Solar Eclipse 2021: Just a fortnight after Lunar Eclipse, the world will today witness Solar Eclipse. This is the first solar eclipse of the year and will not be visible in many parts of the country. In India, only some parts of the north and northeastern will get the visibility of the eclipse. Meanwhile, people in the northeastern United States and eastern Canada will witness a brief partial Solar Eclipse and only a small area of northern Ontario and Quebec will see the dramatic ‘ring of fire’.
While Solar Eclipse like this is a rare event, there are some facts about the same you must not miss:
How does this rare event occur?
The annular solar eclipse is a rare sight. A total solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between Earth and the sun and blocks the Sunlight resulting to create a ring-like figure around itself. At this time, Moon is also near its farthest point from the Earth. It is this phenomenon that creates a ‘Ring of Fire’ in the sky. As per NASA, annular solar eclipses occur every 18 months somewhere on Earth and they are visible only a few minutes, unlike lunar eclipses.
Eclipse helped man discover the shape of the earth?
Reportedly, hundreds of years ago, people used to observe Mood during an eclipse to determine Earth’s shadow on it which further helped them to understand that the Earth is round. Even today, NASA says that scientists learn about the moon through lunar eclipses. “Even after all these years, scientists are still learning about the Moon from lunar eclipses”, NASA said.