VietNamNet Bridge – Because of rain in most northern provinces, Vietnamese people will have little chance to see the solar eclipse this afternoon, August 1, according to the Northern Delta Hydrometeorology Forecast Station.

Previously, scientists said Vietnamese would be able to see a partial solar eclipse on August 1.

Dr. Tran Tien Binh, of the Vietnam Institute of Science and Technology

, said that a total solar eclipse could be seen from Northern Canada, Greenland, Siberia, China and Mongolia, whereas Vietnam would see a partial eclipse only. The eclipse will start in Hanoi at 17:47 (local time) and the phenomenon will peak at 18:38, Binh said.

Nguyen Duc Phuong, an astronomer at the Vietnam Astronomy Association, previously predicted that a full solar eclipse could be seen from most of Vietnam from 16:11:07 until 18:21:28.

International science websites do not include Vietnam on the list of countries or areas where the total solar eclipse can be viewed from.

A report by NASA says the full solar eclipse can only be seen from Canada, North Greenland, Russia, Mongolia and China. Meanwhile, North America, most of Europe and Asia will see a partial eclipse, the report said.

However, the weather is not favourable in northern Vietnam so Vietnamese are unlikely to be able to witness this phenomenon.

It will also be very difficult for people in the central region and the southern region to see the solar eclipse because the sun will be very low at that time when viewed from those regions.