Clouds are in the forecast for several Island communities on Saturday, but that won’t stop sky-watchers from trying to get a glimpse of a rare “annular” solar eclipse — named for the Latin word “annulus,” which refers to a ring shape.
The name comes from the eclipse’s so-called “ring of fire” effect, where the outside edge of the sun glows from behind the moon, but that will not be visible on the Island or anywhere else in B.C., a local expert said.
Instead, local watchers will see a crescent-moon or fingernail shape forming on the sun during the event.
The eclipse is set to take place from just after 8 a.m. to about 10:30 a.m.
The moon will start to “nibble away” at the sun about half an hour after sunrise, and the peak effect in Victoria is expected to be at 9:19 a.m., said Randy Enkin, president of the Victoria Centre of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada.
The moon will pass in front of the sun, but sunlight will get through because the moon won’t appear big enough for a full blockage, Enkin said. “Imagine the moon sitting right in the middle of the sun.”
A complete blocking of the sun is a total eclipse, something that is coming up on April 8, 2024, he said.
Saturday’s eclipse stems from “this huge, crazy, cosmic coincidence that the moon and the sun look like they’re about the same size,” he said. In fact, the sun is 400 times bigger than the moon — but also 400 times as far away from Earth, Enkin said.
He said he is optimistic about the viewing conditions for the eclipse. “As long as we can see the disk of the sun, we’ll see the bite the moon is taking out of it,” Enkin said. “So thin cloud is no problem.”
How to see the eclipse
He warned, however, that no one should look directly at the sun while the annular eclipse is happening.
If you can’t get hold of certified solar-viewing glasses, which Enkin said can be hard to find at this point, he suggests using what he calls the “projection method.”
You can stand with your back to the eclipse and use either binoculars, a colander or a piece of paper with several holes in it to project the image through, he said.
“Then you’ll be able to enjoy this change in the shape of the sun safely,” he said. “Don’t improvise with welder’s glasses and things.”
He said the nearest location with a view of the “ring of fire” will be Oregon.
In B.C., people in areas with clear enough skies will see the sun about 80 per cent obscured, which will show as the crescent shape, Enkin said.
Victoria is the best spot in the country to see the annular eclipse, he said. “There is no city in Canada that sees more of the moon’s shadow than in Victoria.”
The action will be to the east, with sites like Clover Point, Cattle Point and Mount Tolmie sure to be popular for the curious, Enkin said.
The Friends of the Dominion Astrophysical Observatory is holding an eclipse event Saturday from 8 to 10 a.m. at the Centre of the Universe, 5071 West Saanich Rd.
• For tickets and information, go to centreoftheuniverse.org/events and click on Oct. 14.
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