Tamil Nadu - Tiruchi   

Solar eclipse, a celestial treat

PHOTO: R. M. RAJARATHINAM

WOW: A child glancing at the eclipse in Tiruchi on Friday. —

TIRUCHI: A large number of men, women and children had a glimpse of solar eclipse at the Anna Science Centre - Planetarium here on Friday. It was partially visible in the city from 4.50 p.m. to 6 p.m. The clear sky helped the people watch the celestial feast.

Authorities made special arrangements for viewing the eclipse. A high-tech welder glass and a sun-spotter were utilised to watch the eclipse.

“While the welder glass reduces the intensity of light by 3.70 lakh times, the sun-spotter is utilised to catch the image of the sun,” Project Director (In-charge) of the Planetarium T. M. Alagiri Swamy Raju said. The solar eclipse was near-total in China, Russia, Mongolia and Siberia. The last solar eclipse was on March 29, 2006 and the next eclipse would be on July 22, 2009, he said. It was a rare phenomenon this year, with both the solar and lunar eclipses happening in the same month. The lunar eclipse would be witnessed on the Full Moon Day on August 17, he said.

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