Stargazers gather in Argentina for solar eclipse

SARMIENTO: Stargazers in Argentina and parts of Africa prepared to be plunged into darkness Sunday at the start of a spectacular solar eclipse. The “ring of fire” or annular eclipse saw the Sun all but disappeared for one minute as the Moon crossed its path.

It was most visible in a 100-kilometer (62-mile) band cutting through Chile, Argentina, Angola, Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo).

Scores of astronomers and enthusiasts gathered on Sunday morning in Sarmiento, southern Argentina, the point in the country where the eclipse was most visible.

“I have already seen six annular eclipses and each one was different,” said Josep Masalles Roman, an enthusiast who came all the way from Barcelona in Spain.

An annular solar eclipse occurs when the Earth, Moon and Sun line up. But even when perfectly aligned, the Moon is too far from Earth to completely block out the Sun, creating instead the impression of a fiery ring. The spectacle reached Angola south of the town of Benguela at 1515 GMT, then moved to Zambia and DR Congo just before the Sun set and the light show ended.