Solar Eclipse: The best places in India to view the annular solar eclipse

Solar eclipse is a rare and highly interesting astronomical event that has triggered human imaginations for so long. Solar eclipse occurs when the moon passes between the earth and the sun hiding sun partially or fully for a brief period when seen from the earth. The solar eclipse that is coming up in this season will be an ‘Annular Solar Eclipse’ that will occur on December 26, 2019. This eclipse will be the third and the final solar eclipse for the year 2019.

About Annular Solar Eclipse

An annular Solar Eclipse will result when the apparent diameter of the moon is smaller than that of the sun. In this case, the moon will block most of the sun’s light and cause the sun to look like a ring (annulus) and hence the name annular solar eclipse. An annular solar eclipse will be a spectacular sight in the regions where it will be visible.

Regions where annularity will be visible during December 26, 2019 solar eclipse

The regions in which the annular solar eclipse will be visible will include Saudi Arabia, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Oman, India, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Northern Mariana Islands, and Guam. People living in cities like Kozhikode, Coimbatore, Jaffna, Trincomalee, Sibolga, Batam, Singapore, Singkawang and Guam can see the annular solar eclipse clearly in its entirety. Cities like Doha, Madurai, Pekanbaru, Dumai, Johor Bahru and Kuching occur in the regions that will narrowly miss the annular solar eclipse.

The best places in India to view the annular solar eclipse

The December 26, 2019 solar eclipse will be annular and partial depending on the location from where you see the eclipse in India. In the states of Tamil Nadu and Kerala, annular solar eclipse will be visible. The longest duration of annularity will be 3 minutes. In Tamil Nadu, you can see the annularity for 3 minutes 11 seconds in Tiruppur and for 3 minutes and 15 seconds in Ammapattinam on the east coast. The annularity will last for 3 minutes in Ooty and since it is a hill station with an altitude of 2200 meters, this location will lead to the best view of the solar eclipse without being obstructed by the clouds.

Timing of the solar eclipse December 26, 2019

The partial eclipse will begin a few minutes after 8 am (IST) and will last till 11:30 am (IST). The timing of the annularity will be 09:24 am to 09:27 am in the east coast and 09:31 am to 09:35 am in the west coast.

The percentage of eclipse in different cities of India

The maximum obstruction of the sun during the eclipse when seen from different cities of India will be 78.8% from Mumbai, 44.7% in Delhi, 89.4% in Bangalore, 74.3% in Hyderabad, 66.0% in Ahmedabad, 84.6% in Chennai and 45.1% in Kolkata. Some important cities in the annular path of the solar eclipse will be Kozhikode in Kerala, Mangalore in Karnataka and Tiruppur, Coimbatore and Trichy in Tamil Nadu.