Rare ‘Crescent Sunrise’ Solar Eclipse to Grace Skies Over Antarctica and New Zealand

A rare celestial event will take place this weekend when a partial solar eclipse meets September's equinox. Early risers in New Zealand, Antarctica, and the South Pacific will see a streamer of sunlight shaped like a crescent rising from the horizon on Sunday, September 21, 2025. It won't become fully dark as in a total eclipse, but the view of an eclipsed sun near the horizon is something not to be missed. Millions of penguins in Antarctica and a few thousand skywatchers will share the view of this “equinox eclipse”.

New Zealand and Antarctica to Witness Deepest Views of Rare Crescent Sunrise Eclipse

As per Timeanddate.com, the eclipse will fall within a 1:29 p.m.–5:53 p.m. EDT (17:29–21:53 UTC) time window on September 21, or sunrise on September 22 as seen from New Zealand and Antarctica. Observation will be a spectre from the very best to low-quality anywhere along the path of that shadow through our part of the solar system. In New Zealand, the solar disk will appear 72% covered from Dunedin and Auckland – for everyone else in that island nation, only an incomplete occultation occurs. The moon will be at its deepest over Antarctica's Ross Sea for a total eclipse, and Fiji and Tonga will see partial eclipses of varying coverage.

In Hobart, in Australia, there will be an eclipse of 3 percent with the use of protective glasses to watch it, attracting visitors from New Zealand and Antarctica.

The next solar eclipse is set for Feb. 17, 2026, when an annular eclipse will create a ring of fire in the sky. That breathtaking “ring of fire,” however, will be visible only from the remote fringes of Antarctica — and penguins will once again have the best seats in the house.