The Kerala State Science and Technology Museum (KSSTM) is making arrangements in four locations across the State for the public to view the December 26 solar eclipse safely.
The celestial event will manifest itself as an annular solar eclipse for people in north Kerala. It would be visible as a partial eclipse in central and south Kerala, KSSTM director Arul Jerald Prakash said.
In an annular solar eclipse, the new moon covers the centre of the sun’s disk. The moon being too small to cover the solar disk completely, the outer edges of the sun will be visible to viewers on earth as a flaming ring or annulus.
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Annular in north Kerala
For viewers in north Kerala, the eclipse will start off as a partial eclipse at 8.05 a.m. The annular phase will peak at 9.26 a.m. and be visible for about 2.45 minutes. It will then move into the partial eclipse stage, with the phenomenon coming to an end at 11.06 a.m. In central Kerala, the partial eclipse will begin around 8.05 a.m. and peak around 9.28 a.m. and end at 11.09 a.m.
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In Thiruvananthapuram, the partial eclipse will begin at 8.07 a.m. The eclipse can be seen at its maximum at 9.30 a.m. and will end by 11.11 a.m.
The KSSTM is arranging viewings at the Rajas Higher Secondary School grounds at Nadapuram; the Panampilly Memorial College grounds at Chalakudy; the Devamatha College grounds at Kuruvilangad; and the Central Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram.
The KSSTM viewings are also meant to dispel superstitions associated with eclipses. “There is no harm in having food during an eclipse or even in viewing it. But extreme care should be taken not to view the eclipse with the naked eye as UV rays from the sun can be harmful,” said Rajeevan P.P., district coordinator of Breakthrough Science Society, which is collaborating with the KSSTM for the viewings. It is safe to use equipment such as solar filters and pinhole cameras.
Have payasam too
The KSSTM would also serve payasam to visitors at the viewing centre at the Central Stadium here during the eclipse for countering the superstitions linked to the celestial phenomenon, said Mr. Prakash.
An annular solar eclipse was last visible in Kerala on January 15, 2010. The next one, which will also be the last for the State in this century, will be on May 21, 2031.