Partial solar eclipse begins in Pakistan
 

ISLAMABAD: Partial solar eclipse began in Pakistan; the eclipse will be visible in Europe, North Africa and Central Asia, today (Tuesday).

The eclipse began at 11:40am and will end at 4:01pm. The greatest eclipse will be at 1:51pm and the greatest magnitude will be 0.86, according to the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD).

“The eclipse will be visible in Pakistan with 13 percent obscuration of the solar disk,” a Pakistan Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (SUPARCO) official told media.

The experts have warned not to look at the sun without wearing proper eye shielding as a solar filter. The partial eclipse is the first of four solar events in a year that is unusual for having no total solar eclipses and for turning on four of the partial kind.

The last time four partial eclipses occurred in the same year was 2000 and eight of the last 11 years had none. The years 2007 and 2004 had two each. In January, Europe, Africa and Asia will be treated to the phenomenon, which gives the Sun a crescent shape.

There are only two partial solar eclipses between 2011 and 2018, which turns on three.

The second partial solar eclipse of 2011 occurs on Jun 1 and will be visible in East Asia, North America and Iceland. The third, visible to southern Indian Ocean countries, occurs exactly one month later. The last of the four falls on Nov 25, and it will be visible in South Africa, Antarctica and the state of Tasmania in Australia and in New Zealand.

A solar eclipse occurs when Moon blocks all or part of the Sun’s light from reaching the Earth’s surface because it passes directly between the Earth and the Sun. Total solar eclipses turn day into night for several minutes. With a partial solar eclipse, there is very little diminution of sunlight.

(Geo t.v)