On April 8, Buffalo and the surrounding areas will experience a total eclipse of the Sun. The experience includes more than just the blocking of the Sun by the moon. You are likely to experience a temperature drop, the diamond ring effect, shadow bands, changing colors and perhaps unusual behavior of animals.
However, to safely view this spectacular phenomenon, you will need to look through special eclipse glasses, which are much darker than ordinary sun glasses. Do NOT view the eclipse with sunglasses. Eclipse glasses must meet the transmission requirements of international standard ISO 12312-2. Eclipse glasses are available at several locations in the Buffalo area. Below is a partial list:
- All branches of the Buffalo and Erie County Libraries
- Buffalo Museum of Science
- Town of Hamburg, Dept. of youth & senior Services
- Niagara Falls Visitor Center
- Some Wegmans
- Walmart
- The Buffalo Zoo
Glasses can also be purchased at Amazon and other online retailers. Be sure to inspect your glasses to make sure there are no holes, tears, or scratches in the glasses. Also, make sure they are marked as complying with ISO 12312-2.
Importantly, do NOT look at the Sun through a camera lens, telescope, binoculars or any other optical device, even while wearing eclipse glasses. The concentrated solar rays will burn through the filter and cause serious eye injury.
Also importantly, do NOT look at the Sun during totality without your glasses. Some on-line sources say you can, but this is dangerous. Once a sliver of sunlight reappears, it could damage your eyes.
To further emphasize the safety aspects of viewing the eclipse the Buffalo Museum of Science and the Buffalo Astronomical Association are conducting eclipse training sessions, which focus on safety as well as what to expect during the eclipse. The dates and times are listed below:
- The Buffalo Science Museum (sciencebuff.org/eclipse) has training on April 3 from 1:00 – 2:00 p.m. Participants must register and can access the training online.
- The Buffalo Astronomical Association (buffaloastronomy.com) has scheduled training on March 30 from 10:00 a.m. – 12:00 noon at the Audubon Nature center in Java NY. Participants must register in advance. (The Center is a great place for bird watching and has a wonderful nature center, but there’s construction now).
Everyone should consider registering for the training but those who might be leading a group should strongly consider attending one of these events.
You might also consider other ways to safely view the eclipse. One example is to create a pinhole viewing projector using a box. Directions for a pinhole projector and other viewing options can be found at the following links: – https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/14391. (The girl in this video uses a cereal box. We suggest that you use something bigger like a box that printer paper comes in so that there is a larger screen in the back) and https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/14532/
If you plan to take pictures of the eclipse, you will need a photo filter to protect your phone or camera. These may be obtained at some of the locations listed above. Many packages of eclipse gasses purchased on line include photo filters.
Finally, we need to consider that it is likely to be cloudy at this time of year in Buffalo (Maybe even snow!!). So, make your plans accordingly. Live streaming of the eclipse will be shown by NASA, as well as the Buffalo Astronomical Society. Whatever the weather, plan your party and enjoy the event.
A lot more information about the eclipse can be found at science.nasa.gov/eclipse, including discussions of viewing safety.
Many thanks to Mel Crotzer for writing this information on behalf of the members of the Laudato Sí group at Canisius.
Submitted by: Yvonne K. Widenor, Assistant Vice President of Academic Affairs, Assistant Professor, Art History, MLLC Department, Director and Studio Art Galleries Director, ArtsCanisius
