When the Moon passes between the Sun and Earth, completely blocking the face of the Sun, a total solar eclipse takes place. At that period of the day, the sky goes dark like it's dusk. (Images by Pexels, Pixabay and Freepik)
The first surya grahan of 2024 will take place on April 8. The eclipse time starts at 2.12 PM on April 8 and ends at 2.22 am on April 9.
The total eclipse will cross North America, passing over Mexico, the United States, and Canada. Indians will not be able to witness this eclipse.
As NASA points out, except during the brief total phase of a total solar eclipse when the Moon completely blocks the Sun’s bright face, it is not safe to look directly at the Sun without specialised eye protection for solar viewing.
A solar eclipse can only be viewed from a relatively small area of the world. So while somewhere on Earth, a total solar eclipse can occur every 18 months approximately, in specific parts of the world, it can occur once in several hundred years. So many people may never see a total solar eclipse in their lifetime.
The second solar eclipse of the year will be an Annular one and will take place on October 2. An Annular Solar Eclipse occurs when the New Moon moves in front of the Sun, but does not cover the Sun's disk completely, thus showing a ring of fire.
Two Chandra Grahan will take place in 2024 - one on March 25 and the other on September 18.