People of Bhubaneswar, Odisha witnessed a rare celestial phenomenon on Friday, May 21 called Zero Shadow Day. During this event, no shadow of any object or being is observed in the sun.
This phenomenon occurs twice a year and takes place when the sun is at its highest point in the sky in all the regions between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn. The shadow of all beings and objects disappear on this day, as the position of the sun is exactly overhead, giving it the name of "Zero shadow day".
Bhubaneswar witnessed the event on Friday at 11:43 am which continued for about a period of three minutes. The Deputy Director of Pathani Samanta Planetarium in Bhubaneswar, Subhendu Patnaik talked about the phenomenon with ANI and said that the event takes place when the rotation axis of the Earth tilts at an angle of 23.5° to the axis of revolution of the Earth around the sun.
There are two days in the calendar year when the declination of the sun and its latitude of a place within the tropic align briefly during the sun's apparent North to South and South to North movement. This in turn leads to the shadows of everything on Earth disappear for a short while.
Patnaik also said that after the rare phenomenon occurred in Bhubaneswar on Friday, it would appear in Cuttack on Sunday. Zero Shadow Days can be experienced in different districts of Odisha from May 12 to June 2.
According to the Astronomical Society of India, the phenomenon occurs for places between +23.5 and -23.5 degrees latitude and the declination of the Sun becomes equal to their latitudes twice - once during Uttarayan and the other during Dakshinayan. During these two days, the Sun will not cast a shadow of any object at noon. The Astronomical Society also said that the Zero Shadow Day will be different for different places on Earth.
/shethepeople/media/agency_attachments/iUYfaBbcMozaYLoGnoov.png)
Follow Us/shethepeople/media/post_banners/QKFI04oN7O2aQgFLctfV.jpg)