People gathered following physical distancing norms near the Salem Steel Plant to witness the annular solar eclipse here on Sunday.
T. Jayamurugan, State resource person for astronomy of Tamil Nadu Science Forum organised an eclipse viewing session near the steel plant. Partial eclipse was witnessed here from around 10.15 a.m.
Mr. Jayamurugan said that two telescopes, pinhole cameras and solar filter glasses were arranged to view the eclipse in a safe manner. He said that all safety measures were taken for the viewing session.
Mr. Jayamurugan said that eclipses are rare celestial wonder and there is nothing to fear about it. He added that in ancient days it was believed that a snake was swallowing the sun. He added that since the moon doesn’t cover the entire plain of the sun, a ring of fire appears. Mr. Jayamurugan said that 34% of eclipse was visible from Salem.
There is no harm in consuming food during the eclipse, he added. “Several scientists have conducted studies in this regard and there is no harm in consuming food during eclipse nor does food items turn stale due to eclipse”, he said.
