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A “ring of fire” annular solar eclipse as seen on Oct. 2 from Easter Island.
( Image credit: Aditya Madhavan)
What it is: An annular solar eclipse
Where it is: Over Rapa Nui, likewise referred to as Easter Islandin the Pacific Ocean
When it was shared: Oct. 2, 2024
Why it’s so unique: For approximately 7 minutes, 25 seconds on Wednesday, Oct. 2, the brand-new moon appeared to sit completely inside the sun’s disk throughout a partial “ring of fire” solar eclipseOn both sides of that brief time, the edge of the moon appeared to touch the within edge of the sun, triggering “Baily’s beads” — sunshine putting through the moon’s mountains– to fizz. Observers needed to utilize solar eclipse glasses and devices fitted with solar filters to securely observe the phenomenon.
Annular solar eclipses vary from overall solar eclipses since the moon is further from Earth, so the moon can’t cover the sun’s whole disk. On Oct. 2, the moon eclipsed 86.9 % of the sun at its peak while appearing 6.4 % smaller sized than average, according to Moonblink
There are methods to image the eclipse securely while drawing out more information than is possible through routine solar filters. This extremely unique image was taken by astrophotographer Aditya Madhavan while taking a trip with the eclipse trip group Astro Trails to Easter Island. Madhavan utilized a Lunt H-alpha telescope, which sees in just the wavelength of light produced by hydrogen atoms on the sun.
“We’re looking at the sun’s image in hydrogen-alpha, and what we’re seeing is the chromosphere of the sun, specifically in the wavelength of 656.28 nanometers,” Madhavan informed Live Science. The sun’s chromosphere is a thin layer of plasma that lies in between the sun’s noticeable surface area, called the photosphere, and the sun’s upper environment, or corona, which ends up being noticeable to the naked eye throughout an overall solar eclipse
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“It’s a special kind of filter known as an h-alpha analog that isolates that layer of the sun’s atmosphere,” Madhavan included. The professional photographer utilized a Lunt 40-millimeter hydrogen Alpha telescope utilizing a QHY174 monochrome video camera and tracking on a Rainbow Astro RST 135 install. That enabled him to catch solar prominences — intense functions extending external from the sun’s surface area and into the corona– around the solar limb
Related: ‘Ring of fire’ solar eclipse blazes over Easter Island in unbelievable brand-new image
In sharp contrast to the overall solar eclipse in North America on April 8, which crossed over about 50 million individuals, this eclipse showed up just from within a remote course about 165 to 206 miles (265 to 331 kilometers) broad throughout remote Patagonia in both Chile and Argentina, where hardly 175,000 individuals live, along with from Easter Island.
Madhavan observed the eclipse above an incredible water-filled volcanic caldera called Rano Kau. From that area, annularity– the minute when the moon appeared to sit within the sun with a “ring of fire” circling its edge– lasted as much as 6 minutes, 10 seconds.
The “ring of fire” was likewise noticeable from parts of Patagonia in Chile and Argentina, most eclipse chasers taken a trip to Easter Island, some 2,200 miles (3,500 km) off the coast of Chile. It’s home to approximately 1,000 human-faced moai statues, all looking inland from its coast and built primarily in between 1150 and 1290. A small island covering simply 63 square miles (163 square kilometers), Rapa Nui is seldom in the course of solar eclipses. This was Rapa Nui’s very first annular solar eclipse considering that 1788 and its last till 2345.
It was Earth’s very first annular solar eclipse given that Oct. 14, 2023, the last up until Feb. 17, 2026, and the longest up until Feb. 6, 2027, when a “ring of fire” will show up for 7 minutes, 51 seconds from Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Togo, Benin and Nigeria, according to Timeanddate
For more superb area images, have a look at our Area Photo of the Week archives
Jamie Carter is a self-employed reporter and routine Live Science factor based in Cardiff, U.K. He is the author of A Stargazing Program For Beginners and lectures on astronomy and the natural world. Jamie frequently composes for Space.com, TechRadar.com, Forbes Science, BBC Wildlife publication and Scientific American, and numerous others. He modifies WhenIsTheNextEclipse.com.
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