Partial solar eclipse to be visible from western United States

The event will be the first time in 18 years that such an eclipse is visible
from the continental United States, according to Fred Espenak, a longtime
solar eclipse expert with NASA.

“What is unusual about this particular annular eclipse is that it goes
over the western US,” Espenak told AFP.

“People always think that eclipses are extremely rare but there are at
least two solar eclipses every year. Each of these annular eclipses covers a
very small fraction of the Earth’s surface.”

The path of the annular eclipse will span “a 240 to 300 kilometer-wide
(150-185 mile) track that traverses eastern Asia, the northern Pacific Ocean
and the western United States,” according to the US space agency.

The eclipse begins at sunrise in southern China at 2206 GMT Sunday, which is
early Monday local time, and swiftly travels eastward to the southern coast
of Japan, NASA said.

“Tokyo lies 10 kilometers (six miles) north of the central line. For the
over 10 million residents within the metropolitan area, the annular phase
will last five minutes beginning at 2232 GMT,” said NASA.

The shadow then embarks on a 7,000-kilometer-long Pacific ocean voyage that
will endure for about two hours, skimming just south of Alaska’s Aleutian
Islands.

The eclipse will reach the coastlines of southern Oregon and northern
California Sunday evening local time, at 0123 GMT Monday, and it should be
visible in Nevada, Utah, New Mexico, Arizona and Texas.

The US East Coast will not see any of the eclipse because the Sun will have
already set.

“The desert areas of Nevada, southern Utah and northern Arizona may be
the best (for viewing) if they have the greatest chance of clear skies and
the eclipse takes place low in the sky over a dramatic landscape,” said
Alan MacRobert, editor of Sky and Telescope magazine.

According to historical cloud data, China and Japan may be out of luck since a
high likelihood of gray skies would block the view of the Sun.

“Unfortunately this is monsoon season, and the weather prospects are
supposed to be poor in southern China,” MacRobert told AFP, but
nevertheless urged residents to check local forecasts for updates.

“China and Japan don’t look to be very lucky for this. It would take
quite a stroke of luck to get a clear sky.”

Of course, no one should look directly at the eclipse due to the risk of
permanent eye damage. Even sunglasses are not enough to protect eyes from
the glare.

Instead, experts say a safe solar filter, such as a ᆪ13 or ᆪ14 rectangular
arc-welder’s glass or an astronomer’s filter made specifically for Sun
viewing are the best options.

Espenak suggested another way to view it – by holding binoculars with the eye
piece pointed toward a piece of white cardboard and the outer end pointed
toward the Sun.

“The important thing is not to look through the binoculars,” he
cautioned. But by directing the eyepiece toward the white cardboard, “you
get a magnified view of the Sun and the eclipse in progress.”

The next time the Earth will witness a total eclipse of the Sun, a more
dramatic event than a partial or annular eclipse, will be August 21, 2017.

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