When is the Solar Eclipse? A Complete Guide to Timing and Viewing
A solar eclipse isn’t just a straightforward astronomical event. It has captivated human beings for centuries. One thing that’s really cool about solar eclipses is that they can only occur during new moon, when the Moon is in between the Earth and the Sun. That alone is a rare alignment. The chances of you being on that part of Earth to see a total solar eclipse (when the position of the Moon completely covers the Sun) in any given place are expected to be about every 375 years. So the rarity alone builds excitement.
What’s more, the timing adds to the excitement. An eclipse can last a few hours. The corona of the Sun could be seen for as little as a few minutes. The clock is very much ticking. Perhaps it was ticking for up to over 4.5 million seconds, after which you’ll have about 180 seconds to see the corona at total eclipse.
The other cool thing is that people go to these areas. If you go to some of the most remote places of your continent—places you’d never be otherwise interested in—you’ll enjoy a cool cultural learning experience. You’re there with survivors of the fittest. Certain towns invite you to pitch a tent, knowing that you’re just there for a few days. Besides, we’re talking about units of 10–15 dollars here. When it’s over, you’ll just survive and do your thing. You’ll hang out and eat some food and then maybe get back home. If you know something about this in your town, look it up and get ready to party!
The whole world stops just to get at this very lonely spot of remote Earth. Why do we do it? It’s a reminder of who you are and what you are. Even when you have total corona, you can take off your glasses and look up at the Sun. You can’t go blind. Don’t be scared about that. In ancient cultures, the sign of recent humanity showed fear and reverence during an eclipse. Some cultures had tools to track this kind of stuff. The clock was ticking, and people were watching. The Moon, the Sun, and the stars were all they had to watch. You have your life and your family. You should appreciate it. Today, we just see it as a bunch of moments. For a total solar eclipse, prepare yourself and just do it.
What to Expect During the Solar Eclipse
How many ways can you learn during a solar eclipse? When the moon passes in front of the sun and casts a shadow on Earth—blocking the sun’s light and providing one of our finest natural spectacles—you can learn about the universe by looking at the sights. The “bite” that the moon takes out of the sun when the edges of the two bodies first align, when the bright circle of the sun ever so slowly yet ever so visibly becomes a crescent, will only become narrower and narrower in the minutes to come, is a poetic sight to see. It’s a reminder, in visual format, of the real-time dance of the celestial bodies through space.
But as the sun gets lower and lower and the light starts to diminish, take a second to notice the temperature. It actually gets cooler during the few minutes when the face of the s un is under blot by the moon. The logicians out there will realize that, of course, this makes sense. The sun’s rays, now hidden, no longer make as much contact with the ground onto which you are standing. No light coming in = no heat warming the ground. It’s science. You can measure this type of thing with your handy-dandy thermometer. Some studies have examined just how much cooler the midday sun makes the surface of Earth. According to a Daily Mail post, popular news outlets covered the temperature as falling a few degrees per the peak several years ago. It has happened at plenty of various eclipses and at several other locations around the world.
But this is a renewables-fueled solar website, so let’s go back to the sun. As the light gets lower and lower in the sky, you can also sense a change in the wildlife. I’m looking up at the sun, but you can look down without your glasses and notice that you’re not alone. Animals that you don’t recognize from right next to you are literally fluttering back to the tree hollows in which you just saw them. And there are definitely some bugs and spiders out at this time of day that must have been here before but have not realized you are among them. It’s disconcerting, to say the least. And it’s also tremendously empowering. The sight was worth the drive. The sight in my heart, literally speaking, of standing on the ground and realizing that the sun is far away and, for a slight moment in time, it’s not just other humans looking in our direction.
When is the Solar Eclipse?
The solar eclipse—it’s just cool, isn’t it? An event controlled completely by the clockwork of the universe, and that will and won’t happen at a very particular time. If you don’t already know when, you’re probably in the latter camp. It’s important for you to know it, and if, alternatively, you’re in the first group, you’re almost certainly hot for this fact. The exact time of the eclipse varies from location to location, and it’s a make-or-break detail for even the most geography-challenged onlooker.
Time zones notwithstanding, the as-the-crow-flies location of the observer is important. For times of the start, maximum, and end of this eclipse, any average Joe or Josephine must know and convert from UT or Universal Time. UT is a useful time standard for astronomers and other such people who take a lot of measurements. It’s taken at the IERS Reference Meridian, which is .3 seconds behind Greenwich Mean Time—0º—and 5.5 seconds ahead of Earth’s rotational time. You can get an idea of what the difference between New York and Los Angeles is—one’s on the east coast, and one’s on the west—so it’s likely that you need to compensate.
