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Solar Eclipse Coming Dec. 4 in Southern Africa & Australia
By SPACE.com Staff
posted: 07:00 am ET
25 November 2002
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The eclipses shadow will come ashore in Angola just before 0600 UT A total eclipse of the Sun will bring daytime darkness to parts of southern Africa and southern Australia on Dec. 4. Across an ever moving swath of Earth roughly 35 miles wide (56 kilometers), the Suns entire disk will be blotted out by the Moon. The eclipses shadow touches down in the Atlantic Ocean and will come ashore in Angola just before 0600 Universal Time (UT). The shadow will cross parts of Zambia, Namibia, Botswana, South Africa and Mozambique, before sweeping out into the Indian Ocean. About an hour-and-a-half later, the eclipse will spread over sparsely populated South Australia, New South Wales and Queensland. The event ends at 0912 UT. It is the first total solar eclipse visible from Australia since 1976. A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon gets positioned just right between Earth and the Sun. Because the orbits of these objects are not all perfectly aligned or timed, there is no simple schedule for eclipses. But astronomers can predict them. There are at least two solar eclipses per year somewhere on Earth. Some of these are partial, however, or annular (in which a ring of the Sun surrounds the Moon). Total solar eclipses come along about once every 1.5 years. Viewers along the eclipses path of total darkness will see stars and planets as if it were the dead of night. As many as four planes could be visible, says Fred Espenak, an eclipse expert at NASA. "The most conspicuous planet visible during totality will be Venus," Espenak says. Venus is the brightest point of light in the night sky. Skywatchers are advised to use extreme caution when viewing a solar eclipse. During total darkness, it is safe to view the event directly, but when a part of the Sun is visible, then it is not safe to look at it. A glimpse of the Suns rays without proper viewing devices can cause permanent eye damage. Sunglasses are not sufficient.Solar Eclipses Special Report: Photos, viewing tips and reports from past eclipsesComing Friday, Nov. 29 on SPACE.com: Our backyard astronomy columnist Joe Rao provides details of the Dec. 4 eclipseMore detailed information about the Dec. 4 eclipse is also available from NASA
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