The sun is about to turn into a "ring of fire." On June 21st, the Moon will pass directly in front of the sun, producing an annular solar eclipse over Earth's eastern hemisphere. Graphic artist Larry Koehn created this animated preview:

Annular eclipses are not total. Only about 99% of the solar disk will be covered. The remainder juts out around the Moon, creating a "ring of fire." The narrow path of annularity stretches from east Africa to the Pacific Ocean, with greatest coverage occurring over the Himalaya of northern India at 06:41 UT.

A partial eclipse, in which a smaller fraction of the sun is covered, can be seen across a much wider area including parts of Europe, the Middle East, India, almost all of Asia, and northernmost Australia. Observers, be careful! A partially eclipsed sun is still dangerously bright and should not be looked at through magnifying optics. Try projection techniques instead.

Because annular eclipses are not, technically, total, they are sometimes considered to be lesser events. Decide for yourself ... after watching this video of an annular eclipse at sunrise over western Australia on May 10, 2013: