Solar eclipse, Friday 20 March

Started by Glaurung, March 07, 2015, 12:03:29 PM

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Glaurung

March 07, 2015, 12:03:29 PM
On Friday 20 March, there will be a solar eclipse. The path of totality runs the north Atlantic, between Iceland and Great Britain, so only the Faroes and Svalbard (Spitsbergen) get to see a total eclipse. It will be partial across the whole of Europe: 50-60% across the Mediterranean, and 85-95% in the UK. The Moon's shadow moves eastwards, so the maximum eclipse is around 09:00 GMT in Portugal and western Spain, about 09:30 GMT in the UK and Italy, and around 10:00 GMT in Sweden, Poland and Romania.

As ever with a solar eclipse, DO NOT LOOK AT THE SUN DIRECTLY, OR THROUGH A TELESCOPE (unless you want to lose your sight). If you want to observe the eclipse, you can use welders' goggles or equivalent, or project the image of the sun through a pinhole.

There's a lot more information on the NASA Eclipse website. For this particular eclipse, start at the 2011-2020 solar eclipse list, scroll down to the list, and follow the links against "2015 March 20". The most useful link is probably one including a Google map - you can click anywhere on the map, and get the times and other details for that location.

Jubal

#1
March 08, 2015, 01:27:20 PM
I shall have to try and get up for this...
The duke, the wanderer, the philosopher, the mariner, the warrior, the strategist, the storyteller, the wizard, the wayfarer...

Glaurung

#2
March 11, 2015, 01:18:46 PM
Quote from: Jubal on March 08, 2015, 01:27:20 PM
I shall have to try and get up for this...
Getting up to see it is definitely recommended, though a partial eclipse is rather less impressive than a total one. I just hope the skies are clear.

Jubal

#3
March 20, 2015, 09:18:46 AM
Sad to report that Exilian's Norfolk observation point is totally overcast :(
The duke, the wanderer, the philosopher, the mariner, the warrior, the strategist, the storyteller, the wizard, the wayfarer...

Pentagathus

#4
March 20, 2015, 10:06:28 AM
Same here, had breakfast instead watching a dark sky get a bit darker.

Jubal

#5
March 20, 2015, 10:12:40 AM
Yup, things got very slightly dim but not dark at all really.
The duke, the wanderer, the philosopher, the mariner, the warrior, the strategist, the storyteller, the wizard, the wayfarer...

Lizard

#6
March 20, 2015, 10:33:25 AM
Essex was much the same D:
A coder, a hoodie, a coffee pot, a robot.

"A ship in port is safe, but that is not what ships are built for."

comrade_general

#7
March 20, 2015, 12:27:44 PM
Happy Spring! It's freaking snowing here!

Glaurung

#8
March 20, 2015, 01:16:21 PM
Quote from: Jubal on March 20, 2015, 10:12:40 AM
Yup, things got very slightly dim but not dark at all really.
Much the same here in Cambridge - one of my colleagues thought the clouds had just got thicker for a while. Now it's sunny here, of course :P

With solar eclipses, it's the last couple of percent of coverage, in the last minute or two before totality, that really makes the difference.

Jubal

#9
March 20, 2015, 03:12:35 PM
Yes, back in Cambridge and the weather is beautiful now!
The duke, the wanderer, the philosopher, the mariner, the warrior, the strategist, the storyteller, the wizard, the wayfarer...
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