Google “eclipse calculator (or something like that exchangeable with “something like that”),” and, depending on your longitude and latitude, you’ll find out the exact time. There will be a spot somewhere on the site for you to input UT, or usually all you have to do is put in a particular city. Knowing that, what about that should you lack to do? Well, there’s the weather. An abundance of clouds could stand between you and the sun. You’d miss out then, so hypsometric ignorant observers might consider this.
In the days leading up to the next solar eclipse, humanity is divided into two absolutist cultures, similar to the cultural divide of the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. The differences between the two offer an insightful perspective into the determined, methodical nature of the human spirit in contemporary society. As humanity grows more complex and chaotic, these cultures represent seemingly simple mindsets regarding the phenomenon.
Preparing for the Solar Eclipse
The first step to watching a solar eclipse safely—indeed, the only time you should ever look directly at the sun—is through solar eclipse glasses. As only that part of the sun peeking out from behind the moon is as bright as a normal, as in uneclipsed, sun, all that is necessary to look safely at the whole thing is a screen that knocks out most of the incoming light. These cardboard glasses (think 3-D glasses) do, however, need to be properly manufactured to give you full security, meaning they need to meet the ISO 12312-2 international safety standard. Some glasses offered for sale in the run-up to the eclipse might be knockoffs, which could be risky, so you need to be sure what you are buying.
Looking bears down to getting the geography right. From somewhere safe and pleasant, assess the chance of a good view and concentrate on where it will be darkest, by visiting somewhere along the path of totality. There, for a couple of minutes, the sky will darken as the moon completely covers the sun, and this offers a completely different spectacle from that observed outside this narrow band. Further considerations include the chances of the line of sight being blocked by obstructions, such as tall buildings or trees, and the possibilities that the location will be heavily overcrowded. It might be best to arrive ridiculously early and grab your preferred vantage point. Moreover, try to think about protecting the eye-watering damage that you might get if you are lying down and flat on your back, eyes upward!
Still thinking of location, what will the weather be like? Different geographical locations receive different amounts of sunshine, and you wouldn’t want to be clouded out. A serious and increasingly popular pastime, which you can observe on some of the links below, chases eclipses to every continent in this world and—what the heck, why not?—across the ocean. The shadow of the 2017 eclipse crosses the United States (US), meaning, quite simply, that most North Americans would spend less time traveling than would most other chasers. Even if you will be outside the path of totality, knowing the timings for your location (see below) will enable you to get somewhere fast. What other viewing equipment should you take supplies of? (Newby, read on!)
In the same vein, consider the practicalities of everyday life: noise, nuisance from bugs (and, again, weather), desperate queues and ridiculously inflated prices at stores. Discover when the eclipse will happen at a location, which must shape everything you do. Public transport, as you will appreciate, has many advantages in such a situation. If you will need to travel between countries, then check the date and investigate the issue of visas. Visit a local store with your chair, then decide if you can see right out of your chair in the upward direction. And, on watching the event? Well, if you can relax, then do so! First, however, and most importantly, try to think about your friends and if you should take them and have a nice, absolutely lovely, gentle, forget-me-not time. The road map has a nice idea: solar eclipse day getaway. It, with the image below it, is so well-rounded that it would be a pity to spoil it by adding a word, in theater productions, they call “pace,” which ends accordingly. Watch a video, and look at the BBC video and Will Gater video. Perhaps have one more look. Might you watch with children?
If you have time for this, consider reading a part of a section on maths and solar-eclipse geometry, as, on the day, this might heighten your enjoyment considerably. The calculations show all the elegance of so many circles, mostly from circles and circularity enlisted in the service of the Earth (or our earth, on which our life rests) and the Sun, by which our lives flourish. The point to hang on to 1,385 times less bright is as near as damn it, but the fascinating post brings it out as being even more elegant, yet requiring only a little math. Finally, get into spreading the word and do good.
Understanding Solar Eclipses
A solar eclipse is an amazing astronomical event that takes place when the Moon moves between the Earth and the Sun and the light from the Sun is (briefly) blocked. It can result in breathtaking sights as the light from the Sun is blotted out and it has always fascinated people. From a scientific perspective, the process that leads to this happening tells us a lot about the universe. In fact, the study of total solar eclipses was the first proof that scientists had of Einstein’s general theory of relativity (which indicated that starlight would be bent as it passed by the Sun).
