The first special sun event of the year, when the moon covered the sun, was seen near the South Pole. Only a small number of people were able to watch it there.

The event on Feb. 17 was a ring eclipse, often called a “ring of fire.” Space scientist, Joe Llama of Lowell Observatory, a place to study space, said the penguins near the South Pole would have “a great show.”

If the sky was clear, people in a few other places could see a part of the eclipse. They might see small “bites” taken out of the sun. This could be seen from the bottom ends of Chile and Argentina, and parts of southeastern Africa, including Madagascar, Lesotho and South Africa.

This special sun event happens when the sun, the moon and Earth line up. The moon blocks some of the sun’s light. In a ring eclipse, the moon is farther from Earth, so it does not cover all of the sun. A thin ring of sunlight can be seen.

Never look directly at the sun. Use special eclipse glasses. You can also watch safely with a simple pinhole projector, or by using paper with small holes to make small eclipse shapes on the ground.