When the moon reached its new phase on January 4, 1992, it passed directly between the sun and San Diego, California.  Because the moon was farther from the Earth than usual (near apogee) and the Earth was at its closest  to the sun (perihelion), the moon's silhouette appeared slightly smaller than the disk of the sun.  This caused a spectacular annular, or ring, eclipse that occurred just before sunset.  The San Diego and northern Baja coastlines were the only places on land where sky watchers could view this rare sunset annular eclipse.  The photo was shot only moments after  the onset of annularity.