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Sky enthusiasts gear up to watch eclipse of super blue blood moon

TNN
January 31, 2018

New Delhi, Jan 31: Sky lovers are excited for the extraterrestrial triple treat to be witnessed in the sky today.

A super blue blood moon will be eclipsed on Wednesday from 6 PM to 9:30 PM at various locations across the country.

Sky enthusiasts have taken out their telescopes and booked a cosy place on their terrace or garden to watch the celestial spectacle.

If you want to see the whole event unfold, you should be away from tall buildings, bright lights, trees, things like that. You should have a clear view of the skies.

Lunar eclipse can be watched with naked eyes unlike solar eclipse.

This total lunar eclipse is special for three reasons: It's the third in a series of "supermoons" when the Moon will be just a day past perigee which is the closest point to Earth in it's orbit, making it appear very large and bright ; 2) It is about 14 percent bigger than usual and appearing 30 per cent brighter 3) It's the second full moon of the month, commonly known as a "blue moon". A supermoon is a particularly close full or new moon

While the Moon is in the Earth's shadow it will take on a reddish tint, known as a "blood moon."

There hasn't been a triple lineup like this since 1982, and the next won't occur until 2037.

As far as India is concerned, in 1982 on December 30, there was a lunar eclipse. Also it was second full moon of December 1982. i.e. Lunar Eclipse on Blue Moon in India occurred in 1982, said Sri N Raghunandan Kumar, Director & Founder Secretary of Planetary Society of India, Hyderabad.

The moon will rise in Delhi at 5:53:48 PM, while the partial eclipse will begin at 5:21:00 PM ( when the moon will be below horizon).The

total eclipse phase will begin at 6:21:47 PM and end at 7:37:51 PM.

The maximum eclipse will at 6:59:51 PM.

Places in north eastern states like Agartala, Aizawl, Cooch Bihar, Darjeeling, Dibrugarh, Gangtok, Guwahati, Imphal, Itanagar, Kohima, Kolkatta, Murshidabad, Shillong, Silchar, Silguri and Port Blair will appreciate all visible phases of the lunar eclipse.

The last time a lunar eclipse was visible in India occurred on August 7, 2017 which, however, was partial lunar eclipse.

And, the last time the "Blue Moon" occurred was in 2015 i.e. in July (2nd July 2015 & 31st July).

This year is astronomically very interesting as after 20 years we will have two Blue Moons in a calendar year i.e. January ( 2nd Jan & 31 Jan) 2018 and March (1st March and 31st March) 2018.

While amateur skywatchers catch the show, scientists across the world will watch the dramatic impact of the eclipse on the moon's surface— its temperature will drop as it passes into shadow.

SPACE India, an NGO which works to promote scientific temperament among children, will conduct an observation with telescopes at India Gate to promote public outreach on the night of January 31 from 6:00 to 8:30 PM. Educators will provide views of the Eclipsed Moon and elucidate the phases to people.

The NGO will also dispel myths about the chandra grahan among people.

Across the world this eclipse will be visible in the region covering North America except eastern part, Oceania, Russia, Asia, Middle East, northern Scandanavia and eastern Europe.

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Agencies
July 29,2020

Dubai, Jul 29: Muslim pilgrims on Wednesday begin the annual Haj, downsized this year as the Saudi hosts strive to prevent a coronavirus outbreak during the five-day pilgrimage.

The Haj, one of the five pillars of Islam and a must for able-bodied Muslims at least once in their lifetime, is usually one of the world's largest religious gatherings.

But this year only up to 10,000 people already residing in the Kingdom will participate in the ritual, a tiny fraction of the 2.5 million pilgrims from around the world that attended last year.

"There are no security-related concerns in this pilgrimage, but (downsizing) is to protect pilgrims from the danger of the pandemic," said Khalid bin Qarar Al Harbi, Saudi Arabia's director of public security.

Pilgrims will be required to wear masks and observe social distancing during a series of religious rites that are completed over five days in the holy city of Makkah and its surroundings in western Saudi Arabia.

Those selected to take part in the Haj were subject to temperature checks and placed in quarantine as they began trickling into Makkah at the weekend.

State media showed health workers sanitising their luggage, and some pilgrims reported being given electronic wristbands to allow authorities to monitor their whereabouts.

