First solar eclipse of 2024 to be observed in Ramazan

The world is set to witness the first solar eclipse of the year 2024, which is deemed as the "Great North American Solar Eclipse", in the holy month of Ramazan.

According to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Nasa), the hybrid solar eclipse will be witnessed in Mexico, America, and Canada on April 8.

"The total solar eclipse will begin over the South Pacific Ocean. Weather permitting, the first location in continental North America that will experience totality is Mexico’s Pacific coast at around 11:07 a.m. PDT," Nasa said in its advisory.

Nasa said that Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, small parts of Tennessee and Michigan will also experience the total solar eclipse.

"The eclipse will enter Canada in Southern Ontario, and continue through Quebec, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and Cape Breton. The eclipse will exit continental North America on the Atlantic coast of Newfoundland, Canada, at 5:16 p.m. NDT."

Eclipses occur when the moon sun and earth align in a rare cosmic setting casting their shadow or blocking the sunlight. However, the phenomenon of hybrid solar eclipses is extremely unusual.

A total eclipse is when the Moon and the Sun line up in the sky in such a way that the Moon blocks the entire face of the Sun – called totality. Somewhere on the Earth, these occur approximately every 18 months.

The solar eclipse will begin at 12:07pm PST on April 9 and will end at 1:46pm, however, it will not be visible in the Asian country.