Now that's worth experiencing (Singapore has been very hot lately). Heh. So mark the timing: on Friday from about 3.10 pm to 5.30 pm!
A COOL sensation will descend over Singapore this afternoon with a solar eclipse said to be the longest of its kind in the next 1,000 years.
At its peak over the Indian Ocean, it will last for just over 11 minutes.
In Singapore, it will last from about 3.10pm to 5.30pm, with the best viewing time at about 4.25pm.
The Singapore Science Centre will set up its giant telescope and host various activities to mark the event. It usually attracts a few hundred people to watch such eclipses. It will also hand out free solar glasses through which the eclipse can be viewed safely.
'There will definitely be something worth seeing and people will experience a cool sensation on the skin as there will be a dip in radiation from the sun. It will feel like the sun in more temperate climates,' said the centre's outgoing chief executive, Dr Chew Tuan Chiong.
Friday's eclipse is an annular one - the moon will pass in front of the sun, but will not block it completely, as in a total eclipse. Instead, there will be a ring of fire, or a solar ring, visible around the edge of the darkened moon.
From Straits Times, "Catch solar eclipse on Fri".
Update on 15/01/10: Nah, I don't really feel the day was cooler due to the solar eclipse. A bit annoyed that the clouds eclipsed the solar eclipse itself.
For half the world on Friday, the sun was briefly reduced to a blazing ring, as the moon passed in front of it.
More than 2,500 people gathered at the Science Centre to witness the first solar eclipse of the new decade. But dark clouds and rain put crimps into the festivities.
At 2.45pm on Friday, Singapore was to have witnessed a partial eclipse - with the moon covering about 30 per cent of the sun.
Astronomy buffs and families made the most of the occasion to enjoy a day out. Many came armed with special filter glasses and even telescopes to witness this rare phenomenon. Unfortunately, an overcast sky blocked all view of the sun.
A sudden shower forced everyone indoors, and observers were reduced to watching a simulation of the eclipse. But the rain passed quickly and the sun soon made a reappearance.
The solar eclipse also made a fine present for the Centre's outgoing chief.
Dr Chew Tuan Chiong, outgoing chief executive, Science Centre Singapore said: "It is wonderful to have a solar eclipse on the last day of my work. One of the reasons is when I see the crowds turn up for an event, even on a weekday afternoon, it already makes me nostalgic."
Singapore will experience the next total solar eclipse in 2019.
From Channel NewsAsia, "First solar eclipse of new decade overshadowed by clouds, rain".
