ABU DHABI 26 December 2019: The UAE Space Agency is organizing and sponsoring events to observe the solar eclipse taking place across the UAE, in partnership with several observatories.
The “annular solar phenomenon” will be visible from the UAE for the first time since 1847, and set to take place today (Thursday, 26th December) at 07:00 GST time.
The annular eclipse phase starts when the moon rises, as it completes its total transit in front of the sun, the space agency explained.
“The moon will appear to be smaller than usual, as it is at its farthest point in its orbit from the Earth. Thus, the edges of the sun will shape a ring of light around the shadow of the moon that will cover most of the sun. After that, the moon will start moving away from the sun, and the eclipse will turn into a partial one, as the moon continues to move away from the sun until the moon’s shadow is completely cleared from Earth after about three hours,” it added.
The UAE Space Agency had organised:
- A viewing in collaboration with the International Astronomical Centre, based in Abu Dhabi, at Liwa Hills Hotel, near Madinat Zayed in Al Dhafra.
- With the Thuraya Astronomical Observatory to organise an event at the Qasr Al Sarab Desert Resort
- In collaboration with Emirates Mobile Observatory at Marina Mall in Abu Dhabi
All three events were open to the public and free of charge.
According to the astronomical calculations, the eclipsed sun will rise on Thursday morning. The solar eclipse will be visible in some regions of the UAE for roughly three minutes.
