Don’t forget to grab a pair of eclipse glasses to witness the partial solar eclipse this Saturday in Moscow. The peak time of the eclipse will be at 9:23 A.M.
On October 14th, the University of Idaho’s College of Science and Department of Physics is hosting an eclipse watch party on the Theophilus Tower lawn from 8-10:45 A.M. But the prime time to watch the eclipse is from 8:45-10 A.M. and eclipse glasses will be available for people who attend.
Solar eclipses have different names depending on how close the moon is to the Earth. This year’s eclipse is an annular solar eclipse where the moon is farther away from the Earth and close to the sun, compared to a total solar eclipse when the moon is closer to the Earth and farther from the sun.
This year’s eclipse will be passing over nine states in the U.S. starting from Oregon and making its way to Texas. Moscow will see roughly 70% of the sun covered by the moon.
Because the moon is closer to the Earth than the sun, the sun creates a glowing ring around the moon. This is commonly known as the “ring of fire”. Moscow won’t be able to see the “ring of fire” because of the path the moon is taking.
However, it’s still an exciting thing to witness, the last visible annular eclipse from the U.S. was in May 2016 so you don’t get many opportunities to see this kind of eclipse. Gwen Barnes, research associate professor in the department of physics at UI is excited to watch Saturday’s eclipse and encourages students to join Saturday morning’s watch party,
“The last total eclipse visible from the U.S. was in August 2017. I went down to Cascade, Idaho, to view it, and it was amazing. There will be another total solar eclipse visible from the U.S. next year, but after there won’t be another total solar eclipse from the U.S. in 2044.”
Barnes also emphasized the importance of wearing the proper eclipse glasses. They’re crucial to have when watching eclipse, regular sunglasses won’t cut it. Looking at the sun during an eclipse without ISO-certified eclipse glasses can cause radiation burns on your eyes, resulting in permanent eye damage.
There have been cases of people with permanent crescent-shaped blind spots on their eyes due to not wearing proper eclipse glasses. You can find ISO-certified solar eclipse glasses sold at Walmart, so make sure to enjoy the eclipse safely.
Alyssa Johnson can be reached at [email protected]