Eclipse Path
This Sunday, May 20th, some folks in the western U.S. will be treated to an annular eclipse of the sun. For everyone in the Ozarks, this will amount to a partial solar eclipse starting before sunset on Sunday and ongoing as the sun sets around 8:19 pm
Before I write another word, please be advised that even an eclipsed or setting sun can do permanent damage to your eyes if you look without the aid of a filter or some other indirect viewing device! Standard sunglasses are useless.
See this site for a list of safe methods of viewing a solar eclipse.
What will you see? Well, starting around 7:27 pm, the moon will begin to obscure the sun. Right at sunset, it will cover around 2/3rds of the area of the sun. This is worth seeing if you ask me!
Partial Solar Eclipse
It might look something like the included picture right around 7:50 pm or so.
An annular eclipse occurs when the moon is at apogee, the farthest it can be in orbit from earth. Because it is smaller in the sky, it cannot cover the entire disk of the sun. Those treated to this site will see the “ring of fire” of the sun around the moon. In the United States, the total effect will be seen in a line roughly from northern California to western Texas.
The weather may be a factor. Another front will be paying as visit to the area on Sunday. Showers will be developing nearby and the clouds may obscure the view! I’ll keep you posted.
Here’s a link to a nice NASA video of this and other astronomical events in May.
Here’ s the link to the Solar Eclipse Calculator
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