DEAN: HEY THERE STAR GAZERS, I'M DEAN REGAS, ASTRONOMER FOR THE CINCINNATI OBSERVATORY.
JAMES: AND I'M JAMES ALBURY, DIRECTOR OF THE KIKA SILVA PLA PLANETARIUM IN GAINESVILLE,
FLORIDA.
WERE HERE TO HELP YOU FIND YOUR WAY AROUND THE SKY.
THERE WILL BE A LOT OF EXCITING ASTRONOMICAL EVENTS TO EXPERIENCE IN 2017.
DEAN: THAT'S RIGHT JAMES.
BUT THE MAIN EVENT - THE THING I'VE BEEN WAITING MY WHOLE ADULT LIFE TO SEE IS…
THE BIG ONE.
ON AUGUST 21, 2017 WE WILL HAVE A TOTAL SOLAR ECLIPSE CROSSING THE UNITED STATES!
JAMES: THIS IS THE BEST ASTRONOMICAL EVENT YOU WILL EVER SEE.
BETTER THAN A LUNAR ECLIPSE, BETTER THAN A COMET, EVEN BETTER THAN…
DEAN: NO, DONT SAY IT.
JAMES: BETTER THAN A PLANETARY CONJUNCTION!
DEAN: YEAH, IT'S TRUE.
WHEN THE MOON COMPLETELY BLOCKS OUT THE SUN, THIS IS SOMETHING YOU CANNOT MISS.
WE HAVE THREE MONTHS TO GO SO WE THOUGHT WE'D GET YOU PREPARED FOR…
BOTH: THE BIG ONE!
DEAN: FIRST LET'S TALK SAFETY.
YOU DON'T WANT TO MESS AROUND WITH STARING AT THE SUN.
YOU NEED THE RIGHT EQUIPMENT TO VIEW THE PARTIAL STAGES OF THE ECLIPSE - WHEN ONLY PART OF
THE SUN IS BLOCKED BY THE MOON.
JAMES: IF EVEN A LITTLE SLIVER OF THE SUN IS SHOWING, YOU NEED EYE PROTECTION.
THE CHEAPEST AND EASIEST METHOD IS TO USE ECLIPSE SHADES OR #14 WELDERS GLASSES.
THESE HAVE SUCH DARK LENSES IN THEM THAT IT'S SAFE TO LOOK AT THE SUN THROUGH THEM.
JUST MAKE SURE YOUR EYES ARE COVERED WHENEVER YOU'RE LOOKING.
DEAN: DO NOT USE REGULAR SUNGLASSES, CDS, FILM NEGATIVES, SMOKED GLASS, FOIL WRAPPERS,
OR MYLAR BALLOONS.
THEY WILL NOT PROTECT YOU.
USE THE GOOD STUFF.
YOU CAN FIND ECLIPSE GLASSES AND #14 WELDERS GLASS ONLINE FOR A FEW BUCKS.
BUT SHOP EARLY BEFORE THEY SELL OUT.
LOOKING GOOD JAMES!
JAMES: WHO SAID THAT?
JAMES: YOU COULD MAKE A PINHOLE CAMERA AS WELL.
LET THE SUN SHINE THROUGH A HOLE IN A PIECE OF PAPER ONTO THE GROUND AND YOU CAN MAKE
AN IMAGE OF THE SUN.
DEAN: YOU MAY ALSO SEE THE SUNLIGHT COMING THROUGH LEAVES ONTO THE GROUND IN A WEIRD
WAY.
DURING REALLY STRONG PARTIAL SOLAR ECLIPSES THE LEAVES ACT LIKE LOTS OF PINHOLE CAMERAS.
DEAN: OKAY, ON TO THE MAIN EVENT.
THIS IS WHAT WILL HAPPEN ON AUGUST 21 IF YOU'RE VIEWING FROM MOST PLACES IN THE COUNTRY.
JAMES: THE MOON WILL SLOWLY SLIDE BETWEEN US AND THE SUN AND ECLIPSE MORE AND MORE OF
IT.
EVERYWHERE IN THE U.S. WILL EXPERIENCE A PARTIAL SOLAR ECLIPSE.
BUT TO SEE THE TOTAL SOLAR ECLIPSE YOU'LL HAVE TO BE ON A SPECIFIC, 75-MILE-WIDE PATH
FROM OREGON TO SOUTH CAROLINA.
DEAN: JUST BEFORE TOTALITY, YOU WILL SEE WHAT'S CALLED THE DIAMOND RING.
IT'S THE LAST RAYS OF SUNLIGHT POKING AROUND THE MOUNTAINS OF THE MOON.
A MOMENT LATER, WHOOSH!
IT WILL LOOK LIKE THE SUN IS GONE.
THERE WILL BE A PERFECT BLACK HOLE WITH THE WISPY ATMOSPHERE OF THE SUN, CALLED THE CORONA,
SHINING.
AT THIS POINT YOU CAN ACTUALLY LOOK AT IT - WITHOUT ANY GLASSES.
BECAUSE YOU ARE REALLY LOOKING AT THE MOON.
JAMES: LOOK AROUND YOU BECAUSE THE LIGHT WILL BE SO WEIRD.
THE BRIGHT STARS WILL COME OUT AND THE TEMPERATURE WILL PLUMMET.
DEAN: TAKE IT ALL IN!
WE HAVENT HAD A TOTAL SOLAR ECLIPSE IN THE MAINLAND UNITED STATES SINCE 1979.
JAMES: BUT TOTALITY WON'T LAST LONG.
AFTER A LITTLE MORE THAN 2 MINUTES, THE SUN WILL PEAK AROUND THE MOON AGAIN.
WHEN THE DIAMOND RING RETURNS YOU'LL HAVE TO PUT YOUR ECLIPSE GLASSES BACK ON AND THEN
YOU CAN WATCH THE REST OF THE PARTIAL STAGES.
DEAN: IT'S REALLY QUICK.
JAMES: BUT TOTALLY AWESOME!
DEAN: SO YOU HAVE THREE MONTHS TO PREPARE FOR THE TOTAL SOLAR ECLIPSE.
GET YOUR ECLIPSE OR WELDER'S GLASSES EARLY.
JAMES: NOW WE KNOW THAT NOT EVERYONE LIVES ON THE PATH WHERE THE TOTAL SOLAR ECLIPSE
WILL BE HAPPENING.
DEAN: AND WE ALSO KNOW THIS IS GOING TO HAPPEN ON A MONDAY.
SO THAT MEANS YOU MAY NEED TO PLAY HOOKY FROM WORK OR SCHOOL TO SEE THE BIG ONE.
JAMES: TO FIND OUT WHERE THE TOTAL SOLAR ECLIPSE WILL BE VISIBLE, CHECK OUT THE STAR GAZERS
WEBSITE FOR A LINK TO NASA'S ECLIPSE PAGE AND YOU CAN PLAN YOUR ROUTE.
DEAN: DON'T SETTLE FOR AN 80% OR 90% ECLIPSE.
THAT'S ONLY 10% OF THE EXPERIENCE.
A TOTAL SOLAR ECLIPSE IS SOMETHING YOU WILL NEVER FORGET.
BOTH: KEEP LOOKING UP!