Although thick cloud in parts of Indonesia spoiled the view for some along the path of totality, tens of millions more were greeted to spectacular views of the 9 March total solar eclipse. NASA, in partnership with the Exploratorium Science Center, hosted live coverage of the event from the coral island of Woleai in the Pacific Ocean.
The Moon will pass in front of the Sun on 9 March 2016 UT, casting its shadow over much of Southeast Asia. The path of totality, in which all of the Sun’s bright face is blocked by the Moon, is nearly 100 miles wide as it crosses Indonesia, while the partial phases can be seen from East Asia, Australia and the Pacific Ocean. Here is our detailed guide.
If you left it too late to book your Indonesian flight to view the total solar eclipse on the morning of Wednesday, 9 March (UT), don’t despair — put away your passport, sit back and enjoy the spectacle online, courtesy of Exploratorium and NASA TV. For virtual eclipse viewers in the UK, the event starts at 1am GMT on 9 March.
As the Moon slowly covers the face of the Sun on the morning of 9 March, a team of NASA scientists in Indonesia will be anxiously awaiting the start of totality. They plan to take 59 exposures of the Sun in just over three minutes, capturing data on the corona — the innermost parts of the Sun’s volatile, superhot atmosphere.
It is a sad fact that overcast skies will spoil parts of this supermoon total lunar eclipse for some of you, but remain optimistic that your home sky will be clear! However, don’t despair if you’re clouded out — you can watch it online here! NASA will live stream the event from at least 1am—4:30am BST on Monday, 28 September, which is 8pm—11:30pm EDT on 27 September.
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