Afghan Voice Agency (AVA) - monitoring : The much-anticipated space activity will offer a breathtaking sight to the world as the hybrid solar eclipse shifts to an annular (ring-shaped) from a total solar eclipse as the shadow of the moon falls on the Earth.

 

Eclipses are rare occurrences that take place when the moon, sun and earth align in a cosmic setting casting their shadow or blocking sunlight. However, the phenomenon of hybrid solar eclipses is extremely unusual, which occurs just a few times in a century.

 

Though the phenomenon will not be visible in Pakistan, people in the country can still see it live through internet streaming.

The expected sighting of the eclipse has also been confirmed by the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD).

 

A brief statement by the PMD said that the eclipse will start early morning and end right before noon on April 20 as per Pakistan Standard Time, but it will not be visible anywhere in the country.

 

The different phases of solar eclipse will occur at:

• Eclipse begins at 6:34am PST

• Total eclipse will occur at 7:37am PST

• Eclipse will peak at 9:17am PST

• Ends at 11:59am PST

As per the PMD, some parts of the world will witness the rare solar eclipse partially and some completely. The phenomenon will be visible from parts of southern and eastern Asia, Australia and Antarctica, and over the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean.

 

April has been designated as "Global Astronomy Month" by a US-based organisation Astronomers Without Borders, as the month will offer mesmerising sights in the sky, as per the report by Popular Science.

 

The April 20 solar eclipse will create a ring of fire which will be witnessed for a brief time in the Indian Ocean but the moon will be covering the sun completely when it reaches Western Australia witnessing around nine minutes of darkness during the day.

 

However, this solar eclipse will not be visible in the US but just after a few months in October, there will be another solar eclipse which will be seen in the western part of the US. /Geo News