'Ring of Fire' Solar Eclipse to be Visible from Indonesia on June 21

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com – “Ring of fire” solar eclipse will be seen over Indonesia this weekend. Skywatchers can take a glimpse of the natural phenomena when the moon, Earth, and sun are aligned.

A Researcher of Space Science Center at the Indonesian National Institute of Aeronautics and Space (Lapan), Emmanuel Sungging Mumpungi, said the annular eclipse will be seen partially from Indonesia.

“If we see the visibility map [of the annular eclipse], partially it’s only 20 percent of Indonesia territory,” said Emmanuel June 18.

The annular eclipse will occur around 1:00 pm Western Indonesia time.

When the sun, moon, and Earth are aligned, at that time the moon ring is smaller than the sun when seen from Earth. At the peak of the eclipse, the sun will be a ring-like shape, dark in the middle, and bright in the outer edges.

According to the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG), the ring path will cross Kongo, South Sudan, Ethiopia, Yaman, Oman, Pakistan then move across China and the Pacific Ocean.

A partial eclipse will be seen over northern and eastern Africa, the Indian Ocean, Asia (including Indonesia), some European countries, northern Australia, and the Pacific Ocean. The time of the eclipse at each location will be varied.

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Annular eclipse in Indonesia

The annular eclipse will begin at 1:16 pm western Indonesia time in the country’s most northern part of Sabang, Aceh, while Kepanjen, East Java will become the city with the most recent start time at 1:19 pm western Indonesia time.

The peak of the annular eclipse will be varied in each region. The first peak of the eclipse will occur in Sabang, Aceh at 2:34 pm western Indonesia time. The last peak will take place in Agats, Papua at 5:37 pm eastern Indonesia time.

The last contact will begin in Tais, Bengkulu at 3:06 pm western Indonesia time and the last contact will end in Melonguane, North Sulawesi at 5:31 pm central Indonesia time.

The eclipse’s shortest three minutes and 17 seconds will occur in Kepanjen, East Java and the longest duration of two hours 27 minutes and 11 seconds will be seen from Sabang, Aceh.

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In general, the time and place of an eclipse can be predicted. In predicting its global return, eclipses are grouped into a cycle which is known as the Saros cycle.