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During the Diwali festival on October 25, there will be a partial solar eclipse which will be visible from the city as well as from most parts of the country, astrophysicist Debi Prasad Duari said. The eastern metropolis, however, will be able to witness the partial solar eclipse, the second in 2022, for a very small duration, the celestial phenomenon will be better observed in the northern and western regions of the country, he said.

The eclipse will not be observed from northeastern India as the celestial phenomenon will be occurring after sunset in those regions, Duari said.

Apart from India, the October 25 partial cosmic affair will be visible from most parts of Europe, northern Africa, the Middle East, and parts of Asia, Duari elaborated.

“The partial solar eclipse will begin in Iceland at around 2:29 pm IST and will be seen at its maximum from Russia at 4:30 hours IST. It will end at around 6:32pm IST over the Arabian Sea,” he told PTI while sharing information on the celestial event.

“The eastern part of the country will see the partial eclipse only marginally, that also during the sunset. The northern and western part of the country is a better location to observe the partial eclipse with a better view and for a longer period of time.

“During the new moon (Amavasya) the Sun, Moon, and Earth almost come in a linear configuration, whereby from the Earth we can see the Moon without any sunlight falling on it. But at times, as on October 25, the Sun, Moon, and Earth will almost be on the same plane resulting in the moon appearing to cover the Sun partially for a period of time causing a partial solar eclipse,” he explained.

In and around the metropolis, the partial eclipse will begin at around 4:52pm, the maximum occurring at 5:01pm, and will cease to be seen at 5:03pm at the sunset, Duari said.

“Even at the maximum eclipse, only 4 percent of the lighted disc of the setting Sun will be covered by the Moon,” he said.

In the north Bengal town of Siliguri, the celestial phenomenon will be occurring between 4:41pm and 4:59pm and during the maximum eclipse (at around 4:56pm) about 8.91 percent of the Sun will be covered by the Moon’s disc, Duari stated.

“In New Delhi, it will commence at around 4:29pm and end with the sunset at 6:09pm with the maximum eclipse to occur at 5:42pm when the Sun will be obscured by the Moon by an amount of only 24.5 percent,” Duari said.

Jaisalmer in Rajasthan will experience the eclipse from 4:26pm to 6:09pm with the maximum at around 5:30pm. when the disc of the Sun will be obscured by 42.5 percent.

“In Mumbai, the eclipse will begin at 4:49pm with the maximum occurring at around 5:42pm. It will end at 6:09pm, when the Sun appears to go down the Arabian Sea at sunset. Here, the Sun’s disc will be covered by about 24.5 percent,” he added.

In southern and central India, the eclipse will be again observed just before sunset with Nagpur experiencing the eclipse from 4:49pm to 5:42pm. In Bengaluru, the eclipse will begin at 5:12pm, reaching its maximum at 5:49pm and ending at 5:55pm during the sunset. Chennai will have the eclipse during 5:14pm to 5:44pm, the astrophysicist said.

The next major solar eclipse to be visible from India will be an annular eclipse on May 21, 2031 when the annularity can be observed from a narrow patch of land in south India, he said.

Three years later, on March 20, 2034, the next total solar eclipse will be visible from India and the totality will be observed from the northernmost part of Kashmir.

On both occasions, the whole country will observe a partial eclipse of varying magnitude depending upon its geographical location, Duari said.

Another partial eclipse can be seen from the northern part of India on June 1, 2030.

Referring to the harm caused to the eyes by Sun’s rays during an eclipse, Duari cautioned the sky enthusiasts to take “extreme precaution” while observing it.

“Even if the degree of the partial eclipse is not appreciable in most of the country, extreme precaution has to be taken by everybody who wants to observe this cosmic event. The Sun’s rays can be very harmful for the eye and can become critical,” he said.

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Rare Titan Shadow Transits Will Sweep Across Saturn in Summer 2025

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June 30, 2025

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Rare Titan Shadow Transits Will Sweep Across Saturn in Summer 2025

Saturn’s largest moon Titan will cast its shadow across the planet’s surface in a rare spectacle this summer. Over the coming months, observers on Earth may see a dark “hole” move across Saturn’s disk as Titan passes in front of the planet. This event is tied to a special alignment: roughly every 15 years, Saturn’s rings become edge-on to our view (a ring-plane crossing or equinox). Indeed, in March 2025 the rings briefly vanished as they lined up edge-on, setting the stage for Titan’s shadow to loom large on Saturn’s globe. After this year’s transit season, the configuration won’t recur until about 2040, making these transits uniquely unmissable.

