On April 8th the sky will offer a spectacle as fascinating as it is rare: an extraordinary solar eclipse that will be visible to the naked eye only from some parts of Mexico, the United States and Canada. For a few minutes the Moon will position itself in its passage between the Sun and the Earth, obscuring the entire face of our star, before continuing its journey. Unfortunately, the phenomenon will not be visible from Europe and, according to NASA experts, it will be necessary to wait another 20 years to witness another total eclipse. European citizens will not be lucky enough to be able to admire the eclipse with their own eyes, but enthusiasts will still be able to watch the event via live streaming.
What is the solar eclipse
Before understanding how to watch this space show, let's see in detail what it is. When the Moon, corresponding to the new moon, passes in front of the solar disk, occulting it, a solar eclipse is produced. Our satellite can possibly hide only part of our star (partial eclipse) or the entire disk of the Sun (total eclipse), as in the case of the event scheduled for Monday 8 April. Considering that the apparent disks of the Sun and Moon have very similar angular dimensions, a total eclipse of the Sun requires a very precise “alignment” between the Moon and the Sun, to obtain complete coverage of our star (otherwise the eclipse will be only partial everywhere , provided that the two disks intersect at least); furthermore, in the case of a total eclipse, the central phase will only be visible from a narrow region of the Earth, outside of which the eclipse will be partial, with decreasing entity the further away you are from the strip of totality. Since the lunar orbit is elliptical, the distance of the observer from the Moon is not always the same: therefore, there will be eclipses with the Moon closer, therefore with an apparently larger disk, and eclipses in which it will be further away, therefore with a disk apparently smaller. This means, in particular, that certain total eclipses will last longer, others less, up to the extreme case in which the lunar disk will be angularly smaller than the solar one, unable to cover it completely despite a perfect alignment between the two stars, the which will produce an annular eclipse, with the lunar silhouette surrounded by a dazzling ring of the Sun.
How to see it
As mentioned, the next solar eclipse will be visible to the naked eye only in some areas of Mexico, Canada and the United States. But don't worry: enthusiasts will be able to follow the event in live streaming via the Virtual Telescope Project portal, which will share the incredible images in collaboration with the Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles and the Exploratorium in San Francisco. In addition to Gianluca Masi, an Italian astrophysicist who will be presenter and speaker, internationally renowned astrographers will participate in the event: Adrian Bradley from Pointe Aux Barques in Michigan (United States), Gary Varney from Florida, James McCue from New Mexico and Bill Longo from Fort Erie in Ontario (Canada). The live streaming event will begin at 7pm (Italian time) on Monday 8 April 2024: participation is free and to attend simply connect to the following link on the Virtual Telescope Project website.
Instead, for the lucky ones who will be able to witness the solar eclipse live, it is good to remember some precautions to safely observe this phenomenon. When observing a solar eclipse there is a categorical rule: never look directly at the star of the day, either with the naked eye or with a generic instrument, if you have not first taken care to prepare appropriate protection systems or instruments specifically designed for the safe observation of the Sun. You risk permanent damage to your eyes, up to and including blindness. The confidence that everyone has with the Sun leads to looking at it without precautions, which must be absolutely avoided. With simple precautions or using special devices, you can admire the beauty of this phenomenon without taking risks.