It’s been nearly four decades since sky watchers in any part of the continental United States have been treated to a total eclipse of the sun, but we’re about to experience this remarkable cosmic show in just one short month.
As a veteran of 16 total solar eclipses from six continents, I can say to you without any exaggeration that this is the most alien experience you can ever have on this planet — the sun goes out in the daytime, for heaven’s sake! Over the next four weeks, I will make that case to you and offer tips on how best to experience this rare event.
A solar eclipse occurs when the moon in its orbit passes directly between the Earth and the sun and blocks out a portion of our star from view. On Aug. 21, folks throughout North America will watch as the moon’s silhouette appears to take an increasingly larger bite out of the sun’s disk — a partial eclipse.
I cannot emphasize enough the importance of protecting your vision. Looking at the sun without a proper solar filter, even for an instant, can cause permanent eye damage or blindness.
You can find proper solar filters here http://ift.tt/2vx3VJw, but be sure to order them soon because supplies may be dwindling.
Or, perhaps even more fun, check with your local planetarium, science museum or amateur astronomy club to see where they’ll be set up that day for free public viewing through properly filtered telescopes.
To determine the times and other details about the eclipse in your area, check out this terrific interactive Google Earth map that allows you to zoom in and click on your exact location: http://ift.tt/2uLBg60.
All the times presented there are in Universal Time, or UT, which is essentially the time in Greenwich, England, and you’ll need to convert to your own local time. Eastern Daylight Time, or EDT, is four hours behind UT. CDT is five hours behind. MDT is six hours behind. And PDT is seven hours behind. So, a simple subtraction is all you’ll need to do.
Now, while these partial phases are certainly interesting and fun to watch, they are nothing — and I do mean nothing — compared with the exhilaration created by a total eclipse.
To experience this event in all its celestial glory, a truly once-in-a-lifetime experience for most, you must view it from as close to the eclipse centerline as possible. The centerline is the middle of the narrow total eclipse path sweeping across the U.S. from Oregon through South Carolina. It is along this path that the moon’s umbral shadow will make landfall, and it is the only place where you can experience the stunning phenomenon we call “totality.”
If you plan to journey to the centerline, keep in mind that tens of millions of others from around the world will be doing the same.
Lodging along the eclipse path is pretty well gone by now, and traffic that day may be quite congested in the most popular areas, so if you plan to travel to the path of totality, please do so early and be patient.
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