Americans will have their first chance to watch an annular solar eclipse on Saturday, with the moon expected to cover the sun for several minutes, revealing a “ring of fire.”
The eclipse will then be visible in several countries in Central and South America (Mexico, Colombia, Brazil, etc.).
In Quebec it will be a partial solar eclipse that can be observed between 12 and 2 p.m.
During an annular solar eclipse, the Moon is slightly further away from Earth than during a total solar eclipse, and therefore its diameter appears slightly smaller than the Sun’s from our perspective – creating that orange “ring.”
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The event, which will amaze millions of people, is also a scientific opportunity for NASA, which wants to closely study changes in temperature and atmosphere.
In order to admire it, special certified glasses must be worn, even for those who are further from the optimal observation zone and therefore would only see a partial solar eclipse, emphasized the American space agency.
The solar eclipse will be visible from around 9:15 a.m. local time in the US state of Oregon and will cross the United States until it appears in the sky over South Texas at around 11:50 a.m. local time.
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In total, it can be observed in parts of eight American states (including California, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, Colorado and New Mexico).
The “ring of fire” that exposes the edge of the sun lasts from a few tens of seconds to more than 5 minutes, depending on where you observe it.
In the United States, “more than 6.5 million people live in the path of the eclipse,” NASA’s Alex Lockwood told a news conference. About 68 million people live within about 300 kilometers of the route, just a few hours’ drive away, she added.
“And everyone in the continental United States will actually be able to see a partial solar eclipse,” the official said.
NASA plans to broadcast a video program on its website with live broadcasts from New Mexico and Texas.
In Albuquerque, the large annual hot air balloon festival taking place at the same time promises sensational images.
Sounding rockets
The event will also serve as a dress rehearsal ahead of a total solar eclipse over the United States scheduled for April 2024.
These two eclipses, the annular and the total, “will be absolutely stunning for scientific research,” said Madhulika Guhathakurta, a scientist in NASA’s Heliophysics Division.
“During a solar eclipse, there is a significant decrease in electron density in the ionosphere,” a layer of the atmosphere, she explained.
And “although the atmospheric effects of solar eclipses have been studied for more than 50 years, many questions remain,” she emphasized. For example: “How much of the ionosphere is affected, for how long, and why is this?”
NASA will launch three sounding rockets from the White Sands military base in New Mexico: one before the eclipse, one during and one after the event.
The aim is to collect data on the magnetic and electric fields, electron density and temperature, which will decrease due to the shadow created by the Moon. This could also destabilize the animals.
In 2017, the United States experienced a total solar eclipse. After the one in April, the next one will take place in the country in 2044.
There will also be a total solar eclipse in Spain in August 2026.
The Sun is about 400 times larger than the Moon, but also 400 times further away, which is why the two stars appear similar in size from Earth.