Today’s post was written by Bruce Waters, former educator at the McLaughlin Planetarium and founder of the Killarney Provincial Park Observatory.
Midafternoon this April 8, one of the rarest events in the universe will occur for observers in Southern Ontario: a total solar eclipse!
A total solar eclipse occurs when the moon blocks the light of the sun completely for a duration of seconds to several minutes.
This extremely rare event — the last one viewable from the GTA area was in 1925! — occurs nowhere else in our solar system and, although statistically unlikely, may not occur anywhere else in the universe.
In fact, in another few million years, it won’t be seen quite the same way here, as the moon is slowly moving away from the Earth.
Let’s learn about this year’s total solar eclipse!
**If the eclipse will overlap with a visit to parks, please refer to this blog.**
Continue reading The 2024 total solar eclipse — what is it?