Get to see a partial Solar Eclipse today in Kolkata

The celestial show is on and this year end Calcuttans will be lucky to get a glimpse of the same. A partial solar eclipse will be visible from the city today from 8.26am, but will peak at 9.52am and end around noon. A solar eclipse occurs when the moon passes between the Earth and the Sun, partially or totally obscuring the Sun for viewers on Earth. But this eclipse is different, as it is an annular solar eclipse that occurs when the moon’s apparent diameter is smaller than the Sun’s, blocking most of the sunlight and causing the Sun to look like an annulus (ring).

Above Kolkata the maximum obstruction of the Sun will be around 45 per cent. If you wish to view this celestial wonder, you can head to Birla Industrial & Technological Museum (BITM) that has made arrangements for viewing the eclipse through a telescope fitted with filters and special viewing glasses, so that it does not cause harm to the eyes.