Scientists, sun-watchers gather to watch ring eclipse

Jan 16, 2010, 1:01 GMT

   As the shadow of the moon eclipsed the sun on Friday, leaving only a blazing ring of fire visible in Africa and parts of Asia, scientists, eclipse chasers and spectators gathered to watch the longest annular eclipse this millenium.

   In an annular eclipse the sun and moon are directly in line with the viewing point on earth and the outer rim of the sun is visible around the moon's smaller shadow.

   'I've seen many eclipses. But this is the first time I saw the golden ring of fire. It was perfect,' said Paresh Sanyal, who travelled some 2,260 kilometres from the city of Kolkata to Dhanushkodi, a town near India's southern tip.

   According to NASA, the duration of this eclipse, which was visible for more than 11 minutes at one point, will not be surpassed until the year 3043.

   In Africa, where the eclipse was visible first, the rare celestial phenomenon took some by surprise.

   The eclipse hit Chad and the Central African Republic, then reached the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, Kenya, and Somalia.

   Starting around 7:15 am (0415 GMT), the moon began to bite away at the sun, progressively lowering temperatures. The peak of the eclipse occurred around 8:25 am.

   In Uganda, many woke up to unusually dull weather, unaware they were witnessing an eclipse. One woman in the streets of Kampala said: 'The moon is fighting the sun. I saw this many years ago and it is happening now.'

   After passing over Somalia, the eclipse crossed over the Indian Ocean, and was visible in India from around 11 am (0530 GMT) in the south-western state of Kerala and was to end around 3:15 pm (0945 GMT) in Mizoram in the country's north-east.

   The southern tips of Kerala and neighbouring Tamil Nadu offered the best views.

   Two of India's rocket bases were in the path of the moon's shadow, and the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) set off nine small sounding rockets before, during and after the eclipse to investigate its effects on the atmosphere.

   The data collected would be used to study how the sudden cut-off of solar radiation affects the atmospheric structure and dynamics, an ISRO release said.

   But while the scientists and eclipse chasers were out in full force, many Indians followed taboos such as staying indoors or abstaining from eating or cooking during the eclipse period.

   Several Hindu temples across India remained closed for the duration of the eclipse.

   Thousands prepared to take a holy bath to cleanse themselves of the effects of the eclipse as soon as it ended.

   'In the 1960s and 70s the streets would be empty - like in a curfew - during the eclipse,' Pallava Bagla, science editor of the NDTV television channel said. 'Now there are many people out to watch the phenomenon. There's been change.'

   In Bangladesh, spectators were concentrated on the island of Saint Martin off the south of the country and at the nearby beach resort of Cox's Bazar.

   These locations were the only sites in Bangladesh to witness the full eclipse, which started around 2:30 pm (0830 GMT) and lasted eight and a half minutes.

   The next annular eclipse to be visible from Bangladesh will occur on February 17, 2064 said the country's astronomical association's Fazlur Rahman Sarker.

   In Dhaka, people gathered to catch a glimpse of the partial eclipse, many defying health warnings by viewing the astronomical event with their naked eyes.

   The longest annular eclipse visible in China for about 1,000 years could be observed in several areas of Yunnan province and 10 other south-western and central regions, state media said.

   It was the first annular eclipse visible in China for 23 years, Cheng Zhuo, an astronomer at China's Purple Mountain Observatory, told the official Xinhua news agency.

   'Many amateur astronomers have taken time off work and spent a lot on money traveling to see it,' Lin Qing, head of the Sheshan Station of the Shanghai Astronomical Observatory, said in Dali, south-western China, which scientists deemed the best location for watching the eclipse.

   The eclipse was first visible in China at 4:37 pm (0837 GMT) in Yunnan's far west and last visible at 4:59 pm (0859 GMT) in the eastern coastal province of Shandong.

   Although amateur astronomers in Shandong had to wait until almost sunset to see the eclipse, many people set up their equipment in the morning in a bid to get the best viewing spots, the agency said.

   The most popular viewing location in Shandong was the seaside village of Hongdao, close to the port and major resort of Qingdao.

   Wang Sichao, an astronomer at the Purple Mountain Observatory, said that an annular eclipse was not considered as spectacular as a total solar eclipse and was of more interest to the public than scientists.

   In Singapore, where the moon covered only a fifth of the sun, sun-gazers were disappointed as grey clouds obscured the view on the eclipse, and, exactly at the peak viewing time at 4:25 pm (0825 GMT) a rain shower occurred.