SINGAPORE- On Thursday, thousands of people gathered across parts of Asia and the Middle East to catch a glimpse of the enthralling rare annular solar eclipse as the sun formed a ring of fire around the moon.
An annular eclipse is one which occurs as the moon covers the centre of the sun and leaves the outer edges free to form a ring.
The eclipse was visible in Singapore, India, Saudi Arabia, Sri Lanka and Indonesia. Albert Ho, the President of the Astronomical Society of Singapore said that this is the first of just two annular eclipses which can be seen from Singapore for the remainder of the century, hence it is a rare event. Singapore’s next annular eclipse will be only in 2063.
Most years, somewhere on Earth, two solar eclipses can be seen and the maximum number is five.
(Photos syndicated via Reuters)
This story has been edited by BH staff and is published from a syndicated field.