Saturday, January 16, 2010

Annular Eclipse in Kampala, Uganda


On Friday, January 15th, 2010, there was an annular eclipse to be seen in the whole city of Kampala, Uganda. The eclipse started around 7:06AM and the annular eclipse (ring of fire) took place at 8:30AM.

Eclipse takes place when the moon lines up in between the sun and the earth. Annular eclipse occurs in the way the sun shines like a ring. Hence it is called 'Ring of Fire." There are other types of eclipse. Total eclipse occurs when the moon covers the sun entirely. Partial eclipse happens when the moon passes through the sun. Hybrid eclipse transitions between total eclipse and annular eclipse.

In Uganda, the next annular eclipse can be seen only in 115 years. So it was a life time experience for me and many others in Kampala, Uganda. The eclipse started in central Africa at dawn and then moved east through the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda, Kenya and Somalia. It crossed the Indian Ocean and the central path then continued into Asian through Bangladesh, India, Burma and China. - Jeffrey

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