There are three main types of solar eclipses that you need to know about: total, partial, and annular. During a total solar eclipse, the Moon is able to completely block the light from the Sun and the day turns into night. This is a rare type of eclipse and it can only be seen from specific locations along what is known as the path of totality. A partial solar eclipse happens when the Moon does not block the entire surface of the Sun. This is arguably the most common type of solar eclipse and you might have already seen one.
An annular solar eclipse is a different kettle of fish entirely and it happens when the Sun and Moon are exactly in line with the Earth but the apparent size of the Moon isn’t as large as that of the Sun. Hence, the Sun appears as a very bright ring (or annulus) surrounding the dark disk of the Moon. It truly is a sight to behold if you’re lucky enough to be able to see it (you need to be able to travel to a location that is on the annular path).
If you’ve ever been lucky enough to witness a solar eclipse, then you’ll definitely know what we’re talking about when we say that it is one of the most incredible and humbling things that you can see. There’s something about the rarity of the event and the nature of what is actually happening in the wider universe that makes it (we believe that the correct adjective to use is) awesome. Eclipses are predictable, but the fact that this predictable event is out of the hands of mere mortal men really does put things into perspective when you truly think about it. That is probably why in years gone by, ancient cultures spread fear about the pending destruction that would be the result of the eclipse still to come. Even in this day and age, there are numerous mythological assumptions about the Moon crossing paths with the Sun.
Frequently Asked Questions
Solar eclipses are dazzling astronomical events that awe people across the globe.
People often ask, “How long does a solar eclipse last?” The answer to that question varies. There are different types of solar eclipses with different lengths — it can be tricky to pin down a one-size-fits-all response. The maximum duration of a total solar eclipse (when the sun is completely covered by the center of the moon) is a few minutes, but this can extend to more than seven. This is correct for the total solar eclipse, but the time for the total event (including the partial phases) will be a few hours. If you go by the rules of totality, then the longest you’ll be in the “shadow” is over seven minutes. If you go by when the edges of the moon touch the sun, it will be several hours. If you’re not on the “peak” of the spot of greatest totality, it will be shorter.
Coming back to the original question, “Can I see the total solar eclipse from anywhere?” the answer is no — because the eclipse’s path will dictate where it can be seen from. As the earth revolves, you have to be in the area of the shadow that will get the idiosyncratic viewing of this event: a thin, 100-mile band of ominous totality — at most. Outside of this area, you’ll still see a partial hinting of what’s happening, but there’s not going to be a moment where the light changes dramatically, gets cooler, or completely dark.
You heard that right — it will get darker and the temperature will decrease, which you’ll only experience if you’re in the path. Otherwise, it’ll just get creepy for a couple of hours.
What happens if it’s cloudy on the day of the solar eclipse? You won’t see it — unless you’re below the cloud cover. Many look to the forecast in anticipation, hoping to avoid praying for clear skies instead of the shivers of the magnitude of the event.
The excitement of totality can mirror the mystery of many things, such as what end of the world, aliens, conspiracy theories, and mythical events many cultures previously alluded to. Some people look forward to learning about physics and viewing the curvature of space and time without time in the middle of the time they’re in.
A more crucial aspect is the safety of your eyes. It is essential to wear the correct type of viewing glasses so you don’t get hurt. Only look at the sun with some form of ISO 12312-2-compliant glasses — this prevents solar retinopathy, the acute phase of this burn (photokeratitis), and any other issues you may sustain.
Solar eclipses are among the most beautiful spectacles in astronomy. When the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun, the Sun’s light is temporarily blocked—and it can be a gorgeous, exhilarating sight. But if you want to be able to see solar eclipses, you have to know when they’re going to occur. That’s why you should mark your calendar for all the ones coming up and plan to step outside and look at the sun during these minutes.
The timing of your solar eclipse viewing may vary. Total solar eclipses usually top out at around seven minutes, and they are only visible from particular places on Earth. If you are somewhere other than that single place on Earth, you will still see an eclipse on the day of an eclipse—it just won’t necessarily be total.
If you want to know the exact timing of eclipses—when to be out there looking—check your local schedule or resources online.
If you want to be like me and schedule all your friends and family to go outside on all the big eclipse days, share this article with them!
I think it’s the most fun to share in the awe of these kinds of special, rare experiences together. With others, we can reflect on the experience, talk about it, and just generally be hyped in the days leading up to it (and the post-buildup after) together. It’s something you can take the time to bring your friends and family together to do and plan to share a remembrance for later together.
