Guest guest Posted January 12, 2010 Report Share Posted January 12, 2010 On January 15th, people living in the Southern tip of the country at Dhanushkodi in Tamil Nadu will get to watch the 'Ring of Fire' when the moon will cover the sun's disc during the millennium's longest annular solar eclipse. Annular solar eclipse occurs when the sun and the moon are exactly in line, but the apparent size of the moon's shadow is smaller than that of the visible disc of the sun. The covered sun, therefore, appears as a 'Ring of Fire', with its rays appearing spread out from the outline of the moon. The Last time India saw this 'Ring of Fire' was Nov 22, 1965 , and it will not be witnessed again before June 21, 2020 . The maximum duration of the eclipse would be 11 minutes 08 seconds over the Indian Ocean , thus making it the longest annular eclipse of the millennium. People in southern parts of the country, especially in Dhanushkodi near Rameshwaram, will be lucky to see the heavenly sight of 'Ring of Fire'. The eclipse will be best viewed at Dhanushkodi for a duration of 10 minutes and 13 seconds. In India, the eclipse will start around 11 a.m. and end around 3:15 p.m. The eclipse will first be seen in south of Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu and then move obliquely to Rameshwaram and Dhanushkodi. It will then move to Kerala and end in Mizoram in the northeast. The eclipse will be the longest of the millennium - that is between 2001 and 3000. People in most parts of India will witness the partial phases of the eclipse. The path of the moon's shadow begins in Africa at 10.44 a.m. and passes through Chad , Central African Republic , the Democratic Republic of the Congo , Uganda , Kenya , and Somalia . After leaving Africa , the path crosses the Indian Ocean . The central path then continues into Asia through the extreme southern part of India , Bangladesh , Myanmar , and China . A partial eclipse will be seen within the much broader path, including entire India , or Bangladesh . It is to be noted that the only Temple in the World that is not closed during the Duration of any Eclipse is the famous Srikalahastheeswara Swamy Temple at Sri Kalahasthi in Andhra Pradesh. It is said that no Influence of any Eclipse can touch this most sacred Shaivaite Temple in which the Famous Rahu Ketu Pooja is done. Om Sai Ram Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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