Calgarians can prepare to witness total solar eclipse on April 8th

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On April 8, Canada will experience a spectacular celestial event last witnessed in this country 45 years ago: a total solar eclipse. Locally, anyone wanting a glimpse of this once-in-a-lifetime event can do so at the University of Calgary’s Rosney Astrophysical Observatory.

Dr. Phil Langill, associate professor of physics and astronomy at the University of California, described it as the moon sitting in front of the sun and taking a giant bite out of it.

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“We live in a giant rotating sphere, orbiting the sun, and the moon orbiting the earth. And on April 8th, the Earth, the moon, the sun, and the people of the earth… “There’s a nice array in between,” he said, “Calgary.”

Langill said the eclipse lasts several hours, and the portion of the moon that covers the sun only lasts about 20 minutes.

“This alignment of Earth, moon, and sun happens about every six months, so it’s not particularly unusual from that perspective, but what’s unusual is that the moon’s shadow extends down and touches the surface of the Earth.”

The totality event will cross diagonally across the United States from northern Mexico, exit the shores of the Great Lakes, reach Canada in deep southeastern Ontario and southern Quebec, and head toward the Maritimes and Newfoundland and Labrador. .

“In terms of how many people will get a chance to see the whole thing, it’s going to be pretty impressive because it’s hitting major cities across North America,” Langill said.

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“Let’s think about the movement of the universe”

The RAO will be located on the main campus on Crowchild Trail at 32nd Street, right next to the CTrain station, and will include a telescope and eclipse viewing glasses. A panel of experts will be held to talk about the eclipse and explain what is happening.

Langill said the great thing about solar eclipses is that they remind us that we live in a dynamic universe. “During a solar eclipse, the sun and moon move across the sky from east to west, and that movement occurs because the Earth is a giant rotating sphere,” he said.

“And that rotational action causes things to rise or sink.”

Langill said the moon will nibble at the sun on its right side and then remain in the middle of the sun for a while, allowing us to see the moon moving in its orbit.

“This is amazing because if you think about it, the universe is moving, but we don’t usually think about it,” Langill said. “So if we can get people to think about the movement of the universe during an eclipse, that’s really important.”

Safety is the top priority when observing a solar eclipse.

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Dr. Phil Hooper of the Canadian Academy of Ophthalmology emphasized the importance of safety when viewing a solar eclipse, saying special-purpose solar viewing glasses that comply with the ISO 12312-2 standard should be used. .

“The biggest concern during a solar eclipse is that while the moon obscures part of the sun, the sun isn’t as bright, so you can see the sun without feeling the discomfort you normally feel at first. ” said Hooper. He said. As a result, your eyes can receive much more solar radiation than your eyes can tolerate.

The biggest risk is during periods when part of the sun is visible, and people are most attracted to it there.

“Structures at risk include the front part of the eye because too much light energy is being applied to the eye. Usually this is a relatively mild situation, painful for a few hours, but a large The concern is damage to the retina,” he said.

Because of the concentrated lighting, the temperature of retinal cells can exceed their boiling point, which can actually boil and damage retinal cells, Hooper said.

“It’s a lot like taking a magnifying glass out in the sun and focusing on a piece of paper. If there’s enough energy, it will actually burn the paper,” Hooper says. “Similarly, in your eyes, light is concentrated on a very small part of the retina without you realizing it, which can cause damage.

“It happens every time there’s a solar eclipse. People don’t take precautions and end up damaging their eyes.”

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