Solar Eclipse 2021: How and where to watch, eclipse timing, and more

First, the partial eclipse will start at around 11:42 am IST and the annular eclipse will appear to occur from 3:30 pm and will continue up to 4:52 pm

Solar eclipse 2021: An annular solar eclipse is going to occur today. This will be the first Solar Eclipse of the year 2021. A solar eclipse is a phenomenon, which occurs when Moon comes between the earth and the sun. The moon casts its shadow on Earth, and we will witness a ring-like shape around it. It is popularly known as the 'ring of fire' or Annular Solar Eclipse.

Solar eclipse 2021 in India

Today's eclipse will not be visible in most parts of India. While several countries in the world will witness the annular solar eclipse, India will not be able to witness the rare comic phenomenon except in extreme parts of Arunachal Pradesh and Ladakh. In Arunachal Pradesh, people can see, just before the sunset, a minuscule fraction of the sun covered by the moon, that is also very low on the horizon. The eclipse will last for barely 3-4 minutes depending upon the position.

"On the northern borders, in Ladakh, a sliver of land in the border region can experience the last phase of the partial eclipse, again for a short duration, but relatively at a higher altitude than the eastern part of the country," director of MP Birla Planetarium, Debiprasad Duari told PTI.

Officials said that a very small part of the solar eclipse will be visible from the vicinity of Dibang Wildlife Sanctuary in Arunachal Pradesh at around 5:52 pm. In the northern part of Ladakh, where the sun will set at around 6.15 pm, the last phases of the phenomenon can be seen at around 6 pm.

Where to view solar eclipse

According to Nasa, the eclipse will be visible only in a few regions, while it will be partial in others. The space agency has said that Russia, Greenland and Canada will get to witness the "ring of fire," or, in other words, a full solar eclipse, while the eastern United States and Alaska will witness only a partial eclipse. Large parts of North America, Europe, Asia, northern Africa, and parts of the Caribbean, too, will see a partial eclipse.

Solar eclipse 2021 timing

First, the partial eclipse will start at around 11:42 am Indian Standard Time and the annular eclipse will appear to occur from 3:30 pm and will continue up to 4:52 pm, though for different intervals for a particular region, depending upon one's geographical location.

The partial eclipse will end at around 6:41 pm IST.

How to watch Solar eclipse 2021 online

Live coverage of the eclipse is being arranged by various organisations around the world. Nasa will live stream the eclipse on nasa. gov/live. It can also be viewed on YouTube, courtesy of Luc Bolard of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada Sudbury Centre. Nasa has also released a set of precautions that are to be taken while witnessing the solar eclipse. These are available on its official website.