On April 8th, the moon will move between the Earth and the sun, creating a partial solar eclipse for those of us living in Foothills County.
“Anyone who’s ever had a chance to see this will tell you it’s one of the coolest things,” explains the museum’s director, Dr. Phil Langill. Rosny Astrophysical Observatory Associate Professor at the University of Calgary. “Because in the sky, during the day, the sun begins to disappear. And the moon is flying around in orbit around the Earth, and sometimes the moon aligns with the sun in the sky.”
Dr. Langill says that for us here, they’re very closely aligned, but they’re only creating a partial solar eclipse, not a complete one.
“But the alignment here is a little off, so there’s going to be a big bite during the day with the sun. It’s still going to be cool. It’s going to be fun to watch.” Langil.
From our vantage point, almost half of the sun will be hidden behind the moon, he added.
Although solar eclipses may not be seen as often here, Dr. Langill says they are somewhat common.
“If you think about the entire big Earth and the moon’s shadow, every time the moon comes between us and the sun, its shadow will hit somewhere on the earth. So roughly every six months. “The pattern is that every six months, the moon’s shadow will fall somewhere on Earth, giving someone on Earth the opportunity to see a solar eclipse,” Langill said.
He says that in our case it’s not that often.
“The shadows are big and fast, so for us, every 10 years or so, we’ll probably have a chance to see a small part of the sun get eaten away by the moon, and part of that is, ‘It’s “It’s a big change. Sometimes it’s a little bite, sometimes it’s half a bite. It’s very rare for the sun to disappear completely from the sky in a total solar eclipse,” Dr. Langill explains.
Dr. Langill says that even if some of the sun’s rays are blocked, it doesn’t necessarily make the day darker.
“The surface of the sun is very bright,” Langill says with a laugh. “Even though half of it is removed by the moon, there’s still half of the sun left there, very bright. When you look around at the horizon, this shadow passes and the sun starts to gnaw at it. so it doesn’t get too dark because the sun is still effectively illuminating the ground.”
However, Dr Langill added that you may notice a drop in temperature during the eclipse.
“One of the benefits of the moon is that it blocks all the heat from the sun, so you’ll notice the air cooling before you notice any changes in the brightness around you.”
He added that when the moon and sun are in line, the tides on Earth are slightly greater than they otherwise would be, regardless of whether the moon is between the Earth and the sun or on the other side of the Earth.
Dr. Langill says there are several options for safely viewing a partial solar eclipse, including approved eclipse-viewing sunglasses that block approximately 99 percent of the sun’s brightness.
One of the other options he suggests is something you can make at home.
“You can make a small pinhole camera. So, take a piece of cardboard. Make a small, small, small hole with a pin or the tip of a pen or something, and shine a light into the small protrusion. This is a small camera. Something like , and it shows you all the movement that’s happening in the sky, and it’s a fun way to do it, and also because it makes you think, “How is my pinhole making a camera?” “Learn a little bit about optics as you make that little device,” Dr. Langill says.
Alternatively, you can look through welding glass to protect your eyes, he says.
according to solar eclipse 2024the solar eclipse will begin at approximately 11:47 a.m. on April 8 and last until approximately 1:40 p.m.
Rosney Observatory won’t be hosting viewing parties, but the University of Calgary will.
It is located in Green Space Number 7 on the northeast corner of campus, near Crowchild Trail, not far from the C-Train station.
They plan to set up telescopes so people can watch the eclipse.
“What’s actually happening is that this is Mother Nature showing us that the universe is moving. It’s really cool to think about this.”