Saturn’s Equinox and Titan’s Transits

According to Space.com, right now Saturn is near its equinox, meaning its tilted rings are edge-on to Earth. This geometry allows Titan’s shadow – a dark spot on Saturn – to sweep across the planet’s face, much like a lunar eclipse but on Saturn. Titan orbits Saturn about every 16 days, so during this alignment we can see its shadow cross Saturn’s disk repeatedly. In fact, roughly ten Titan shadow-transit events are expected during 2025. Three have already occurred (most recently on June 16), and seven more are forecast from July through early October 2025. When visible, each transit looks like a moving dark spot (a “hole”) on Saturn’s bright disk.

Viewing the Titan Shadow Transits

These transits are faint and require planning. A good telescope (at least 200× magnification) is needed to see Titan and its shadow. For viewers in North America, Saturn will be low in the pre-dawn sky during the event dates. According to Sky & Telescope, the remaining 2025 transit dates are July 2, July 18, August 3, August 19, September 4, September 20 and October 6 (local viewing times vary by location).

Early-season events last several hours, but the crossings shorten as the year goes on: by Oct. 6 the shadow is only visible briefly at the exact mid-transit moment. Observers should consult astronomy software and aim for clear skies on those dates, as any clouds or mist will obscure the subtle shadow.

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NASA’s Chandra Reveals Stunning Multi-Wavelength Image of Andromeda Galaxy

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June 30, 2025

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NASA’s Chandra Reveals Stunning Multi-Wavelength Image of Andromeda Galaxy

NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory provides a new look at the Andromeda galaxy in this multi-wavelength image that includes X-ray, ultraviolet, optical, infrared, and radio images and illustrates the “collaboration of light” across the spectrum. The structure and future fate of the Milky Way are modelled with the help of Andromeda, which is 2.5 million light years away. This combined image not only shows high-energy radiation from a supermassive black hole but also provides a clear view of the arms and core of M31 in remarkable detail. The light is transformed into a sound with a sonification video, bringing another level of sensation.

Chandra X-ray Data Reveals Black Hole Flares and Dark Matter Legacy in New View of Andromeda

As per NASA’s Chandra team, the X-ray observations — alongside data from ESA’s XMM-Newton, NASA’s GALEX and Spitzer, Planck, IRAS, COBE, Herschel, and more — reveal distinct galactic features. Notably, a flare detected in 2013 from Andromeda’s supermassive black hole showed enhanced X-ray emission. The data also honours astronomer Vera Rubin, whose M31 rotation studies led to the first convincing evidence for dark matter. Rubin is now commemorated on a 2025 U.S. quarter.

Among the release features is a signature sonification, with different categories of light — X-ray, ultraviolet, optical, infrared, and radio — translated into sound tones. Volume is controlled by brightness, pitch by frequency position. The result is a sound map of the galaxy’s internal structure.

The Chandra programme for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate in Washington is managed by NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Centre in Huntsville, Alabama. Chandra’s overseer is the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

With this updated M31 panorama in hand, astronomers are in for a beautiful sight, but the broader population is also treated to a sight and sound experience that transports us to our Milky Way’s closest galactic neighbour.

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Could These Meteorites Be from Mercury? New Research Hints at Rare Discovery

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June 30, 2025

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Could These Meteorites Be from Mercury? New Research Hints at Rare Discovery

Scientists have observed whether the meteorites can reach Earth from Mercury. Over thousands of meteorites from Mars and the Moon have been observed, but none have been from Mercury, despite it being a nearby rocky planet. A new study revealed Icarus suggests two meteorites, Ksar Ghilane 022 and Northwest Africa 15915, could belong to Mercurian origin. Such a kind of meteorite can offer a realistic opportunity to study the material of the surface of the planet, if the technical challenges and the cost of sending a spacecraft to Mercury are met.

New Meteorite Samples Show Strong Similarities

As per the new studies reported to Physics.org , Meteorite NWA 7325 and aubrites in the past were considered to be possibly from Mercury. However, the mineral composition of their samples has inconsistencies with the known surface data from the Messenger mission of NASA. Aubrites formed on a planet similar in size to Mercury, lacking spectral and chemical similarities, and further weakened as Mercurian fragments.

Ksar Ghilane 022 and NWA 15915, the new samples, share many traits of Mercury crust, with olivine, oldhamite, pyroxene, and minor albitic plagioclase. The oxygen composition of these matched with the aubrites, signalling a similar planetary origin and putting them among strong Mercurian members.

Key Differences Raise Scientific Questions

There are key differences even after that, and the two meteorites contain very little plagioclase than on the Mercury surface, and are about 4,528 million years older than Mercury’s surface material. If they are from Mercury, there is a possibility that they can represent an ancient crust which is no longer visible on the planet.

Future Missions and Scientific Verification

Relating a meteorite to a particular planet is quite difficult without direct samples. BepiColombo missions are orbiting Mercury currently, and can offer valuable insights to confirm meteorites source. Mercurian meteorites can get valuable insights into the formation, composition and history of the planet. There are further findings to be presented at the Meteoritical Society Meeting 2025 in Australia.

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