On Thursday, April 20, residents of the southern hemisphere of the Earth will be able to observe a total solar eclipse – a phenomenon that occurs only a few times a century.
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The difference from the previous ones is that the expected dimming is hybrid, which is even more rare. This year it has been named the Ningal Blackout, after the UNESCO-listed Nungal Coast in western Australia.
A hybrid solar eclipse is a combination of total and partial, when the disk of the Moon completely covers the Sun and only the outer solar rim is visible around the dark circle. This phenomenon is also called ring blackout.
Watching this phenomenon, like any other type of eclipse, should only be done with special glasses, NASA experts warn.
According to scientists, this extremely rare event will take place only seven times in the 21st century, the current second. The blackout will begin in the Indian Ocean at dawn and end in the Pacific at sunset. At the beginning and end of the cycle, it will be ring-shaped, in the middle – full.
Observers in different countries will see different phases of the hybrid solar eclipse.
Where is the best place to see the eclipse?
The dimming will continue for about 60 seconds. The best view of it will open to residents of western Australia, East Timor and western New Guinea.
The best place to watch the blackout is Western Australia’s Exmouth Island, where tens of thousands of people are expected to arrive.
The first hybrid solar eclipse of the twenty-first century occurred in November 2013. The phase of complete blackout was then observed in Central Africa – in northern Kenya, in Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
According to NASA, the next eclipse should occur in 2031.
Source: Racurs
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.