Are eclipses dangerous for pregnant women? Five strange beliefs about next month’s

During total solar eclipses, birds stop singing, the world turns dark and the air itself turns cold – and many cultures have built up myths around the events.

Next month’s upcoming total eclipse – the first for 99 years in America – has stirred apocalyptic fears, with conspiracy theorists predicting the end of the world or the rise of Satan.

On August 21 this year, people across America will see the sun disappear behind the moon in a total eclipse – where the moon appears to completely cover the Sun in the sky.

The California Independent System Operator says that the eclipse will (briefly) knock out enough generating capacity to power Los Angeles.

The Earth won’t go dark, of course – operators will just divert power from other plants to make up the shortfall.

Here’s some of the strange beliefs people hold about solar eclipses.

Eclipses are messages from God

There are several descriptions of celestial events in the Bible which seem similar to eclipses – and at least one matches with a real eclipse, according to researchers from Ben Gurion University.

When Joshua leads the Israelites to victory, the Bible says, ‘Joshua spoke to the Lord on the day when the Lord delivered the Amorites before the children of Israel; and he said in the sight of Israel: ‘Sun, stand still upon Gibeon.’

Researchers believe that this description could match a total solar eclipse in 1206BC – around the time of the real battle described in the Bible.

Researcher Hezi Yitzhak says, ‘Not everyone likes the idea of using physics to prove things from the Bible.

‘There is a grain of historical truth that has archaeological evidence behind it.’

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Something gigantic is eating the sun

The Chinese word for eclipse is ‘chih’ – which translates as ‘eat’ – and many cultures believed that something gigantic was eating the sun.

According to some reports, Chinese sailors fired cannons as late as the 19th Century – to ‘scare off’ the hungry celestial dragon eating the moon.

In Vietnam, people believed that a giant frog was devouring the Sun.

Korean folklore tells of the Sun being stolen by mythical dogs, while in Europe, the Vikings blamed wolves for consuming the Sun.

Pregnant women will give birth to deformed children

There are a large number of myths about pregnant women and eclipses – including the idea that if a mother sees an eclipse, the baby will be born with a hare lip.

Although the myth actually dates back to the Aztecs, the idea is still bandied about on pregnancy websites today.

Superstitious people believe that carrying a metal object, or wearing red underwear, will protect them.

There is, of course, no scientific basis to this belief.

All food cooked under the eclipse will turn to poison

In parts of India, people still fast during a solar eclipse because of the fear that any food cooked during the event will be poisoned.

The moon is actually fighting the sun

It’s easy to see how people can get this mixed up, with the moon sailing directly in front of the sun (obscuring 83% of it in London).

The Batammaliba people from Benin and Togo in West Africa have a legend that during an eclipse the Sun and Moon are fighting.

The only way to stop the conflict, they believe, is for people on Earth to settle their differences.