Rare chance to see a solar eclipse coming next month
If you live in Peterborough, you’ve got the right optical equipment, the weather co-operates, and you are taking the proper precautions, you can catch a decent glimpse of a partial solar eclipse here in April.
But if you want the rare opportunity to see a total eclipse, you won’t have to travel too far.
On April 8, parts of southern Ontario will experience a total solar eclipse —a phenomenon that occurs when the sun is completely covered by the moon’s shadow for a short period.
Total solar eclipses are rare, with the last one seen in these parts of the province back in 1925. The next one in southern Ontario won’t occur until 2099.
Lucky for us, the pathway for this eclipse includes parts of the northern Lake Ontario shoreline, including the municipalities of Port Hope and Cobourg.
Here’s what you can expect:
■ The path of totality is a narrow path approximately 110 to 115 kilometres wide where the sun appears to be completely covered.
■ There will be a temporary drop in temperature of five to eight degrees.
■ Those in the Niagara and Kingston regions will get the best view, but if the eclipse is not visible there due to weather conditions, other municipalities may experience a sudden influx of visitors.
■ For specific timing in Cobourg, a partial eclipse begins at 2:06:57 p.m. The total eclipse lasts from 3:20:53 to 3:22:18 (a total of one minute and 25 seconds.) The partial eclipse ends at 4:32:53 p.m. (a total of two hours and 26 minutes).
■ During a total eclipse in the U.S. back in 2017, some states experienced traffic jams three to four times longer than usual.