A “ring of fire” solar eclipse appeared on Thursday as the moon partially blocked out the sun in the first solar eclipse of 2021.
The eclipse started after sunrise north of Lake Superior and began crossing remote regions of Canada, on its way into Greenland and the Arctic Ocean before going over the North Pole.
Its course then heads south, before ending in parts of the Russian Far East. United Kingdom and Ireland were also able to see a sunrise partial eclipse.
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Clouds hung on the horizon in Manhattan at sunrise, but they didn’t interfere with the enthusiasm of stargazers who arrived early to watch the phenomenon.
“You could hear the entire audience react at the first viewing of the sun,” Jean-Yves Ghazi, president of the Empire State Building Observatory, told New York Times.
“Everybody was gasping and it was absolutely magical.”
See stunning photos of the June 10 “ring of fire” solar eclipse from stargazers around the world.
Solar Eclipse in Islam
Solar eclipse is the partial or total cutting off of the sun’s light when the moon comes between it and the earth.
Before Islam, people used to associate this unusual phenomenon with some superstitious reasons. It happened that the sun eclipsed on the day Ibrahim, son of Prophet Muhammed (peace be upon him) in Madinah, so some people attributed that to his death.
Hence, Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) took the opportunity to correct the people’s mistaken belief about the solar eclipse saying,
“The sun and the moon are two signs of Allah; they are not eclipsed on account of anyone’s death or on account of anyone’s birth. So when you see them, glorify and supplicate Allah, observe the Prayer, give alms.”