Ever since my NexStar 4SE broke down irreparably my astrophotography work came to a standstill. While I could've continued a little more with my 400mm telephoto lens, a particular problem I met with it meant that that's also out of question.
When I learned that there was a solar eclipse on 26th of December 2019 and that it is visible to the northern part of Sri Lanka, I thought this might be a good time to may be try and get back to it.
Thanks to my dad, I had an exposure to astronomy from a very early age. If I am not mistaken, the very first solar eclipse that I witnessed was on 11th Sep 1988. This was a partial eclipse. My second was again a partial eclipse, 24th Oct 1995. This one was special in a way that I used the most rudimentary method of observing a solar eclipse, using a basin full of water. I did skip the eclipse in 1999 but did checkout the one on 03rd Oct 2005. Skipped again in 2008 and observed the annular eclipse of 15th Jan 2010 as a partial one. This is the one where I went hunting for a fully exposed x-ray to be used as a filter for my camera at the time. To my dismay I found out that most of the hospitals have now switched to a digital form of x-rays and therefore would no longer have films. Finally I managed to find one hospital which still uses the old method and a long explanation of the solar eclipse next day (and a possible misunderstanding that they made that I am a teacher), I managed to procure two large x-ray sheets that were fully exposed.
When the news of the 26th Dec 2019 eclipse came around, it really didn't bother me that much. However the fact that it is an annular eclipse made a difference. Within my entire lifetime, this was only the second annular eclipse to hit Sri Lanka. While this still isn't as dramatic as a total eclipse, I was quite interested in viewing and if possible photographing it.
If a Lunar Eclipse occurs, then it is visible to all areas which could see the Moon otherwise. However when there is a Solar Eclipse, it doesn't mean it will occur for everyone. A Solar Eclipse can be a total for one area, partial for another area and completely a non-eclipse event for another area at the same time. The reason for this is that the Earth, being a large object, casts a shadow that covers the whole of Moon's path most of the time. On the other hand Moon is a smaller object and casts a smaller shadow on the surface of the Earth. If you are in the path of the shadow, you can see it. If not, it's just another day for you.
The problem with the Solar Eclipse this time was the time of the year and the locations where you could view it. They were right in the middle of the monsoon season. The weather is really unpredictable during this time and the rains have been heavy in the north and eastern areas of Sri Lanka. I decided to make a four-day scout mission to see if I can pick the best spot for observation. My final selection was Trincomalee. An ancient town and a beach city. Thankfully on the day of the eclipse, the sky was very much cloud free.
There were more people gathered in the spot that I chose for the eclipse observation than I originally imagined. They weren't local to the area either. And of course given the gathering, more people started gathering around the area to see what is going on. The few who had brought their solar glasses had them passed over to the others so that they can also have a good view.
At its maximum phase, it was estimated that 93.5% of the Sun would be covered. What I didn't expect was how dark this would just get. I expected it to be quite dark, and given that Jupiter was supposed to be right next to the Sun, that was one shot that I wanted to somehow make. As it turned out, the amount of light available is quite appreciable even with 93.5% of the Sun covered. There wasn't a practical way I could've taken a photo of Jupiter with the glare. However there are other notable changes; the ambient light drops and everyone was commenting how it is like a soft evening sunlight as opposed to the harsh and bright light that was there quarter an hour ago. The temperature also drops quite appreciably, it might be interesting to have a temperature sensor next time to see how it actually changes.
This is where things take a bit of a sad turn. Unfortunately throughout the shots that I took, it seems like the filter was displaced. My filter method is quite unconventional and works like a clip filter that comes for APS-C cameras. Since I had to use one of my very old cameras that had a fault in the display, I could not check out the photos as they were taken. Almost all the photos are washed out with light leaks and the only one that I managed to salvage was of a one shot from the full annular phase.
So the photos this time are from someone else, Prasanna Deshapriya and Chanusha Trishan who worked with the Astronomical Research Institute, Sri Lanka and ran the camp from Jaffna.
When I learned that there was a solar eclipse on 26th of December 2019 and that it is visible to the northern part of Sri Lanka, I thought this might be a good time to may be try and get back to it.
