ORLANDO, Fla. – The upcoming solar eclipse on Monday, April 8, is set to be America’s most anticipated astronomical event of 2024, although Central Florida won’t be within the path of totality.
This means we won’t be treated to the ethereal twilight of a total eclipse, but a 65% partial solar eclipse promises to be a magical spectacle nonetheless.
Throughout recorded history, people have marveled at the wonder of eclipses. While they may carry an air of significance, they occur purely by chance.
Despite the big difference in size between the moon and the sun— with the sun dwarfing the moon in diameter — they appear almost identical in size from our perspective due to their differing distances from Earth.
This remarkable celestial coincidence allows the moon to perfectly obscure the Sun during a total solar eclipse, casting a shadow onto the Earth’s surface.
Central Florida will get to experience a partial solar eclipse and if you did not get safety solar eclipse glasses, you can still experience the eclipse without looking up.
Eclipse maximum will be at 3:03 p.m. Take a moment to look down at the shadows on the ground.
They will become sharper. Even more bizarre, look for the shadows of leaves. They’ll appear crescent-shaped. What you’ll see are not shadows but images of the partially eclipsed crescent sun projected onto the ground.
This optical phenomenon is caused by the small gaps between leaves acting as pinhole cameras.
Only a thin sliver of the sun’s disk will remain uncovered, but it will still be fiercely bright. Although it may seem as if you could, do not look at the eclipse!
You’ll damage your eyes. Maximum lasts for a few minutes, then the process will reverse over another hour. Light, color and warmth will slowly return; shadows will resume their natural forms; the sun will still shine.
But the experience will stay with you. Feeling the sun weaken over a few minutes’ time rather than over the weeks and months of autumn affected me on a visceral level.
Safety warning: Do not look directly at the sun during an eclipse or use binoculars or telescopes (unless equipped with solar filters). You’ll permanently damage your eyes. Use only eclipse glasses with ISO certification.
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