On December 14, the only total solar eclipse in 2020 lasted two minutes, leaving southern Chile and Argentina in darkness. Thousands of people have observed this rare eclipse.
Heavy rains had threatened to prevent astronomers in Chile from seeing an eclipse, but at the last moment the clouds were stretching enough to see some of this rare phenomenon.
Matias Tordecilla, 18, in the city of Pucon, Chile, emotionally told AFP as he watched the eclipse on the shores of Lake Villarrica: “It’s so beautiful, it’s unique. The truth is, not many people hope to see him because of it. ” weather and clouds, but that was the only time as the clouds melted at the right time.
Tordecilla traveled with his family for 10 hours to watch the eclipse. “It’s something you don’t just see with your eyes, but you feel it with your heart,” Tordecilla added.
This is the second total solar eclipse in Chile in the past 18 months.
Viewers in the city of Pucon, in the Araucanía region of Chile, watch the eclipse in about 2 minutes, starting at 1:30 p.m. 2 to 12 a.m. local time (i.e. around 11 p.m., night 2 p.m. to 12 p.m. Vietnamese time). Male).
TVN Chili broadcast live footage of a crowd of people from Pucon applauding as the daylight began to fade minutes before dark. Although the sky is still overcast, the crowning edge of the total eclipse is still visible.
Although Covid-19 limited the crowds, nearly 300,000 tourists set foot in the Araucanía region, some 800 kilometers south of the capital Santiago, Chile, to observe the eclipse.
Dozens of amateur and professional scientists have placed telescopes on the slopes of Villarrica Volcano, one of Chile’s most active volcanoes, to observe the rare phenomenon when the moon passes between the sun and the Earth. .
In southern Argentina, the weather was less cloudy and there was no rain, but strong winds threatened to affect the visibility of the eclipse.
In Argentinian Patagonia, a number of families and foreigners settle between the towns of Villa El Chocon and Piedra del Aguila in the hope of seeing an eclipse.
According to TimeAndDate.com, the eclipse in Argentina lasted a total of 1 minute and 48 seconds.
The partial eclipse in South America ends east of Salina de Eje, Argentina, at 2:51 p.m. 2 to 12 p.m. local time (i.e. around 12:51 p.m. on December 15, Vietnam time).
The eclipse is visible along a 90 kilometer wide corridor from the Pacific coast to Chile through the Andes and to Argentina.
A total solar eclipse allows the viewer to see about five reflections of the sun, solar flares on the surface of the sun. Because the moon blocks sunlight so that these sun rays can be seen along the edge of the lunar disk.
The eclipse is also seen from space. The GOES East satellite, operated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), captured the shadow of the moon sweeping the southern hemisphere.
Earlier, in July 2019, around 300,000 people traveled to the Atacama Desert in northern Chile, where several observatories are located, to observe the eclipse.
The next total solar eclipse will occur over the Antarctic Peninsula on December 4, 2021. The annular eclipse will occur in North America, Europe and Asia on June 10, 2021. And another annular eclipse will pass through South America on the 2 October 2024.
