SUNDRE – Dozens of local high school students who took turns peering through a telescope fitted with a special solar filter were among millions of people around the planet who weren’t about to pass up the opportunity to catch a rare celestial event Monday.
Although Alberta is situated too far west to have seen the full-on total solar eclipse that captured the interest and imaginations of many novice and veteran skywatchers around the world – many of whom made plans to flock eastward to find better viewing positions of the total eclipse – the partial eclipse visible from our geographical area nevertheless offered a fascinating display.
Unlike a lunar eclipse that occurs when the moon and the sun are on precisely opposite sides of Earth, a total solar eclipse happens when the orbit of the moon brings it right in between the Earth and the sun, temporarily blocking out our star’s light from reaching the planet.
Sundre High School science teacher Kris Kowaliuk set up a single telescope with a solar filter earlier this afternoon, when the Earth’s star became partially obscured by the moon in a celestial dance that started at about 11:50 a.m. and reached its peak at 12:44 p.m., by which point most of the students were preparing to return to class.
Meanwhile, Chinook’s Edge School Division had provided guidance for schools to keep students from kindergarten to Grade 8 indoors throughout the span of the partial eclipse.
“There was an option given to schools for classes to go outside during the eclipse,” said Laurette Woodward, CESD communications coordinator.
“And if they made that choice, they would need to follow strict safety protocols including safety for viewing and staff supervision, as well as gaining parent permission,” added Woodward.
As for students in grades 9-12, she said schools were asked “to provide safety information to students about safely viewing the partial eclipse.”
At Sundre High School, Kowaliuk went one step further by setting up the telescope, while special solar glasses were also made available for students who wanted to safely catch a glimpse of the partial solar eclipse, which looked a little as though a bite had been taken out from the sun for a brief period.
