Surya Grahan 2020 today: Last solar eclipse of 2020 will not be visible in India

New Delhi, Dec 13: The only total Solar eclipse of 2020 will grace the sky on December 14 (Monday). The celestial event will not be visible in India due to the fact that the eclipse won't be taking place during the day time.

According to timeanddate.com, the partial eclipse would begin at 7.04 PM (IST) on December 14, the full eclipse will begin at 8:02 PM (IST) and reach its peak at 9:43 PM(IST) and end at 12:23 (AM) IST on December 15.

The longest possible duration of totality would be 2 minutes and 10 seconds.

A select few cities including Temuco, Villarrica, Sierra Colorada situated in Chile and Argentina will be lucky enough to get a glimpse of the event. Meanwhile, the Pacific Ocean, Antarctica and south of South America would witness a partial solar eclipse.

What is a total solar eclipse?

In a total solar eclipse, the moon comes between the sun and earth and casts the darkest part of its shadow called the umbra on earth.

On average, a total solar eclipse occurs every 18 months. That means two totalities for every three years.

The occurrence of the eclipse depends on the particular calendar years. Every year, one can witness two solar eclipses. The maximum number of solar eclipses that can take place in the same year is five, but this is rare.

According to NASA, only about 25 years in the past 5,000 years have had five solar eclipses. The last time this happened was in 1935, and the next time will be in 2206.

When is the next solar eclipse?

June 10, 2021: An annular solar eclipse will occur on June 10, 2021. Much of Europe and Asia, North/West Africa, Much of North America, Atlantic, Arctic would witness the celestial event.

December 4, 2021: A total solar eclipse will occur on December 4, 2021. Mot of South Australia, southern Africa, South in South America, Pacific, Atlantic, Indian Ocean, Antarctica would witness the celestial event.