Hundreds of millions of people in the Americas will witness a spectacular and rare "ring of fire" solar eclipse on Saturday.
The moon will exactly align with the Earth and the sun during this eclipse, blocking all save the sun's rim and producing a spectacular, burning border. This captivating spectacle will be viewable from Brazil to Oregon in a constrained route for up to five minutes.
When the eclipse reaches its height in Los Angeles at 9:24 a.m., the remainder of the Western Hemisphere will see a partial eclipse, with more than three-quarters of the sun's diameter hidden.
The Path of the Ring of Fire
At 8 a.m. PDT on Saturday, the eclipse will span the North Pacific 130 miles wide before entering Oregon. After an hour, the "ring of fire" eclipse will occur, according to the LA Times.
The eclipse will span Idaho, California, Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, Utah, New Mexico, and Texas after Oregon. Just over an hour before crossing the Gulf of Mexico near Corpus Christi, it will reach the US.
For its magnificent climax, the "ring of fire" will ascend the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico, Belize, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Brazil, and the Atlantic Ocean.
Each place will see a 2.5-3-hour eclipse from the moon blocking the sun until its return. The "ring of fire" lasts 3-5 minutes, depending on location.
The Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore's project scientist Alex Lockwood says more than 6.5 million people live along the annularity route, where the "ring of fire" will be seen, and 68 million more live within 200 miles of this amazing celestial alignment.
Every US state except Hawaii will observe a crescent-shaped partial eclipse if the sky is clear. Much of South America, Central America, and Canada will see a partial eclipse.
The eclipse will begin in Los Angeles at 8:07 a.m. local time, and it will go on until 10:50 a.m. when the last of the sun will appear to fade away.
Read Also: California Bans 4 Harmful Food Additives Linked to Health Issues
Observe Safety Precautions
Before watching the ring of fire, wear approved solar eclipse glasses to safeguard your eyes. Take note that regular sunglasses will not be sufficient to shield your eyes from potential harm. Hence, safety procedures are essential throughout the ring of fire eclipse's initial partial phase, "ring of fire," and last partial phase.
To guarantee safe viewing, devices like cameras, binoculars, or telescopes must have specialized sun filters placed on the front end. Moreover, pinhole projectors may be made from cereal boxes to see solar eclipses without glasses.
According to Lockwood, ring of fire solar eclipse viewers must wear certified ISO 12312-2 compliant solar eclipse glasses."There are plenty of safe sellers of these glasses online and we encourage folks to find a safe pair," he said as quoted by ABC News.
According to National Geographic, with its unique potential to conduct studies into our sun and its effects on Earth, this annular solar eclipse offers new knowledge to the scientific community. From White Sands, New Mexico, scientists plan to launch sounding rockets before, during, and after the eclipse.
These rockets, which may go 200 miles in the air, will deliver important information on ionosphere changes. Along the path of the eclipse, balloons will also gather information on the temperature and pressure.
NASA is inviting citizen scientists to take part in this study by submitting data on their observations of the eclipse. An eclipse may reveal comets, solar jets, and auroras, which they are interested in.
If you are unable to see the "ring of fire" eclipse on October 14, there will be another chance to see a celestial spectacle on April 8, 2024, when a total solar eclipse will pass through the country. This upcoming ring of fire eclipse research will help plan next year's asteroid hunts near the sun and burst analyses.
Related Article: How NASA's Roman Mission Prepares for the Upcoming Data Deluge
