An unusual sunrise will greet Bay people on Saturday as the moon blots out part of the sun in the year's first solar eclipse.
It will be a partial eclipse rather than a total one, in which the Earth is cast into darkness.
Solar eclipses occur when the Earth, sun and moon
line up in such a way that the moon casts a shadow over Earth.
Saturday's eclipse will last from a few minutes to over an hour, depending on where you are in New Zealand. It will be seen by people from New Zealand across to the American continent.
In Tauranga, the sun will rise at 6.36am. The maximum eclipse will be at 6.51am and end one hour and two minutes later at 7.53am.
Senior astronomer at Carter Observatory in Wellington, Brian Carter, said great care must be taken when observing the sun.
"When the sun is near the horizon, as it is for this eclipse, it is not as bright as it is when it is high in the sky, due to the increased amount of atmosphere that the light has to pass through," Mr Carter said.
However, he said it was still harmful to look at with the naked eye and dangerous when looked at through binoculars or a telescope. The only safe way to observe the sun is with a specially designed filter or by projection using a telescope or one side of binoculars, to project the image of the sun on to a screen.
For a while, the sun will be blotted out completely as the eclipse moves across the Pacific but it will be visible only to people at sea.
The next solar eclipse will be October 3, crossing the Iberian Peninsula to Africa.
