Solar eclipses occur when the Moon covers the Sun partly or completely. The Moon passes between Earth and the Sun every month, but the plane of its rotation around the Earth  is inclined at an angle of about  5⁰ with respect to the plane of Earth’s rotation around the Sun. Hence, we do not have a Solar eclipse every month. Solar eclipses occur when the orbital planes of the Earth and the Moon, which keep changing, are in line with the Sun. The Solar eclipse on April 8 will be Total in some parts but Partial in most other locations, as seen from the Earth.

Path of the April 8 Solar Eclipse

Moon’s totally dark shadow (umbra) will move at supersonic speed from Mexico to Eastern United States and finally into Eastern Canada. In Canada, it traces a narrow path (of about 115 miles wide) from Ontario to Quebec into New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland. The temperature would drop, and Solar corona (outer bright rim of the Sun) shall appear,  before the Sun is fully covered by the Moon.

A Total solar eclipse is a unique and spectacular event which occurs when the Moon completely covers the Sun, but it is much different from a ‘Partial’ solar eclipse. In Canada, the ‘partial’ part of the eclipse of April 8 will be seen on the Western trail (at Vancouver from about 8-30 am, at Calgary from about 10-43 am and at Winnipeg from about 1.01 pm) for short periods. ‘Total Solar eclipse shall be seen on the Eastern trail (at Toronto from about  2-04 pm, at Montreal from about 3-26 pm and at Halifax from about 4-27 pm onwards), leaving Canada at 5.16 pm NDT. Its path is shown to the public by National Solar Observatory (NSO) and National Science Foundation (NSF).    

The Mysterious Sun

Scientists use Solar eclipses to investigate some unsolved mysteries about the Sun. These include, among others, how the Sun’s core temperature is maintained around 15 million degrees Celsius (⁰C) without cooling down, and why its outermost atmosphere is much hotter than its surface. It is observed that a  stream of charged particles (Solar wind) released from the Sun, accelerates as it moves away from it. Sunspots are the temporary darker regions of reduced surface temperature caused by concentrations of magnetic fields. Their exact processes are still a mystery.

The Sun-Explorer Satellites

Some information about these mysteries is also provided by the Parker Solar Probe launched by the US-National Aeronautics and Space Agency (NASA) in 2018 and the Solar Orbiter launched jointly by European Space Agency (ESA) and NASA in 2020. Parker’s mission is to observe the outer corona of the Sun from a distance of about 4 million miles. Solar Orbiter is designed to obtain details of the Sun’s inner region and the origin of the Solar wind. It will also observe Sun’s polar regions from  about 4.3 million miles from the center of the Sun. Both missions are expected to help us in forecasting major space-weather events that impact life on Earth

Getting the chance to see a Total Solar eclipse, if the weather permits, is an incredible educational opportunity.  NASA has clarified that these eclipses do not cause any harm to life on the Earth. However, eye safety is of the utmost importance, whether one is in the path of ‘totality’ or one is observing the ‘partial’ eclipse. One must protect the eyes using good ISO-compliant ( ISO 12312-2) ‘Eclipse glasses’. Looking directly at the Sun without protection can permanently damage the eyes.