Bhopal: Solar eclipse partial, but excitement brims over

BHOPAL: In a bid to bust myths regarding solar eclipse among tribal students, the Regional Science Centre (RSC) and Madhya Pradesh Council of State and Technology (MPCST) on Thursday organized a solar eclipse viewing for students of the Gurukulam Residential School.
Around 500 students and teachers had a first-hand experience with telescopes. This was organized for the Annual Solar Eclipse, a celestial event also termed as Ring Of Fire.RSC had arranged two set-ups of telescopes to observe the spectacular phenomenon.
Principal scientist, MPCST, Vikas Shende, said, “This initiative is undertaken to uplift tribals and include them in mainstream science education. Children are quick learners, who have been fed with negative myths related to eclipses. Most of them are looking forward to sharing this information with their parents.”
During the program, the participating students were impared basic knowledge on eclipses, how and when they occur, motion of planets and other celestial bodies etc. Students and the general public were allowed to see the progressive stages of the Partial Solar Eclipse through projection from the telescopes. The participants also looked at the sun during the eclipse through special solar glasses provided by the centre.
Principal, Gurukulam School, Dr Yashpal Singh, said, “Almost all of our students come from communities that are not very scientifically inclined and are laced with myths. Space is a curious subject for kids. It is a great moment for us to witness 500 students from 89 tribal blocks of Madhya Pradesh experiencing their first hands-on experience with telescope at this school.”
Student visitors to the museum experienced a change in the way they thought about science, and thus developed a bond with science. Kanika Bhuria, a student of Std 11, was overwhelmed with excitement. She said, “This is the first time I am able to grasp the infinite vastness of the universe and its great secrets through the eyes of a telescope. Back in our village, near Alirajpur, there is no formal introduction to science and I am the first one in the family to be able to hold a telescope and witness this wonder. It has definitely increased my interest in astronomy.”
Not only kids, this solar eclipse workshop was the first such experience for many teachers too. Purnima Tripathi, a math teacher at the school, said, “Back in our days, it was extremely rare to have this experience. I came here earlier than the scheduled time because I was excited to see the practical application of the theory I have read so many times.”