Partial solar eclipse expected in Nigeria

A partial solar eclipse will occur on Sunday in different parts of Nigeria, Africa's most populous nation, a top government official said on Tuesday.

The director-general in charge of National Space Research and Development Agency (NASRDA) Seidu Mohammed disclosed this reporters in Abuja, the country's capital city.

Eclipse is an astronomical event that occurs when an astronomical object is temporarily obscured.

This occurs either by passing into the shadow of another body or by having another body pass between it and the viewer as seen from the earth.

Mohammed advised Nigerians not to panic unnecessarily as nothing untoward would happen on that day.

The director told reporters that the partial eclipse would not affect the airspace but advised Nigerians not to think that the world would come to an end because of the occurrence.

He advised Nigerians to wear sunglasses to view the occurrence, adding that the measure would protect their eyes from damage that might arise.

The agency would provide such glasses for some Nigerians, especially children and selected Nigerians, he added.

He said that the entire African continent would be affected by the partial eclipse, while some other parts of the world would witness total eclipse.

Mohammed urged Nigerians to go about their normal businesses as such occurrences happened occasionally.

He said that partial eclipse would occur in April 2014, March 2015 and September 2016.