Watch: Moon blots out sun for 'ring of fire' eclipse

The moon blotted out most of the sun across the Pacific Ocean yesterday afternoon, creating an impressive annular "ring of fire" eclipse.

Only Easter Island and a small area near the southern tip of Chile and Argentina were able to witness the event, which lasted just a few minutes.

An annular eclipse happens when the moon is too far away from Earth to completely blot out the sun, like a total eclipse, creating a dark silhouette surrounded by a bright ring of light called an antumbra, or more casually, a "ring of fire."

As the sun darkened over the island, people gathered outdoors, chanted, played music, and wore special eyewear to catch a glimpse of the eclipse.

An estimated 175,000 people live in the path of the eclipse's annularity, giving far-flung residents and eclipse-chasing tourists a stunning view.

The southern half of South America, along with parts of Antarctica and Hawaii, saw a partial eclipse according to a map plotted out by NASA.