Apod 4.6

The sky over Longyearbyen, Norway presented a beautiful astronomical sight this year during the March 20^th equinox, a total eclipse of the sun. This photo shows the moons silhouette at different stages before and after the eclipse, which lasted a total of 3 minutes. Because of the way the solar disk with its lunar limb are surrounded by the glow of the sun, the eclipse appeared as a diamond in the sky. Also, at the boundaries of totality, the sunlight streaming through valleys in the irregular terrain along the Moon's edge, produces an effect known as Baily's Beads, named after English astronomer Francis Baily who championed an explanation for the phenomenon in 1836. This intense composition also shows off the array of pinkish solar prominences lofted above the edge of the eclipsed Sun.