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VOLUME 14 • ISSUE 2
The 2017 Total Solar Eclipse

On Monday the 21st of August, the north western hemisphere will witness part of the total solar eclipse known as the Great American Eclipse which is set to cross over the continental United States from its west coast to its east. During the eclipse, at least some part of it will be visible from the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic, and spanning the continental USA along a somewhat diagonal path.
In Dominica, the total solar eclipse will be visible as a partial eclipse in the afternoon. It will last 2 hours and 26 minutes.

Dominica will see a partial eclipse, where only 77% of the sun will be covered.

A solar eclipse—seen from the Earth—occurs when the Moon passes between the Sun and Earth, and its silhouette (fully or partially) blocks the Sun’s light. This happens only at new moon when the Sun and the Moon are in alignment. In a total eclipse, the disk of the Sun is fully obscured by the Moon.

DO NOT LOOK UP AT THE SUN during the eclipse! UV radiation from the Sun burns the retinas in your eyes, and can cause permanent damage—even blindness. You can watch a solar eclipse safely by wearing protective eclipse glasses or projecting the image of the eclipse using a pinhole projector. Make your own viewer:
• DIY pinhole viewer from Thrifty Fun	• Cereal box viewer	• Viewers from NASA