Space & Science News

if you are clouded out across Ireland this morning watch the solar Eclipse below on our website. If you manage to catch a glimpse our get a photo or video send it on to Donegal Weather Channel.

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CHOOSE A VIEWING TIME NEAR YOU

LETTERKENNY

The animation shows what the eclipse approximately looks like in Letterkenny. Stages and times of the eclipse are outlined below. All times are local time (IST) for Letterkenny.

Time	Event	Direction	Altitude
10:01:29 Thu, 10 Jun	Partial Eclipse begins The Moon touches the Sun's edge.	108°	40.1°
11:10:17 Thu, 10 Jun	Maximum Eclipse Moon is closest to the center of the Sun.	126°	48.9°
12:24:36 Thu, 10 Jun	Partial Eclipse ends The Moon leaves the Sun's edge.	152°	55.8°

DUBLIN

The animation shows what the eclipse approximately looks like in Baile Átha Cliath. Stages and times of the eclipse are outlined below. All times are local time (IST) for Baile Átha Cliath.

Time	Event	Direction	Altitude
10:01:19 Thu, 10 Jun	Partial Eclipse begins The Moon touches the Sun's edge.	108°	41.4°
11:08:45 Thu, 10 Jun	Maximum Eclipse Moon is closest to the center of the Sun.	126°	50.3°
12:21:44 Thu, 10 Jun	Partial Eclipse ends The Moon leaves the Sun's edge.	152°	57.4°

CORK

The animation shows what the eclipse approximately looks like in Cork. Stages and times of the eclipse are outlined below. All times are local time (IST) for Cork.

Time	Event	Direction	Altitude
09:56:51 Thu, 10 Jun	Partial Eclipse begins The Moon touches the Sun's edge.	103°	39.9°
11:03:02 Thu, 10 Jun	Maximum Eclipse Moon is closest to the center of the Sun.	120°	49.3°
12:15:05 Thu, 10 Jun	Partial Eclipse ends The Moon leaves the Sun's edge.	145°	57.5°

GALWAY

The animation shows what the eclipse approximately looks like in Galway. Stages and times of the eclipse are outlined below. All times are local time (IST) for Galway.

Time	Event	Direction	Altitude
09:57:51 Thu, 10 Jun	Partial Eclipse begins The Moon touches the Sun's edge.	104°	39.3°
11:05:19 Thu, 10 Jun	Maximum Eclipse Moon is closest to the center of the Sun.	121°	48.6°
12:18:36 Thu, 10 Jun	Partial Eclipse ends The Moon leaves the Sun's edge.	146°	56.4°

BELFAST

The animation shows what the eclipse approximately looks like in Belfast. Stages and times of the eclipse are outlined below. All times are local time (BST) for Belfast.

Time	Event	Direction	Altitude
10:03:10 Thu, 10 Jun	Partial Eclipse begins The Moon touches the Sun's edge.	109°	41.4°
11:11:40 Thu, 10 Jun	Maximum Eclipse Moon is closest to the center of the Sun.	128°	50.1°
12:25:31 Thu, 10 Jun	Partial Eclipse ends The Moon leaves the Sun's edge.	155°	56.7°

ATHLONE

The animation shows what the eclipse approximately looks like in Athlone. Stages and times of the eclipse are outlined below. All times are local time (IST) for Athlone.

Time	Event	Direction	Altitude
09:59:20 Thu, 10 Jun	Partial Eclipse begins The Moon touches the Sun's edge.	106°	40.1°
11:06:53 Thu, 10 Jun	Maximum Eclipse Moon is closest to the center of the Sun.	123°	49.3°
12:20:09 Thu, 10 Jun	Partial Eclipse ends The Moon leaves the Sun's edge.	149°	56.8°

WEXFORD

The animation shows what the eclipse approximately looks like in Wexford. Stages and times of the eclipse are outlined below. All times are local time (IST) for Wexford.

Time	Event	Direction	Altitude
09:59:54 Thu, 10 Jun	Partial Eclipse begins The Moon touches the Sun's edge.	106°	41.4°
11:06:21 Thu, 10 Jun	Maximum Eclipse Moon is closest to the center of the Sun.	124°	50.5°
12:18:25 Thu, 10 Jun	Partial Eclipse ends The Moon leaves the Sun's edge.	149°	58.0°

TIPS ON VIEWING THE ECLIPSE

Do NOT use these techniques

Whatever you do, never look at the sun directly without a safe filter in place to protect your eyes. Besides your unprotected eyeballs, here are some other things you should not use. Do NOT use sunglasses, polaroid filters, smoked glass, exposed color film, X-ray film, or photographic neutral density filters.

techniques TO use

Turn away from the sun and use your hands. Cross the outstretched, slightly open fingers of one hand over the outstretched, slightly open fingers of the other. Then, with your back to the sun, look at your hands’ shadow on the ground. The little spaces between your fingers will project a grid of small images on the ground. During the partial phases of the solar eclipse, these images will reveal the sun's crescent shape.

Let nature be your viewer. If your observing site has trees, look at the shadows of leaves on the ground. During the partial solar eclipse, the tiny spaces between the leaves will act as pinhole projectors, dappling the ground with images of the crescent sun.
Get crafty and make a pinhole projector. You can do this! Just punch a hole into an index card and project the sun’s image onto another card, the wall, or the ground. Note: this is called a pinhole projector for a reason. Don’t hold it up to the sun as if it were a viewer.

**The use of a simple pinhole camera enables you to indirectly and safely view a solar eclipse. Photo credit: Eugene Kim**

Local viewing at an astronomy club, park or nature center. We highly recommend this route for any kind of eclipse, any daytime solar viewing, or any nighttime astronomical event. If you watch among other amateur astronomers and casual sky gazers, you’ll have fun, learn about astronomy and get a great view of the objects and events going on in the sky.

Commercial solar eclipse glasses. You might find these online or at a local nature center, or museum. Solar eclipse glasses are super easy to use, and they’re sort of cool-looking.

Welder’s glass, #14 or darker. Be sure it is #14 or darker. The great thing about welder’s glass is that it allows you to view the sun directly. Plus welder’s glass is a bit more durable than commercial eclipse glasses. If you’re like me, between solar eclipses you’ll forget where you put your commercial eclipse glasses. With the welder’s glass, you can always add it to your rock collection. Search for a local “welding supply” company.

**Viewing the May 20, 2012, solar eclipse through welder's glass**

I myself will be viewing the eclipse using a telescope and a DSLR Camera but I will have special solar filters on both to make it safe for myself. Below you can see some of my own equipment.

Telescopes, binoculars, and cameras need solar filters for two reasons: to protect them from intense sunlight and to ensure that you don't accidentally look at the Sun through an unfiltered instrument. In every case, the solar filter must be attached to the front of your telescope, binoculars, or camera lens.

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