Finally the much talked about first solar eclipse of 2010 is over. It was annular; meaning the outside of the Sun was visible to eclipse watchers. The Sun appears as a ring and most of the part gets covered by the Moon’s apparent diameter which appears smaller than that of the Sun.

Its vouched as second-best eclipse of its kind out of so far experienced solar eclipses, which turn day into night, are the favorites — by offering exceptional duration. At its peak, over the Indian Ocean, it lasted 11 minutes 8 seconds. As the duration is also said to be the longest of the millennium! It lasted 10 minutes 45 seconds in Male, a boon for eclipse tourists. However, India experienced it for 10mins and 24secs. This eclipse was first visible in Central African Republic and then covered Camaroon, Congo and Uganda, Nairobi, Kenya and after that entered the Indian Ocean. The next eclipse to be longer than today’s one will occur on 23rd December 3043! No one living today will see any longer eclipse than this!

For everyone’s knowledge, the Sun can view safely with the naked eye only during the few brief seconds or minutes of a total solar eclipse. Partial eclipses, annular eclipses, and the partial phases of total eclipses are never safe to watch without taking special precautions. Even when 99% of the Sun’s surface is obscured during the partial phases of a total eclipse, the remaining photospheric crescent is intensely bright and cannot be viewed safely without eye protection.

Solar Eclipse is a wonderful astronomical experience which takes place when the Moon comes between the Earth and the Sun. The visibility of the Sun from the Earth gets obstructed and what we see is a Solar Eclipse. In this annular eclipse the moon doesn’t block the sun completely. Annular eclipses, which are considered far less important to astronomers than total eclipses of the sun, occur about 66 times a century and can only be viewed by people in the narrow band along its path.