AREQUIPA (Arequipa region, PERU), July 3 (NNN-ANDINA) — Wearing special glasses and with great excitement, many locals watched the partial solar eclipse at Sachaca municipal stadium in Arequipa region, with darkness peaking at 3:45 PM.
A solar eclipse occurs when the moon gets between Earth and the sun, casting a shadow over the planet. In this case, 60% of the sun was blocked (hence the name ‘partial eclipse’), the research scientist explained.
The total eclipse turned daytime into night for watchers standing directly under the shadow of the moon in some parts of Chile and Argentina. The event was partial for observers in the penumbra, like those in Arequipa.
The spectacular event began at 2:30 PM and ran until 4:49 PM. The worst views of the eclipse were at the beginning and the end, Peru’s Geophysical Institute (IGP) said.
Nobar Baella, research scientist at IGP, said the best part of the show occurred at 3:45 PM, when Arequipa saw the maximum partial eclipse, covering 61% of the sun.
According to Baella, solar eclipses have caught attention since ancient times. Moreover, they have served scientific purposes.
For instance, the 1919 eclipse confirmed Albert Einstein’s theory of relativity. In fact, 100 years have passed since then. — NNN-ANDINA
