Category Archives: eclipses

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Things that Block Light

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Eclipses and Transits and More Eclipses, Oh My

A partial phase of the annular eclipse, shot through solar filter material using a Sony Cybershot. Copyright 2012 Carolyn Collins Petersen.

It’s been a banner couple of weeks for interesting celestial events. First, like many folks, I got to see the annular eclipse of the Sun on May 20th.  We went to southern Utah to get a clear view of the Moon slipping between Earth and the Sun and almost (but  not quite) blocking out all the sunlight. What we saw was a pretty amazing “ring” of light.  I took a few pictures, like the one here, but mostly I just sat and watched it.

We’ve chased a few eclipses now (we’re four for six), so instead of running around and trying to get the best pictures and video, we like to sit and watch. Oh, we did do some automated photography — just let the camera and timer do all the work.  But, mostly we watched. And were rewarded with a cool view that doesn’t come along very often.

In the national park where we viewed (Kolob Canyon, part of Zion National Park), we talked with various people who had driven over from California or Las Vegas or Colorado, and everyone seemed excited about the eclipse.  There were a few telescopes and cameras with solar filters set up, and a fair number of people using the pinhole projection method of viewing the eclipse. So, I was gratified to see that the campaign of “NEVER LOOK DIRECTLY AT THE SUN WITHOUT PROTECTION” was paying off.  It’s common sense, but still, in the heat of an eclipse sometimes even seasoned veterans forget the rule and take a peek, risking their eyesight forever.

The next big event is the Transit of Venus, which occurs June 5/6 (date depends on where you live), when Venus’s orbit will take it across the face of the Sun for several hours.  These don’t occur very often; they happen in pairs every hundred or so years, so the next one after this one will be in the year 2117.  If you’re inclined to take a look, the same rules apply: don’t look directly at the Sun, use proper filters (NOT SUNGLASSES), and enjoy!  There’s a ton of information out there about the transit, so if you want to know more about it, go here, or  here. I even talk about it in my monthly edition of “Our Night Sky” for Astrocast.TV, which you can watch below.

Finally, there’s a little bit of a lunar eclipse occurring tomorrow June 4th.  The best places for viewing this eclipse will be in and near the Pacific Ocean, according to the folks at eclipse.nasa.gov.  However, people in the Americas will see part of it, as will people in eastern Asia.  If you want to watch as part of the Moon slips through Earth’s shadow, get more information at the link above.

It’s kinda cool that three events that are the result of sunlight being blocked by celestial objects are occurring so close together. There’s nothing magical about it, but there is something fascinating to watch, so check out the transit and the eclipse (if they’re visible where you live).  Participate in observing!  That’s what astronomy’s all about!

 

 

eclipses

Sun Frenzy

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The Annular Eclipse

Will you be checking out the upcoming annular eclipse?  If so, you’ve probably heard all the safety warnings about not looking directly at the Sun. They’re good advice. When I was a kid I remember some eclipses occurring and being told not to look at the Sun. Of course, I did.  Luckily, I didn’t get any severe eye damage — but it’s worth saying again that even a little sungazing without proper protection is too much. So, if you’ve got eclipse glasses, use ’em!  There’s no substitute for safety.

If you’re planning on viewing the eclipse, check here or here for the latest info on where the path of totality is, and what you can expect to see.

A view of a solar eclipse in 2011, caught by the Hinode satellite. Courtesy JAXA/NASA.

The joint JAXA/NASA Hinode mission will also observe the eclipse and provide images and movies that will be available on the NASA website.  Due to Hinode’s orbit around the Earth, Hinode will actually observe 4 separate partial eclipses. Scientists often use an eclipse to help calibrate the instruments on the telescope by focusing in on the edge of the moon as it crosses the sun and measuring how sharp it appears in the images. As an added bonus, the satellite’s x-ray telescope will be able to provide images of the peaks and valleys of the lunar surface silhouetted against the glow of the solar corona.

You may be wondering what an annular eclipse is. It’s simply an eclipse where the Moon’s apparent size isn’t big enough to cover the Sun as the Moon moves between Earth and the Sun. It only covers a portion of the Sun. For people in the path of totality, they’ll see a ring of light around the Moon. Those not in the path will see only a part of the Sun’s light blocked. No matter what portion you see, though, the sunlight will be too bright to look directly at the event.

That’s why you need eye protection — and by that, I mean more than sunglasses. You need eclipse shades. Your local planetarium or science center may have them, so if you’re planning to watch the eclipse, check it out.

You can also watch the eclipse via pinhole projection — that is, shining light from the Sun through a pinhole in a piece paper — and letting it shine onto a wall or another piece of paper. The image on the second surface will show you the eclipsed Sun.  It’s just about foolproof! For more details on that, check out this page from the Exploratorium.   Whatever you do, have a safe solar eclipse viewing experience. It’ll be good practice for the Transit of Venus in June!