An annular solar eclipse occurs on Friday, 14 December, 2001. Most of the path of the annular eclipse is over the Pacific ocean, but it crosses Costa Rica and Nicaragua in Central America before ending in the Caribbean Sea.
The path width will be over 100km, and the eclipse will last over 3 minutes; however, this means that the Moon only covers a relatively small part of the Sun, so this won't be a particularly spectacular show. As with any annular eclipse, naked eye viewing is extremely dangerous.
The partial eclipse will be visible over a wide area, however, including most of North and Central America, and the north-western part of South America.
More information on this eclipse may be found at Fred Espenak's site.
Please note that these maps are very approximate. Check with reliable sources before making travel plans.
The following map shows the areas where the annular eclipse will be visible:
It looks to me like the Midway islands are going to be pretty close, at least. However, the best chance for viewing may be at the end of the eclipse track, in Central America, just after 22:30 UT. At this point, the path will be over 160km wide, and the duration of the annular eclipse will be around 3 minutes 20 seconds:
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Copyright (C) 1995-2005 Ian Cameron Smith.
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