ALBANY — A rare celestial event is about to take place in New York State, and it won’t be back in the same location until 2079. The rare total solar eclipse will pass through Western New York, the Finger Lakes, and the Adirondacks on April 8.
“It doesn’t happen for any given spot on the planet all that often. It’s a pretty big deal when it happens,”
said Dr. Mindy Townsend, a Dudley astronomer at Siena College School of Science.
Events will be held both where the eclipse will be fully visible across a narrow route, referred to as the path of totality, and where visitors can experience a rare partial eclipse throughout the rest of the state.
The Capital Region is not in the path of totality; however, it is in the path of a 96–97% partial eclipse. “It will be a substantial eclipse that I think will be noticeable, but it’s not totality,” said Dr. Townsend. “I feel like a lot of people hammer down this idea of 97% or 99%, which sounds like a lot, but there’s that thin sliver of light that’s still streaming into the earth and a lot of energy and light… I still think it will get dim. Treat it more like dusk.“
Viewers in the Capital Region will likely see a crescent sun. “It will be more of a gradual movement of the moon across the face of the sun until it hits what we call a ‘maximum phase’ which is the maximum coverage for this eclipse, then it will start to move away again,” she explained. “That’s really what the Capital Region is in for. It’ll look really cool because if you see images of the crescent sun, it’s not something that you see every day.”
In anticipation of the solar eclipse on April 8, New York State Parks is offering a wide array of events and activities for people to learn about the total solar eclipse. For information on upcoming park solar eclipse events, visit www.parks.ny.gov.
“Our environmental educators and park personnel are prepared to welcome visitors from near and far, ensuring that this experience is both safe and memorable for all ages,” said New York State Parks Commissioner Pro Tempore Randy Simons.
At Thatcher Park on March 23, Dr. Townsend’s event, ‘The Great North American Total Eclipse: The Science, the History, and Why You Should Get Your Butt to Totality (If Possible)’, is on the history of eclipses, the science that can only be done during eclipse time, and what people can expect in and out of the path of totality.
“I’ve been encouraging people to get into the path of totality if they can,” said Dr. Townsend. “The next total solar eclipse to hit New York State isn’t until 2079. It’ll be quite a while before a solar eclipse is as accessible as it is this year.”
”I do want people to understand that this is a big deal,” she emphasized. “Total solar eclipses are always a big deal— there are people who chase these all around the world. They have been planning for this trip for years. There will be tens of thousands of people in the path of totality. If you want to get to the path of totality, it’s important to have a plan, a backup plan, and to leave early in the day and be prepared for some managed chaos.”
Safety is essential when viewing the eclipse, but there are simple solutions to enjoy the cosmic phenomenon with appropriate protection.
“What makes a solar eclipse dangerous is that as the moon moves in front of the sun, it blocks out a substantial portion of the light, but not enough to make looking at the sun not dangerous,” explained Dr. Townsend.
“Normally, we don’t look at the sun because our bodies won’t let us. We blink involuntarily and close our eyes. During an eclipse, enough of the light is blocked that the blink reflex is tamped down,” she continued. “Our bodies don’t feel like we have to blink, but we really should. There’s still a lot of ultraviolet light coming through, and you can sunburn your eyes, which you won’t even notice until it’s too late, and it’s irreversible. It’s really easy to do.”
One safe way to view the eclipse is with cardboard ‘eclipse glasses’. According to NASA, viewing any part of the sun through a camera lens, binoculars, or telescope without a special-purpose solar filter secured over the front of the optics will instantly cause severe eye injury. Regular sunglasses, polarized or otherwise, are not a safe replacement for solar eclipse glasses.
“They [eclipse glasses] should have a particular number on the back: ISO 12312-2. There may be other numbers after that, but it must have those numbers because that tells you that they’re rated for solar viewing,” said Dr. Townsend. “There are so many fraudulent eclipse glasses out there. To know that they’re true, they should have that ISO number on the back.”
When preparing for the solar eclipse, Dr. Townsend reminds eclipse enthusiasts to check their gear before using it. Dr. Townsend has a simple trick for testing the eclipse glasses.
If the user holds the glasses in front of normal light and sees anything other than blackness, then the glasses are possibly damaged or not strong enough and should ultimately not be used. “It’s not worth the risk,” she cautioned.
”Some people don’t trust these glasses, and I understand why. They’re thin cardboard with thin film,” she said. “But it’s a specially made film so that you can look at the eclipse with safety. I know a lot of libraries have glasses that they’ve been giving away. If you can’t get one of those types of viewers, you can make a pinhole viewer. It’s a small hole in a piece of paper.”
As a part of her lectures at Thatcher Park leading up to the solar eclipse, Dr. Townsend will teach a family activity where they make these pinhole viewers. A pinhole viewer works by projecting an image of the eclipse onto the ground so that the viewer does not risk looking up at the eclipse.
“If you lose your glasses or they’re damaged in some way, it’s still a way to view the eclipse,” said Dr. Townsend, who noted that for some, this is their preferred viewing option.
The experience of viewing the solar eclipse is largely dependent on where the viewer is located. “If they can’t get to the path of totality, I want people to understand what they’re going to see,” said Dr. Townsend. “I make sure people’s expectations are catered to where they’re going to be on the day. The experience you will get inside totality, just a couple hours away from here, will be vastly different from the Capital District, but they’re both worth enjoying.”
“A lot of emphasis is on traveling to see totality,” she continued. “It’s extremely beautiful— and it is. If you have to stay home for some reason or don’t want to deal with the tens of thousands of people that are going to be on Interstate 87 on April 8, it’s totally worth going out into your yard with eclipse glasses and taking a look. It’s also worth taking that family trip to view totality.”
Before setting out to view the eclipse on April 8, New York State has outlined these four reminders:
• Protect your eyes with specialized solar-viewing glasses.
• Check traffic before heading out for this event, as higher volumes of visitors are anticipated.
• Prepare for the weather.
• Bring the proper gear and watch out for ticks if camping.
For information on park availability for eclipse viewing, registrations, safety, and more, visit www.governor.ny.gov.
