Remember that Nigeria will experience a partial solar eclipse later today. This is an astronomical event that will have the earth thrown into temporal or partial darkness as the moon blocks the sun’s rays from reaching the earth. A partial eclipse at about 1.00 pm when the moon will touch the edge of the sun, the maximum eclipse shortly before 3.00pm when the moon is expected to be closest to the center and shortly after 4.00pm when the moon will leave the sun’s edge. Nigeria Space Research And Development Agency (NASDRA) say there is no cause for alarm at all. An eclipse is a natural phenomenon. Nevertheless, in some ancient and modern cultures, solar eclipses have been attributed to supernatural causes or regarded as bad omen. A total solar eclipse can be frightening to people who are unaware of its astronomical explanation, as the Sun seems to disappear during the day and the sky darkens in a matter of minutes. Since looking directly at the Sun can lead to permanent eye damage or blindness, special eye protection or indirect viewing techniques are used when viewing a solar eclipse. It is technically safe to view only the total phase of a total solar eclipse with the unaided eye and without protection, however this is a dangerous practice as most people are not trained to recognize the phases of an eclipse which can span over two hours while the total phase can only last up to 7.5 minutes for any one location. So, if you must look, do not do so with your bare eyes and do not loo directly. Spread the word...
Posted on: Sun, 03 Nov 2013 07:10:58 +0000