On 26 Dec 2019, India is going to witness the next big eclipse. The annular eclipse which is being called ‘The Great Ring of Fire – India 2019’ as the sun will be seen as a ring of fire around the disc of the moon. This eclipse will be visible from deserts of Arabia crossing over Peninsular India to Indonesia, Singapore and the Pacific Ocean. The annularity is visible in Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu while the partial eclipse will be visible throughout India, thus making it an important eclipse for scientific study.
With an aim to create a world record (to be mentioned in the Guinness Book of World Records & Limca book of records), SPACE India is organising the largest eclipse observation, ‘The Great Ring of Fire – India 2019’ for masses. For this, the organisation plans to collaborate with various organisations/ institutions. It is also inviting students to participate in this event through its project, Heliodyssey 2019.
Heliodyssey 2019
Students from classes 6 to 12 can participate in this scientific expedition to capture, record and study this eclipse under the guidance of astronomers and scientists. Students are required to register themselves for this project. Out of the registered students, 200 students will be selected through an online test to be part of the scientific contingent and will be Eclipse Ambassadors of India.
The selection process will comprise an online multiple-choice based exam called Space HeliOdyssey Test (SHOT-2019) to be held in November 2019. There will be four teams of these young scientists and astronomers, who will be studying and conducting experiments during the annular solar eclipse. One team will go to Sultanate of Oman and rest three will be based out of different locations in India, fully sponsored by SPACE. The teams will be allocated location on the basis of their merit and the selection criteria, as mentioned in attached Annexure- 3.
Scholarship for winners:
- Top Rank 1-20: 100% Scholarship for a fully sponsored scientific eclipse expedition to the Sultanate of Oman.
- Top Rank 21-50: 100% scholarship for a fully sponsored scientific eclipse expedition to the following locations in India:
- Cheruvathur, Kerala – 10 students
- Kozhikode, Kerala – 10 students
- Mangalore, Karnataka – 10 students
- Top Rank 51-100: Will be awarded 76 mm reflector telescope along with solar filters
- Top Rank 101-200: will be awarded 50mm refractor telescope along with solar filters
- Eclipse Ambassador certificates will be provided to 200 selected students
(Interested students from rank 51 to 200 can participate in the scientific expedition to the Sultanate of Oman or above-mentioned sites in India. However, they will have to pay for all the transportation and lodging cost incurred during the expedition. The training cost prior expedition will be borne by SPACE.)
Registration charges
A non-refundable registration charge of Rs 990 (inclusive of applicable taxes) per student, for participating in Space HeliOdyssey Test (SHOT-2019). The registration charge is fully redeemable by students, after deduction of GST, as per below:
- A single-use discount of a maximum of 20% (up to Rs 800) as per below, which is valid up to December 2021:
- On family/group booking at its all India astroport sites (https://www.astroportindia.com/)
- Purchase of telescope, binoculars, astronomical instrument or games, etc., from Gnomon Astrotech Pvt Ltd (http://spacearcade.in)
- On all eclipse expedition registration charges for the next 2 years
In addition to the above, students will also receive the following benefits:
- Participation in the online examination
- Young Scientist Digital participation certificate
- 2 years membership in Eclipse Chasers Athenaeum (ECa) – a forum that brings together astronomers and eclipse chasers to facilitate discussion and planning for viewing eclipses. ECa has prominent scientists on the panel from various national and international organisations.
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