There are three different kind of eclipse - total, partial and annular. A total eclipse is when moon fully covers the sun - this happens somewhere in the world about once a year. A partial eclipse is when Moon appears to cover just part of the Sun. and there is annular eclipses which are the rarest - they happen about once every couple of years. The last eclipse that was visible in the UK was back in 1999. It's called an 'annular' eclipse because of the glowing outline, or 'ring of fire', that the Sun gives to the Moon.
