The peak of an annular eclipse occurred Thursday at 5:33 a.m.
An annular solar eclipse was visible in Connecticut early Thursday morning and people who woke up early and had the right glasses to see it got a spectacular treat.
The next time an eclipse will be visible in the United States is April 8, 2024, when there will be a total solar eclipse, according to Mark Meredith, an astronomer at Talcott Mountain Science Center in Avon.
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Solar eclipses happen when the moon passes in front of the sun. The last total eclipse was in July 2017 when the moon completely covered the sun in parts of the United States.
The "Ring of Fire" eclipse is a little different. It is annular, meaning the moon is further from the Earth and appeared smaller than the sun in the sky. Because of this, it did not block the entire sun. Instead, nearly three-quarters of the sun were blocked.
Sunrise was at 5:16 a.m. Thursday, and when the sun rose is was nearly mid-eclipse. The best times to look up were at 5:33 a.m. (with eye protection) during the max eclipse and final contact occurred around 6:32 a.m.
Meredith said there will be a total solar eclipse later this year, on Dec. 4, but it will not be visible in Connecticut.
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It is extremely dangerous to look directly into the sun so you'll need a pair of solar eclipse glasses. Hopefully, you still have some, but if not there are several ways to make a solar eclipse viewer at home.
What you'll need:
- An empty cereal box
- A pen or pencil
- Scissors
- Tin foil
- Tape
- White paper
- A nail or needle
Steps:
- Place the cereal box on top of the paper
- Trace the base of the cereal box with a pen or pencil
- Cut out the shape of the cereal box on the paper
- Tape the cutout paper inside the cereal box on the bottom
- Close the top of the box and cut a hole on either side of the top (this will serve as your eyehole)
- Place tin foil over one of the holes and tape it down
- Pierce the foil with your nail or needle
To view it, stand with your back toward the sun. Look through the hole not covered with tin foil and you will see the various stages of the eclipse projected onto the white paper at the bottom.
