June 5, 2002 == MEDIA ADVISORY
Calvin College astronomy professor Deborah Haarsma will be watching the West
Michigan sky with interest on Monday, June 10. That's when a partial solar
eclipse is expected to create an unusual sunset.
In West Michigan, the moon will begin to obscure the sun at 8:30 pm. By 9:08
pm, the moon will cover 26% of the sun, making the setting sun look like a
cookie with a bite taken out of it. The show ends at 9:20 pm when the sun
sets.
Haarsma notes that to see this show, you'll need to be at a location where the
horizon is clearly visible. And she adds "Do not look directly at the sun!"
Says Haarsma: "Even a setting, partially eclipsed sun is bright enough to
damage your eyes. Instead, poke a pin through an index card, and hold the card
between the sun and a white piece of paper. An image of the sun will
appear on the paper, and you can look at the paper safely."
The eclipse will be most dramatic in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, where the
moon will block the central portion of the Sun, leaving a circular ring of light
at the edges (a phenomenon called an "annular" eclipse).
Haarsma notes that solar eclipses are possible because although the sun is
about 400 times larger than the moon, it is also about 400 times farther away.
From our point of view, the sun and the moon seem to be about the same size.
But since the moon orbits earth in an ellipse and the earth orbits the sun in
an ellipse there are times when the moon happens to appear the same size as or
bigger than the sun (making total eclipses possible) and times when the moon
appears smaller (making annular eclipses possible).
Contact Dr. Deborah Haarsma at dhaarsma@calvin.edu or 957-6340
See her website at http://www.calvin.edu/~dhaarsma
Or see http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2002/03jun_sunset.htm?list54254
Or see http://skyandtelescope.com/observing/objects/eclipses/article_580_1.asp
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