“The eclipse will also be seen over most parts of the Arabian peninsula, western Asia and North Africa,” Zaki Mustafa, head of the Astronomy Department at King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology, told Arab News on Saturday.
Mustafa said this solar eclipse would be visible in the country with obscuration of sun ranging from 13 to 43 percent at different times of day on Tuesday. Europe will be able to catch the eclipse at around sunrise.
“In Riyadh, the eclipse will continue until about 1:15 p.m. on Tuesday,” he added. Other parts of the Kingdom will catch ports of the eclipse until about 1:44 p.m.
Unlike a total eclipse, the sun will not be completely blocked out by the moon showing only a ring in the sky. With partial eclipses, the sun will continue to shine, but with noticeable darkness and the moon in partial profile in front of the sun.
Four partial solar and two total lunar eclipses will take place in 2011. This 4:2 combination in a single year is rather rare with only six cases during the 21st century (2011, 2029, 2047, 2065, 2076 and 2094). The first and last eclipses of the year always occur in January and December.
