Preparations are under way in Mysuru to watch the annular solar eclipse on December 26. An annular solar eclipse occurs when the moon covers the sun, but leaves out its outer edges that resemble ‘a ring of fire’.
The Mysore Science Foundation, a voluntary organisation engaged in inculcating scientific culture in growing minds, is not only organising a star-gazing event for about 2,000 people from different parts of South India at Kutta in Kodagu district’s Virajpet taluk, but also scouting for a suitable location in Mysuru for a similar gathering. People in parts of southern India including Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala can witness the rare celestial treat between 8 a.m. and 11 a.m. on December 26.
According to Mysore Science Foundation secretary G.B. Santhosh Kumar, the solar path of the eclipse passes through Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu, Gundlupet in Karnataka and Kutta in Kodagu among other places. “We initially zeroed in on Mangala village in Gundlupet for the star gazing. But, the Forest Department denied permission. So, we shifted the venue to Kutta, which is about 2.5 hour drive from Mysuru,” he said.
Students from Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu have also registered for the event in Kutta. People have to reach the venue on private transport.
The foundation received a request to organise a star-gazing event in the city though the visibility is just 75% here. After the Mysuru ZP CEO Jyothi asked the foundation to organise the event even in Mysuru, efforts are on to identify open grounds. “We are considering grounds like Maharaja’s College Grounds or Oval Grounds,” Mr. Kumar said. People can view the event even from their rooftops, but only through solar filters. Solar goggles, certified by authorities, can be used to watch too.
S.A. Mohan Krishna, an observational astronomer and professor of Mechanical Engineering at Vidhavardhaka College of Engineering, said the annular solar eclipse can be clearly seen in Kerala’s Kasaragod and Wayanad districts. “Kalpetta in Wayanad district is where the annular eclipse is going to be seen perfectly. Apart from Kalpetta in Wayanad, the annular solar eclipse is going to be seen from Mangaluru, Kasargod, Kannur and Thalassery. All these regions are going to witness the eclipse with 96 to 99% conspicuousness,” he added.
Though Dr. Krishna identified Chamundi Hills in Mysuru to be the best place to watch, the annularity of the eclipse starts becoming almost complete from Nanjangud onwards towards Gundlupet.
While the total duration of the annular solar eclipse is three hours and three minutes, Dr. Krishna said the path width of the eclipse’s shadow was 164 km and will be travel at a speed of 1.1 km per second. During its over three hour trajectory, the annular eclipse is going to cover approximately 12,900 km, which is about 0.34% of the surface area of earth.
