People across the northern hemisphere will have a chance to witness an annular or partial solar eclipse on Thursday, June 10, when the moon moves between the sun and Earth. The Moon will cast a shadow on Earth while revolving around the planet, causing a full or partial blocking of the sun’s light in some areas.
The upcoming solar eclipse, dubbed as “ring eclipse”, is getting a lot of attention due to the distance of the Moon from Earth. The Moon will be far enough from Earth that it will appear smaller than the sun. In some areas, the moon will look like a dark disk on top of a larger, bright disk, creating what looks like a ring of fire around the moon.
According to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Nasa), people in parts of Canada, Greenland, and northern Russia will experience the annular eclipse. Much of Canada and parts of the Caribbean, Europe, Asia, and northern Africa will experience a partial solar eclipse.
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In the United States, the partial solar eclipse will be visible along with parts of the Southeast, Northeast, Midwest, and in Northern Alaska. While the eclipse will not be visible from India, some reports claim that some parts of Ladakh and Arunachal Pradesh will be able to experience a partial solar eclipse.
How to safely watch a solar eclipse?
Solar eclipses last only a few minutes and eclipse enthusiasts are advised to never look directly at the sun, even if the sun is partly or mostly obscured. Individuals watching a partial solar eclipse or annular solar eclipse must wear solar viewing or eclipse glasses throughout the entire eclipse if they face the sun. Solar viewing or eclipse glasses are different from regular sunglasses which are not safe for viewing the sun. An alternate indirect method of projecting sunlight onto a surface can be used to experience the solar eclipse. Pinhole projectors shouldn’t be used to look directly at the sun.
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How to experience the solar eclipse from countries like India where it won’t be visible?
People in India and other countries where the solar eclipse won’t occur can see it via a live webcam. Weather permitting, Nasa will live stream a view of the partial solar eclipse on its YouTube channel and on its website nasa.gov/live. The live stream will start at 5am EDT (2.30pm IST), however, the steam will be dark until sunrise, 5.47am EDT (3.17pm IST).
Nasa said that the eclipse will be nearly at maximum, with around 90 per cent coverage, at sunrise, so viewers can watch the sun reappear as the Moon moves out of the way. The stream will show the partial, not annular, solar eclipse.
