Space: a total solar eclipse will take place this WEEK, but it will only be visible in Antarctica
The only total solar eclipse this year will take place this week, but you may have a long way to go to enjoy it, with the entire event only visible from Antarctica, NASA said.
The eclipse will take place on Saturday, December 4 and will reach its greatest extent around 07:33 GMT for viewers near the edge of the Ronne Ice Shelf in Antarctica.
While this can be largely missed, viewers in other parts of the southern hemisphere, including parts of Australia, Chile, and New Zealand, will see a partial eclipse.
The next total solar eclipse will not occur until April 8, 2024 but, unlike this week’s event, it will be widely visible in parts of Canada, Mexico and the United States.
In Europe, meanwhile, a total solar eclipse is not expected this century.
The only total solar eclipse this year will take place this week, but you may have a long way to go to enjoy it, with the entire event only visible from Antarctica, NASA said.
The eclipse, which will take place on Saturday, December 4, will reach its greatest extent around 07:33 GMT for viewers near the edge of the Ronne Ice Shelf in Antarctica.
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Solar eclipses occur when the moon passes between Earth and the sun, casting a shadow on Earth. There are several types, depending on the amount of sun that appears obscured to a viewer in a given location.
For a total solar eclipse, when the sun is temporarily completely obscured by the moon for those in the very center of the lunar shadow, the three celestial bodies must be in a straight line.
Spectators see the sky turning very dark, as if it were dawn or dusk, while it is also possible to catch a glimpse of the crown of the sun, or the outer atmosphere, around the moon.
The corona is normally obscured by the bright face of the Sun.
A similar phenomenon, an annual solar eclipse, occurs when the moon appears slightly smaller than the sun, fails to completely block it, and leaves a so-called ‘annular ring’ around it at the time of the largest eclipse.
The next annular eclipse is expected to cross North America on October 14, 2023.
While the weekend’s total solar eclipse is likely to be barely appreciated, many places in the southern hemisphere will still receive a gift, NASA explained.
“In some places, although viewers will not be able to see the total solar eclipse, they will experience a partial solar eclipse,” they said in a blog post.
This happens when the Sun, Moon, and Earth are not exactly aligned. The Sun will appear to have a dark shadow on only part of its surface.
“Spectators in parts of St. Helena, Namibia, Lesotho, South Africa, South Georgia and Sandwich Islands, Crozet Islands, Falkland Islands, Chile, New Zealand and Australia will see a partial solar eclipse on December 4.”
While Saturday’s eclipse can be largely missed in Antarctica (pictured), viewers in other parts of the hemisphere, including parts of Australia, Chile, and New Zealand, will see a partial eclipse.
NASA warned that, for many of these places, the partial eclipse will occur around sunrise or sunset.
Consequently, viewers wishing to observe the event will need to have a clear view of the horizon in order to actually see the eclipse.
Weather permitting, NASA plans to live stream a view of the total solar eclipse seen from Antarctica’s Union Glacier, both on YouTube and on NASA’s website.
The broadcast, provided by the JM Pasachoff Antarctic Expedition, will begin at 1:30 am EST (6:30 am GMT) on December 4 and will run until 3:37 am EST (8:37 am GMT).
Totality, NASA said, will begin at 2:44 am EST (7:44 am GMT).
WHEN WILL THE NEXT SOLAR ECLIPSES TAKE PLACE?
The next US solar eclipse will take place on April 8, 2024, passing from Texas to Maine, and the Canadian city of Montreal will also be able to see totality.
The next subsequent total solar eclipse will take place on August 12, 2026 and will be seen from the Arctic, Greenland, Iceland, Spain and northeast Portugal.
Graph showing solar eclipses that will take place around the world between 2018 and 2040. The next US solar eclipse will take place on April 8, 2024, passing from Texas to Maine, and the Canadian city of Montreal will be able to see the whole as well
On September 2, 2035, large numbers of people in China, northern Japan, and Korea will witness a total solar eclipse.
Between 2023 and 2038, the largest number of total solar eclipses will occur in Australia: there will be five solar eclipses visible from the continent between April 20, 2023 and December 26, 2038.
