A total solar eclipse is nothing like a partial one, even a 99% partial one: NPR | Top Vip News

When the moon slides in front of the sun on April 8, many places will hold eclipse viewing parties. The Alamo in San Antonio, Texas, for example, distribute Special observation glasses in the shape of the historic building.

“We encourage everyone to come to the Alamo,” says Alamo Trust spokesman Jonathan Huhn, who notes that past astronomical events have drawn thousands of people to Alamo Plaza. “We are hoping to have another 5,000 people in front of the Texas Shrine of Liberty to witness this beautiful celestial event.”

But the Alamo is just outside the so-called path of totality: that’s the ribbon of land stretching across 13 states, from Texas to Maine, that will see a total solar eclipse. During a total eclipse, the sun is completely obscured by the moon.

“We’re not in the area of ​​100% totality,” says Huhn, who believes the sun will be about 99.9% obscured. “It’s very, very close.”

Close but without a cigarette, according to eclipse experts.

“I would never tell someone ‘99% is close enough.’ That’s definitely not the case with a solar eclipse,” he says. Michelle Nicholswho runs public viewing programs at Chicago’s Adler Planetarium.

“Drive those last few miles to get to the path of totality,” he urges. “People go to total eclipses to get the full experience, and 99% won’t get the full experience.”

“It’s 100% or nothing,” he agrees. Fred Espenak, a retired NASA astrophysicist who has experienced 30 total solar eclipses. “There is such a radical and dramatic difference between a partial 99% and a full 100%. There is no comparison.”

During a total eclipse, the sky suddenly and dramatically darkens. Low temperature. The stars come out. Beautiful colors appear around the horizon. And the once familiar sun becomes a black void in the sky surrounded by the bright corona: that is the ghostly white ring that is the sun’s atmosphere.

“It seems supernatural,” says Espenak. “It is so outside the realm of normal, everyday existence that it seems like a dream or hallucination.”

A partial solar eclipse offers none of that magic, according to Rick Fienbergproject director of the American Astronomical Society Solar Eclipse Working Group.

“Even at 99% it doesn’t get any darker than a typical cloudy day,” says Fienberg. “You can have a 75% or 80% partial solar eclipse, and if you didn’t know it was happening, you might not notice it because the environment changes very little.”

This is because the sun is so incredibly bright that even a small exposed portion can light up the sky or damage your eyes if you don’t wear protective glasses. Only during the brief phase of the total eclipse, when the sun is completely covered (which varies depending on your exact location, but can last about four minutes), is it safe to look at the sun without special eye protection.

“The sun is about a million times brighter than the full moon,” he explains. Angela Mota, astronomer at the University of Texas at San Antonio. So if the sun is 99.9% obscured, he says, there will still be “a thousand times more light than the full moon, so it will still shine.”

The last time parts of the United States were able to see a total solar eclipse, in 2017, the path of totality passed through many rural areas, Nichols says. This time the path crosses more urban areas.

This means that while around 32 million people live on the road, many more live within walking distance.

For them, the difference between seeing a partial eclipse and seeing a total one can mean crossing town.

“If you go all the way down the path, but you don’t go all the way, you know, a few hundred meters, you’re going to have a very, very deep partial eclipse,” Fienberg says. “It will definitely dim noticeably, but not as much as it will at 100%. And you won’t see the solar corona.”

Popular locations located just outside the path of totality will have to decide what type of event they will hold that day, if any.

The San Antonio Zoo is on the side of town that won’t see a total eclipse. Unlike the nearby Alamo, it will focus on having pre-eclipse activities the day before.

“We are hosting an eclipse preparation event on Sunday instead of an event on Monday,” zoo spokesperson Hope Roth told NPR via email, adding that astronomers will be in attendance and free solar glasses will be available. “We will encourage visitors to visit the zoo, grab their glasses and have a fun time as they prepare for the eclipse the next day.”

The historic Cincinnati Observatory, which frequently hosts sky-watching parties, will only see a 99.7% partial eclipse. The staff there thought a lot about whether or not to hold an eclipse celebration.

“For a long time before this eclipse, we had been committed to staying closed,” the CEO says. Anna Hehman“because totality, if the sky is clear, is an hour away from us.”

Finally, they decided to hold an event for those members of their community who, for whatever reason, could not travel the path of totality.

“While we encourage everyone to head to totality if possible, we love that people want to be at the Cincinnati Observatory for out-of-this-world events like this. So if you can’t head to totality, please join us .”, the observatory’s website says.

After all, a partial eclipse is still an interesting celestial event that people have observed since ancient times, even if it’s not as dramatic.

“Rumors about solar eclipses generally focus on totality, and witnessing a total eclipse is worthy of hype. But the vast majority of people will not be in the path of totality,” the astronomy educator said. Shauna Edsonat the National Air and Space Museum, he told NPR in an email.

That is why the museum organizes a eclipse celebration on the National Mall in Washington, DC, which will see an 89% partial eclipse.

“This eclipse falls during cherry blossom season, so a lot of people will be visiting DC, and the Museum wanted to provide a space where they could enjoy the eclipse together,” Edson said, adding that participants will be able to enjoy the crescent . cast shadows forming under trees and try different methods to view the partial eclipse.

After April 8, the contiguous United States will not see another total solar eclipse for 20 years. And the one that will arrive in 2044 will only be visible from the less populated states of North Dakota, South Dakota and Montana.