I have always reserved all excitement related to eclipses for the eclipse junkies. But I got just a wee bit curious about this annular solar eclipse occurring on 26 Jan. What IS an annular eclipse?

It is supposed to transform the Sun into a dark disc with a blazing ring-shaped corona around its rim. How does this happen? In solar eclipses, the Moon moves between the Sun and Earth, casting its shadow on the terrestrial surface. But an annular eclipse occurs when the moon is farther from the earth than normal in its elliptical orbit and hence, its apparent size is not sufficient to cover the sun completely, Director of Science Popularisation Association of Communicators and Educators (SPACE) in India, Mr.C.B.Devgun explained. “Therefore…….. a thin ring of sunlight will remain visible around the dark silhouette of the moon”, he said.

The total eclipse will traverse the Indian Ocean and western Indonesia before petering out just short of Mindanao, the Philippines. The partial eclipse will be seen by a much wider audience in southern Africa, Madagascar, Australia, Southeast India, Southeast Asia and Indonesia.

However, the big event for astronomy enthusiasts this year is on July 22, when a total solar eclipse will be visible from India and China.

So the lucky few in the Indian Ocean who will be able to witness this tomorrow, do remember to use appropriate filters to view it!

via yahoo news/ The Hindu