New Delhi:
Astronomy enthusiasts have all the reasons to feel on top of the world as a total solar eclipse or surya grahan will occur today, July 2, 2019. However, sky gazers in India will not be able to watch the rare natural phenomenon since it would be night in the country. The July 2 solar eclipse, which is likely to last for 4 minutes 33 seconds, will be the first and only total solar eclipse of the year.
According to reports, published in several space websites, the celestial event will be seen in parts of South America, Chile, Argentina and remote areas of South Pacific Ocean. While a narrow zone of the Pacific Ocean and South America will come in the path of totality, rest of the places will witness a partial solar eclipse only.
The solar eclipse will start at 12:55pm EDT (10:25pm Indian Standard Time) and end at around 12:59pm EDT (10:29pm IST). The eclipse will be at its peak when the moon will fully cover the sun. NASA will be covering the beautiful natural phenomenon in English and Spanish and will also share live images, videos, and updates before, during and after the grahan. Therefore, we bring you a list of websites where you can watch the Surya Grahan LIVE from any parts of the world.
¿Están listos? Are you ready? â˜€ï¸ ðŸŒ‘ 🌎
— NASA (@NASA) June 29, 2019
A total solar #eclipse will be seen over parts of Argentina and Chile on July 2 and we're covering it live in English & Spanish. Here's how you can watch: https://t.co/YANDTr2fGe pic.twitter.com/slt7Z8Bwdd
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What is Total Solar Eclipse?
A 'Total Solar Eclipse' occurs when the moon blocks the sun's entire solar disk in the sky, which results in dimming and cooling of the atmosphere for minutes at a time since the lunar shadow travels across a particular region of Earth’s surface. The moon orbits about 239,000 miles from Earth, appear the same size in the sky as the sun, which on the other hand, is significantly larger than the moon and much farther away.
On January 6, the world geared up for a partial solar eclipse that too was not visible in India due to night time in the country. During a partial solar eclipse or Surya Grahan, the Moon covers a certain portion of the Sun giving it a crescent or disk like shape with a hollow centre.
READ | Space rock hit Moon during January's total eclipse
In total, the year 2019 will witness five eclipses, two of which will be visible in India. While total solar eclipse is a rare historical phenomenon, partial solar eclipses occur every six months or so. In 2018, sky gazers witnessed a total of five eclipses, two of which were total lunar eclipses and three partial solar eclipses.
