Astronauts Share Tips for Viewing a Total Solar Eclipse

  • 6 months ago
Astronauts Stephen Bowen, Woody Hoburg, Frank Rubio and Sultan Alneyadi are on a mission to get you ready for the upcoming total eclipse on Monday, April 8, 2024.

Not in the path of the eclipse? Watch with us from anywhere in the world. We will provide live broadcast coverage from 1 to 4 p.m. EDT (1700 to 2000 UTC) on April 8. We’ll share conversations with experts and provide telescope views of the eclipse from several sites along the eclipse path: https://dai.ly/x8sbxng

WARNING: Except during the brief totality phase of a total solar eclipse, when the Moon completely blocks the Sun’s bright face, it is not safe to look directly at the Sun without specialized eye protection designed for solar viewing. Indirect viewing methods, such as pinhole projectors, can also be used to experience an eclipse.

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Transcript
00:00 Hello, Stargazers.
00:01 We're NASA astronauts Steven Bell and Woody Hoover.
00:03 Thanks, Rubio.
00:04 And that's [INAUDIBLE]
00:06 We're on a mission to get you all ready for the upcoming
00:08 total eclipse.
00:09 And there's a lot to cover.
00:11 What?
00:11 Where?
00:12 How?
00:13 When?
00:13 A total eclipse happens when the moon
00:17 travels between the sun and the Earth
00:19 and completely blocks the light from the sun.
00:21 If you are in the path of totality,
00:23 everything will get dark, and you'll
00:25 be in for the show of a lifetime.
00:26 Expect a lot of excitement.
00:27 [MUSIC PLAYING]
00:29 If you want to know where the path will travel,
00:31 I've got a map right here for you.
00:33 The path will stretch from North America,
00:35 starting from Mexico to Maine, and even a tiny bit of Canada.
00:39 [MUSIC PLAYING]
00:42 The only time you can look at the total eclipse
00:44 without eye protection is during a brief period of totality
00:47 when the moon completely covers the sun.
00:49 Viewing any part of the sun without protection,
00:51 even for a short amount of time, can cause serious eye damage.
00:55 One way to safely view the sun is with eclipse glasses.
00:58 Solar eclipse glasses are thousands of times
01:00 darker than traditional sunglasses.
01:02 Make sure they're ISO certified by looking
01:04 for a label like this one.
01:05 If they appear to be scratched or damaged, don't use them.
01:09 If you don't have eclipse glasses,
01:11 you can use an indirect viewing method,
01:13 like a pinhole projector.
01:14 [MUSIC PLAYING]
01:16 Basically, use any holy object and cast a shadow
01:19 on a nearby surface, and check out the crescent shapes.
01:22 If you're feeling crafty, you can even
01:24 make a pinhole viewer using a cardboard box.
01:27 If you want to use a telescope, binoculars, or camera
01:30 to view the sun, you must place a safe solar filter
01:33 on those too, except during totality.
01:35 [MUSIC PLAYING]
01:38 If you're not lucky enough to be near the eclipse,
01:41 you can still experience it all with NASA live coverage
01:43 on NASA Plus, April 8 from 1 to 4 PM Eastern Daylight Time.
01:49 Of course, you can find all this information and more
01:52 at go.nasa.gov/eclipse2024.
01:58 Happy viewing.
01:58 [MUSIC PLAYING]
02:02 [BEEPING]

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