Total Solar Eclipse 2024: Will The Cosmic Event Be Visible In India? All You Need To Know

The total solar eclipse on April 8, 2024, will begin in India at around 9:12 pm IST, and end at around 2:22 am IST the next day. 

Total Solar Eclipse 2024: The first solar eclipse of the year, which will be a total solar eclipse, will occur on April 8, and is a special event because scientists aim to learn a lot from it. ( Image Source :Getty )

Total Solar Eclipse 2024: The first solar eclipse of the year, which will be a total solar eclipse, will occur on April 8, and is a special event because scientists aim to learn a lot from it. The total solar eclipse will be visible from the United States, Canada, and Mexico, because of which there is a lot of excitement around the celestial spectacle in these countries. For North America, the eclipse is special because the next total solar eclipse will not be visible to people living in the continent till August 23, 2044. 

The total solar eclipse on April 8, 2024, will begin in India at around 9:12 pm IST, and end at around 2:22 am IST the next day. 

However, the event will not be visible to people living in the country, and can only be watched online.

Why the total solar eclipse will not be visible in India

The total solar eclipse on April 8 will not be visible in India because the country does not lie in the path of totality of the eclipse, and the event will occur at night.

The totality phase is the one in which the Moon completely covers the disk of the Sun, with only the Sun's corona being visible, as a result of which the sky goes dark, and temperatures drop. 

More about a total solar eclipse, and its phases

When the new Moon comes between the Sun and the Earth, and casts the darkest part of its shadow, or umbra, on the planet, the face of the Sun is completely blocked from the Earth. This is known as a total solar eclipse.

During a total solar eclipse, the Sun's outer atmosphere, or corona, becomes clearly visible. But one must not look at the Sun directly at the time of totality, or when the Moon completely covers the bright face of the Sun, because this can cause severe eye injury. 

People should wear specialised eye protection while viewing a total solar eclipse, and use a telescope with a special-purpose solar filter. 

Only regions located in the path of the Moon's umbra can see a total solar eclipse. People living outside the umbra's path can see a partial solar eclipse, wherein the Moon blocks only a part of the Sun. 

A total solar eclipse takes place in five stages. These are: beginning of partial solar eclipse (first contact); beginning of total solar eclipse (second contact); totality and maximum eclipse; end of total eclipse (third contact); and end of partial eclipse (fourth contact). 

In the first contact phase, the Moon becomes visible over the Sun's disk. 

During the second contact phase, the Moon starts covering the entire disk of the Sun, with some observers in the Moon's umbral path seeing the diamond ring effect.

The midpoint of the time of totality of a solar eclipse is known as the maximum point of the eclipse.

The third contact phase is the one in which the Moon starts to move away, and the Sun reappears. 

When the Moon leaves the Sun's disk, the partial eclipse ends.

People in India can watch the eclipse on the official YouTube channel of NASA, or by clicking on the embedded video below.