Thanks to my dad, I had an exposure to astronomy from a very early age. If I am not mistaken, the very first solar eclipse that I witnessed was on 11th Sep 1988. This was a partial eclipse. My second was again a partial eclipse, 24th Oct 1995. This one was special in a way that I used the most rudimentary method of observing a solar eclipse, using a basin full of water. I did skip the eclipse in 1999 but did checkout the one on 03rd Oct 2005. Skipped again in 2008 and observed the annular eclipse of 15th Jan 2010 as a partial one. This is the one where I went hunting for a fully exposed x-ray to be used as a filter for my camera at the time. To my dismay I found out that most of the hospitals have now switched to a digital form of x-rays and therefore would no longer have films. Finally I managed to find one hospital which still uses the old method and a long explanation of the solar eclipse next day (and a possible misunderstanding that they made that I am a teacher), I managed to procure two large x-ray sheets that were fully exposed.
When the news of the 26th Dec 2019 eclipse came around, it really didn't bother me that much. However the fact that it is an annular eclipse made a difference. Within my entire lifetime, this was only the second annular eclipse to hit Sri Lanka. While this still isn't as dramatic as a total eclipse, I was quite interested in viewing and if possible photographing it.
What is an eclipse?
The term eclipse is usually used to refer to either a Solar Eclipse or a Lunar Eclipse. In very simple terms, a Solar Eclipse happens when the Moon gets in between the Earth and the Sun and blocks the view of the Sun. On this occasion, the shadow of the Moon falls on the surface of the Earth. A Lunar Eclipse is when the Earth comes in between the Sun and the Moon. The shadow of the Earth falls on the surface of the Moon.If a Lunar Eclipse occurs, then it is visible to all areas which could see the Moon otherwise. However when there is a Solar Eclipse, it doesn't mean it will occur for everyone. A Solar Eclipse can be a total for one area, partial for another area and completely a non-eclipse event for another area at the same time. The reason for this is that the Earth, being a large object, casts a shadow that covers the whole of Moon's path most of the time. On the other hand Moon is a smaller object and casts a smaller shadow on the surface of the Earth. If you are in the path of the shadow, you can see it. If not, it's just another day for you.
26th December 2019
The problem with the Solar Eclipse this time was the time of the year and the locations where you could view it. They were right in the middle of the monsoon season. The weather is really unpredictable during this time and the rains have been heavy in the north and eastern areas of Sri Lanka. I decided to make a four-day scout mission to see if I can pick the best spot for observation. My final selection was Trincomalee. An ancient town and a beach city. Thankfully on the day of the eclipse, the sky was very much cloud free.
There were more people gathered in the spot that I chose for the eclipse observation than I originally imagined. They weren't local to the area either. And of course given the gathering, more people started gathering around the area to see what is going on. The few who had brought their solar glasses had them passed over to the others so that they can also have a good view.
The Eclipse
The total time of the eclipse event was over 3.25hrs and started around 8:10:00 local time. While this is a reasonably long time for an event, the actual annular phase of the eclipse occurs for only around 2 mins.At its maximum phase, it was estimated that 93.5% of the Sun would be covered. What I didn't expect was how dark this would just get. I expected it to be quite dark, and given that Jupiter was supposed to be right next to the Sun, that was one shot that I wanted to somehow make. As it turned out, the amount of light available is quite appreciable even with 93.5% of the Sun covered. There wasn't a practical way I could've taken a photo of Jupiter with the glare. However there are other notable changes; the ambient light drops and everyone was commenting how it is like a soft evening sunlight as opposed to the harsh and bright light that was there quarter an hour ago. The temperature also drops quite appreciably, it might be interesting to have a temperature sensor next time to see how it actually changes.
This is where things take a bit of a sad turn. Unfortunately throughout the shots that I took, it seems like the filter was displaced. My filter method is quite unconventional and works like a clip filter that comes for APS-C cameras. Since I had to use one of my very old cameras that had a fault in the display, I could not check out the photos as they were taken. Almost all the photos are washed out with light leaks and the only one that I managed to salvage was of a one shot from the full annular phase.
So the photos this time are from someone else, Prasanna Deshapriya and Chanusha Trishan who worked with the Astronomical Research Institute, Sri Lanka and ran the camp from Jaffna.
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