Total Solar Eclipse of April 8, 2024 ☀️

A LITTLE GUIDE FOR FRIENDS

Montreal Region and southern Quebec

Hello! In the past few days, I have had to opportunity to give presentations
about the total solar eclipse that is coming this Monday afternoon, April 8, and
I thought you might be interested in hearing about it too. So, I have put this
little guide together for you with some photos. The weather forecast bodes
well for southern Quebec next Monday. It's going to be an amazing spectacle!

It is safe to go outside and go about your normal business during an eclipse

(as it is the case every day the Sun is shining), but if you want to look directly at
the Sun, you must use special solar-filter glasses. If you don't have solar-filter
glasses, you can still order them on the Internet for a few dollars, and they
might be delivered before Monday. Make sure you use glasses that comply
with the ISO 12312-2 standard. An ordinary pair of sunglasses is not opaque
enough to observe the Sun directly. The way to test solar-filter glasses is to
look through them. It should be completely black. You shouldn't be able to see
anything - not even a few details. But if you look up at the Sun, you'll be able to
admire it directly without danger.

Monday's eclipse will begin at around 2:15 PM in our region and last for 2
hours and 20 minutes. A partial eclipse will unfold during the first hour, with
full daylight throughout. But then if you are watching from within the path of
totality, at around 3:27 PM, the Moon will completely cover the Sun, and
suddenly, day will become night. This period of darkness (“totality”) will only
last a few minutes, then daylight will return, and the partial eclipse will
continue for another hour, ending at around 4:35 PM.

During the short period of totality - which will last from 30 seconds to 3 and a
half minutes, depending on whether you're on the edge or in the center of the
path of totality - you don’t need solar-filter glasses to look directly at the Sun,
and you can watch it with naked eyes. The Sun will be completely hidden by
the Moon and it will be night. You should then be able to see the solar corona,
which cannot be observed when the Sun is shining. And if it is not too cloudy,
you should also be able to see stars and a few planets, including Venus (very
bright), which will be to the right of the eclipsed Sun, and Jupiter (also very
bright), which will be to the left of the eclipsed Sun. If you want to continue to
look at the Sun directly after the totality period, you will need to put your sun-
filter glasses back on as soon as the sun's rays reappear.

Page 1 Julie Payette 04.04.2024

Interestingly, during the long portion of the partial eclipse, the Sun remains
very bright, like in normal daytime, and there is only a slight drop in
brightness. This is so even when the Moon covers the Sun almost completely.
But you should feel a significant drop in temperature! You be the judge!

Because the Moon is small, it does not cast a large shadow on the Earth. The
width of the path of totality is only about 200 km wide. Next Monday, the path
of totality will cover almost all the island of Montreal, as well as the entire
South Shore and Eastern Townships (see images 7 and 8 below). Those located
outside the path of totality, including in Laval and on the North Shore, will see
a partial eclipse.

To determine whether you are in the zone of totality, you can download the
excellent "Mon Eclipse" app from the Fédération des Astronomes Amateurs
du Québec and enter an address to get all the details for that location. This
free app is available for iPhone from the App Store and for Android
phones. https://faaq.org/wp/2023/10/06/application-site-web-mon-eclipse/

Watching a total solar eclipse is a rare and spectacular event and it is a

completely different experience than watching a partial eclipse, even a 99%
eclipse (see page 8 for an explanation of the rarity). During the short period of
totality, the night will suddenly fall, the animals will go silent, and the sun’s
corona will be visible, like a glowing ring in the sky. This moment will last only
a few minutes, at the very most, but it is sure to leave a lasting impression.

If you are not located in the zone of totality and you are able to move, it is well
worth doing so. It will still be an impressive show to watch the partial eclipse
with solar-filter glasses, even outside this zone.

One thing is sure, you may not want to miss this one, because the next total
solar eclipse in our region will take place on May 3, 2106!

Enjoy the eclipse!

Page 2 Julie Payette 04.04.2024

(IMAGE 1)
THE SUN – FULL WITH NO ECLIPSE - AS IT APPEARS WHEN SEEN THROUGH SOLAR FILTER
GLASSES - photo by Julie Payette, March 29, 2024

(IMAGE 2)
THE SUN DURING A PARTIAL ECLIPSE (90% covered by the Moon) -
photo by Julie Payette in Houston TX, October 14, 2023

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(IMAGE 3) THE SUN DURING A TOTAL ECLIPSE – The Sun is completely hidden by the
Moon and its SOLAR CORONA can be seen with the naked eye - photo Rick Stankiewicz

(IMAGE 4) WHEN TO WEAR SOLAR FILTER GLASSES FOR DIRECT SUN VIEWING (during a
TOTAL + PARTIAL ECLIPSE)

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(IMAGE 5) SOLAR FILTERED GLASSES MUST BE USED TO LOOK DIRECTLY AT THE SUN,
ANYTIME as well as DURING A PARTIAL ECLIPSE.

(IMAGE 6) PATH OF TOTALITY AND ECLIPSE TRACK IN NORTH AMERICA (source NASA)

https://science.nasa.gov/eclipses/future-eclipses/eclipse-2024/

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(IMAGE 7) PATH OF TOTALITY AND ECLIPSE TRACK in Southern Quebec

PATH OF TOTALITY

(IMAGE 8) PATH OF TOTALITY AND ECLIPSE TRACK in the Montreal Region

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Calculat ions and d at a: Planét arium d e Mont réal; elem ent s of t he eclip se: Esp enak & Meeus.

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TOTAL SOLAR ECLIPSES SEEN FROM SPACE. Sources: CNES and NASA

Why are solar eclipses so rare?

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A solar eclipse occurs when the Earth, Moon and Sun are aligned at the time
of the new moon, but also when the orbital plane of the Moon intersects the
orbital plane of the Earth (known as a lunar node).

In situation B of the illustration below, the new moon is at the lunar node and
is perfectly aligned. The Moon's shadow will therefore reach the Earth,
resulting in a solar eclipse.

As the Moon's orbital plane is inclined 5 degrees with respect to the Earth's,
most of the time the Moon misses the lunar node and passes slightly above or
below the Sun-Earth alignment, so there's no eclipse (situation A).

Because the Moon is small in relation to the Sun, it doesn't cast much shadow
on the Earth. This shadow (umbra) and the accompanying penumbra are only
visible in a limited area of the planet, as seen in the photos of solar eclipses
taken from space. The dark shadow zone where the solar eclipse is total is
barely 200km in diameter.

The rarity of total solar eclipses reminds us how lucky we are to be able to
observe them. These eclipses are only possible because the apparent
diameters of the Moon and Sun are roughly equal, from the point of view of a
terrestrial observer. Unfortunately, in a few million years from now, there will
be no more total solar eclipses, because the Moon is moving away from the
Earth by a few centimeters every year, and there will come a time when its
apparent diameter will be too small to completely cover the Sun!

Source : https://www.stelvision.com/astro/eclipses-de-soleil/

Page 8 Julie Payette 04.04.2024