Sky-watchers unite! On April 8, people in many parts of cottage country will be privy to viewing one of the most accessible astronomical events of all time: a total solar eclipse. Even more exciting is that these areas will be in the eclipse’s path of totality, meaning that viewers will be able to fully see the moon eclipsing the sun. “The moon is roughly the size of the sun in the sky. They’re not physically the same size, but to us, because they’re different distances, they look the same,” says Dr. Nikhil Arora, a post-doctoral fellow in the department of physics, engineering physics, and astronomy at Queen’s University. Arora, who is also the outreach coordinator of the Queen’s Eclipse Task Force says, “This means the moon can actually cover the sun completely during an eclipse. And once it does, it gets absolutely dark. That darkness is called totality.”
“How long can the moon stay in the path of the sun? That’s called the period of totality,” says Arora. In Ontario, the solar eclipse is projected to begin just after 2:00 p.m. on April 8, and will last for about two and a half hours. Totality will occur between about 3:20 p.m. to 3:23 p.m.
Cottage-country locations that are expected to see totality are those around Port Stanley and Port Dover, areas near Niagara, Prince Edward County, Belleville and Kingston (and areas northwards), and then east to parts of Quebec, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and even Newfoundland. Cottage-goers curious to see if their town is within the eclipse’s path of totality can use this eclipse map.
Picton, for example, is set to enjoy 100 per cent totality. Haliburton, however, is just outside the path of 100 per cent totality and will see a near-total eclipse of about 96 per cent obscuration. Areas such as Port Elgin, Parry Sound, Gravenhurst, Huntsville, Bracebridge, Collingwood, and Bobcaygeon are in similar boats.
For places outside of 100 per cent totality, Arora says viewers will still be able to see the eclipse, they just won’t experience complete darkness. “Toronto, for example, will get 99.8 per cent coverage, which means the moon will cover that much of the sun, but a little sliver will be available. The sun will actually look like a little crescent.”
When it comes to preparing for the event, the most important thing to do is secure a pair of eclipse glasses for proper eye protection. These are not the same as regular sunglasses. Solar eclipse glasses meet specific solar-filter safety standards, and Arora advises against purchasing these via retailers such as Amazon. “There’s just no way to know that the glasses are legitimate,” he says. Instead, try one of the Queen’s Eclipse Task Force’s trusted retailers, such as Rainbow Symphony or Lunt Solar Systems.
Other safety information to note? Timing is everything when it comes to wearing your eclipse glasses. Arora says that, during totality, viewers can actually remove their glasses. This is because the moon will be fully covering the sun. “It’s safe to look up during totality without the glasses because the light from the sun will be significantly reduced, but as soon as totality is over, your glasses must go back on immediately.”
Arora explains it like this: when you’re in a dark room, for example, your retinas expand to collect as much light as possible. That’s what will happen during totality—our retinas will expand to allow us to see in the darkness created by the moon covering the sun. But totality happens quite quickly, over the span of just a few minutes, and once the moon moves out of the sun’s path, our retinas can become shocked by the sudden burst of light. “The issue is that your retinas don’t have pain sensors,” explains Arora. “So you might not notice the damage until it’s too late.” The moment you notice it getting brighter, that’s when you’ll know to put your glasses back on.
And for those in areas of totality looking to hop on their boats and view the eclipse from water, Arora advises staying on land. “Viewing the eclipse from stable ground will provide a better experience because you won’t be moving.”
Other advice for cottagers includes getting to your destination ahead of April 8, and leaving a day or two afterwards to avoid significant traffic delays. “For most of southern Ontario, the eclipse path goes through places that you can more or less only access from one highway. If you’re heading towards St. Catharines, only the QEW will get you there. If you’re heading to Picton, it’s just the 401,” says Jenna Hinds, executive director at the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada.
“Another thing to consider is that Toronto will not see 100 per cent totality, so a lot of people from the city will likely head to other areas, causing unprecedented levels of traffic along major highways,” says Hinds.
Just how rare is an event like this in our lifetime? Pretty rare, says Arora. “Generally, eclipses happen once every 18 months or so. But they don’t pass through the same areas every time, and because most of the earth is actually water, they happen in places where we can’t view them from land.”
“One place or city gets a total solar eclipse roughly every 400 years or so.” Take Kingston, for example, says Arora. It’s in the path of totality this time around, and that will only reoccur in 2399—375 years from now. In other words, this is something you won’t want to miss.
“When nature puts on a show, you stop and watch it,” says Arora. Of course, if nature decides to give us a cloudy day, we won’t be able to view the eclipse, but here’s hoping for clear skies!
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