse where dark circle of the moon's shadow covers the center of the sun with a ring of solar plasma peeking out around it
An annular solar eclipse as seen by Japan's Hinode spacecraft.
JAXA/NASA/Hinode via Getty Images

Outside the narrow path of totality, other observers will see a partial eclipse, where the moon covers just a segment of the sun's disc. They're on the sidelines of the moon's shadow, in the "penumbra."

partial solar eclipse
A partial solar eclipse rises over the Baltimore skyline, Thursday, June 10, 2021, seen from Arbutus, Md.
AP Photo/Julio Cortez

Unfortunately, nobody can witness all three at once — at least, not in person. Online livestreams may show the full eclipse, with all three of its shadows, in all its glory.

The last time a hybrid solar eclipse occured was 2013 over some regions in the northern Atlantic Ocean and Africa. The next hybrid eclipse won't occur until 2031, and after that observers must wait until 2049, according to NASA.

Correction: April 19, 2023 — An earlier version of this story misstated the year of the next hybrid solar eclipse after 2031. The following hybrid eclipse will occur in 2049, not 2164.