Annular eclipse on Dec. 26 at 82% view in Cebu; best view in Sarangani

CEBU CITY, Philippines — The best view of the annular solar eclipse on December 26 will be in the vicinity of Sarangani province where the phenomenon may be seen at 97 percent.

In Cebu, 82% of the eclipse will be visible, according to Romeo Aguirre of the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) – Visayas.

Aguirre said the solar eclipse can be seen from Cebu at 12:40 p.m. on Thursday, December 26, and will run until 3:54 p.m. of the same day.

Its peak will be experienced in Cebu at 2:27 p.m.

“Ang pinakanindot niya will be at 2:27 p.m. Mao na ang pinaka-align with respect to Mactan,” Aguirre said.

The annular solar eclipse on December 26 may be viewed in these places time indicated by Pagasa in their eclipse data table. | Source: Pagasa

A solar eclipse happens when the moon passes in between the sun and the earth.

However, when the moon is far away from the earth, it cannot cover the entire sun.

Aguirre explained that the moon, instead, only covers the center of the sun and forms a “ring of fire” around it.

Hence, the phenomenon is called an annular solar eclipse.

Aguirre said tropical depression Ursula will not affect the view of the eclipse as the weather in the Visayas is  expected to be fair on Thursday, December 26.

Aguirre, however, warned the public not to look directly into the eclipse as it may damage vision.

He said the public may use lenses designed for eclipse viewing, reflective surfaces or translucent objects in order to avoid direct contact.

“The cheapest that they can use is a mylar film. It looks like a tin foil similar to those used in baking but it is still permissible by light,” Aguirre said. / celr