Workers, clutching brooms and disinfectant, were seen cleaning the area around the Kaaba, the structure at the centre of the Grand Mosque draped in gold-embroidered cloth towards which Muslims around the world pray.

Haj authorities have cordoned off the Holy Kaaba this year, saying pilgrims will not be allowed to touch it, to limit the chances of infection.

They also reported setting up multiple health facilities, mobile clinics and ambulances to cater to the pilgrims.

Saudi authorities said only around 1,000 pilgrims residing in the Kingdom would be permitted for the Haj. Some 70 per cent of the pilgrims are foreigners residing in the Kingdom, while the rest will be Saudi citizens, authorities said.

All worshippers were required to be tested for coronavirus before arriving in the holy city of Makkah and will also have to quarantine after the pilgrimage as the number of cases in the Kingdom nears 270,000.

They were given elaborate amenity kits that include sterilised pebbles for a stoning ritual, disinfectants, masks, a prayer rug and the Ihram, a seamless white garment worn by pilgrims, according to a Haj ministry programme document.

"I did not expect, among millions of Muslims, to be blessed with approval," Emirati pilgrim Abdullah Al Kathiri said in a video released by the Saudi media ministry.

"It is an indescribable feeling... especially since it is my first pilgrimage."

The Haj ministry said non-Saudi residents of the Kingdom from around 160 countries competed in the online selection process but it did not say how many people applied.

Despite the pandemic, many pilgrims consider it safer to participate in this year's ritual without the usual colossal crowds cramming into tiny religious sites, which make it a logistical nightmare and a health hazard.

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Agencies
January 11,2020

New Delhi, Jan 11: Chief Minister of Kerala Pinarayi Vijayan on Saturday met JNU Students' Union (JNUSU) President Aishe Ghosh here at Kerala House on Saturday.

This meeting comes at the backdrop masked mob violence by miscreants who entered the university campus recently and attacked the students and professors with sticks and rods.

"I thank the Kerela government for standing by us and extending solidarity. Its fight Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) shows how standing is standing for its secular ethos. Students Union takes the inspiration from this struggle," said Students' Union President in a statement after meeting Kerala CM.

She also thanked "the youth and comrades of Kerela" and quoted Pinarayi as saying, "go on we will take this fight ahead."

More than 30 students, including Ghosh, were taken to the AIIMS Trauma Centre.

The Delhi Police Crime Branch investigating the case of violence in JNU had identified and released photographs of nine suspects, including that of Aishe Ghosh.

Earlier on Monday, Kerala CM had said that the "Nazi-style attack" on the students and faculty is an appalling display of intolerance running amok.

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News Network
January 3,2020

New Delhi, Jan 3: US aviation regulator Federal Aviation Administration on Thursday warned America's airlines and their pilots that there is risk involved in operating flights in Pakistan airspace due to "extremist or militant activity", according to an official document.

"Exercise caution during flight operations. There is a risk to US civil aviation operating in the territory and airspace of Pakistan due to extremist/militant activity," said the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in a notice to airmen (NOTAM) dated December 30, 2019.

The NOTAM is applicable to all US-based airlines and US-based pilots.

The US regulator said in its NOTAM that there continues to be a risk to US civil aviation sector from attacks against airports and aircraft in Pakistan, particularly for aircraft on the ground and aircraft operating at low altitudes, including during the arrival and departure phases of flights.

"The ongoing presence of extremist/militant elements operating in Pakistan poses a continued risk to US civil aviation from small-arms fire, complex attacks against airports, indirect weapons fire, and anti-aircraft fire, any of which could occur with little or no warning," it said.

The FAA said that while, to date, there have been no reports of man-portable air defense systems or Manpads being used against the civil aviation sector in Pakistan, some extremist or terrorist groups operating there are suspected of having access to these Manpads.

"As a result, there is potential risk for extremists/militants to target civil aviation in Pakistan with Manpads," it said.

The regulator added that pilots or airlines must report safety or security incidents - which may happen in Pakistan - to the FAA.

Pakistan on July 16 last year opened its airspace for India after about five months of restrictions imposed in the wake of a standoff with New Delhi.

Following the Balakot airstrikes by the Indian Air Force, Pakistan had closed its airspace on February 26 last year.

Pakistan in October last year had denied India's request to allow Prime Minister Narendra Modi's VVIP flight to use its airspace for his visit to Saudi Arabia over the Jammu and Kashmir issue.

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