Hybrid Solar Eclipse 2023: First Solar Eclipse to occur on this date, will the rare Surya Grahan be visible in India?

The first Solar Eclipse of 2023 will be witnessed on April 20, Thursday. It will be a rare celestial occurrence as the Solar Eclipse will be hybrid in nature – phasing from Annular Eclipse to a Total Solar Eclipse. A Hybrid Solar Eclipse occurs only a few times in a century. The last Hybrid Solar Eclipse was in 2013 and the next will occur in 2031. In the next century, skywatchers will witness a Hybrid Solar Eclipse on March 23, 2164, says Space.com. The Solar Eclipse happening this month will be the first Eclipse of 2023. Keep scrolling to find out if people in India will be able to witness the Solar Eclipse or not.

Will the first Solar Eclipse of the year be visible in India?

The first Solar Eclipse of 2023 will not be visible in India. Only parts of South East Asia and Australia will witness the rare Hybrid Solar Eclipse. Meanwhile, the ‘ring of fire’ will be visible for a few seconds in the Indian and Pacific oceans. A ‘ring of fire’ occurs when the moon covers only the sun’s centre, and its outer edges are visible to form a ring of fire or annulus around the moon. These two locations will also witness the Eclipse transition from Annular to Total before transitioning back to Annular.

Additionally, a Total Eclipse will only be visible in three locations on land, including Exmouth (Western Australia), Timor Leste and West Papua (Indonesia). As per the Indian Standard Time (IST), the Solar Eclipse will begin at 7:04 am and end at 12:29 pm.

Eclipse in 2023

There are a total of four Eclipses in 2023. The first Solar Eclipse is on April 20, and the next and the last Solar Eclipse of the year will occur on October 14. The first Lunar Eclipse of 2023 is on May 5-6, and the second will fall on October 28-29.

Hybrid Solar Eclipse explained:

A Solar Eclipse occurs when the moon lines up between the sun and the earth to cast a shadow on the earth’s surface. According to NASA, a Hybrid Solar Eclipse happens because the earth’s surface is curved. An Eclipse shifts between the Annular and Total phases as the moon’s shadow moves across the globe during the Hybrid phase. It is a rare phenomenon – a combination of an Annular Solar Eclipse and a Total Solar Eclipse. During the Hybrid Solar Eclipse, people witness the sun forming a ring shape for a few seconds around the moon.