Delayed dawn: Longest solar eclipse in July

According to Arvind C Ranade,a scientist with Vigyan Prasar,the outreach wing of Department of Science and Technology,the view will be beautiful from the city. “The eclipse will look like a diamond ring,” he said. Among other metros,Mumbai will be the luckiest — with a view 96 per cent eclipse. Kolkata will witness 90 per cent,Bangalore 80-90 per cent and Chennai merely 63 per cent.

Ranade added that Vigyan Prasar will hold many programmes on the day starting with broadcast of the eclipse at all AIR radio stations and organising a campaign in Bhopal where 500-1,000 enthusiasts will gather to view the extraordinary event. In many cities,there will be teams to capture the phenomenon on camera that will be later put up on the website.

The India Meteorological Department is also publishing information booklets and has also put up details on their website.

According to IMD,the solar eclipse will begin at 5.28 am on July 22 when the shadow of the Moon touches the Earth at local sunrise at a point in the Arabian Sea close to the western coast of India. The eclipse ends at 10.42 am. The partial phase of the eclipse will be visible throughout the country. The next solar eclipse,the Annular Solar Eclipse,will occur on January 15,2010. The path of the said eclipse will pass through extreme southern tips of India.