Canadians will have an opportunity to see an annular solar eclipse later this month — one which is also providing NASA a chance to study our atmosphere in greater detail.
On Oct. 14, the moon will pass in front of the Sun and block its light in one of the last solar eclipses that Canadians will have a chance to see for at least a few years.
“Eclipses are not as rare as people seem to think,†Orbax, a science communicator from the department of physics at the University of Guelph, told CTVNews.ca in a phone interview. “What the rarity is, is us actually lining up to be able to see. So eclipses happen a few times a year, all across the world, but we're often not facing the right direction to be able to see it.â€
The last total eclipse visible in Canada was in 2017, Orbax said. This month’s celestial event won’t be a total eclipse, but something called an annular solar eclipse, also known as a “ring of fire†eclipse.
Annular solar eclipses happen when the moon lines up with the Sun at the point of its orbit where it is slightly farther away from the Earth than usual.
“The moon is a little bit further away, it looks to be a little bit smaller, and it actually doesn't block all the light from the sun,†Orbax explained. “And in that case, we see this bright ring around the moon.â€
The good news is that some degree of partial eclipse should be visible across the country, with the best view going to those in southern B.C.
The bad news is that the “ring of fire†itself won’t be visible to Canadians. We aren’t in the proper position to see the moon line up perfectly with the Sun. Instead, the partial eclipse will appear for us as if a dark shadow has fallen over the side of the Sun, taking a slice out of it and dimming its overall brightness, Orbax said.
The eclipse will be most striking across the U.S., where scientists at NASA are planning to use the eclipse to study how a sudden lack of sunlight impacts our atmosphere, particularly a layer called the ionosphere.
“All satellite communications go through the ionosphere before they reach Earth,†Aroh Barjatya, a professor of engineering physics at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and leader of the mission, “As we become more dependent on space-based assets, we need to understand and model all perturbations in the ionosphere.â€
The eclipse will begin around 12 p.m. EDT and last a couple of hours in total.
“So we'll start about noon, you'll see a small blot on the sun, and it will grow till about one when it's about its maximum,†Orbax said. Where he is in Guelph, Ont., the maximum will mean around a third of the Sun is covered. “And then it'll recede again and reveal the entire sun. So it's going to be a bit eerie — you'll have less sunlight.â€
In Canada, the more west and the more south you are, the better view you’ll have of the partial eclipse.
The moon will obscure 70 to 80 per cent of the Sun for those in the southeast corner of B.C., with the rest of the province seeing 50 to 70 per cent coverage. The majority of the Prairies will be able to see a 40 to 60 per cent obscured Sun during the eclipse, while the eclipse will range from 20 to 40 per cent coverage for those in Ontario, depending on where they are. The Atlantic provinces will get the least amount of coverage.
“Starting in Vancouver, you'll get about 80 per cent, going all the way to Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, where you’ll get about 10 per cent coverage,†Orbax said. “So that'll be right across the entire country — going from west to east coast, you'll be decreasing the amount of coverage.â€
Even during an eclipse, it’s never safe to look directly at the Sun. There are numerous ways to view the eclipse, but the naked eye is not one of them, Orbax stressed.
“You can get eclipse glasses, you can get welding goggles, there's all types of filters and ways to look at it safely. But don't just look up with your unprotected eyes.â€
that the moon will take across the sky, and broadly what regions of the world will be able to see the eclipse at different times. The eclipse’s roadmap — meaning the slice of Earth from which the eclipse will appear at its fullest coverage as the planet rotates — starts in Oregon and takes a diagonal across the U.S., moving down into Mexico and Central America and then across the northern half of South America before the moon moves out of the Sun’s path.
“There's few things that capture the imagination of humanity like the sun being blotted from the sky,†Orbax said.
“If you have an armchair interest in science, or you just happen to have young ones near and dear to you who are super interested in astronomy and space, this is a perfect opportunity to take an afternoon and to go and to learn a little something new.â€
Those living near the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico might see another strange sight in the sky when they aim their eclipse glasses at the sky on Oct. 14 — the tell-tale white streaks of three scientific rockets, sent out to investigate the eclipses’ shadow.
The Atmospheric Perturbations around the Eclipse Path (APEP) mission is aiming to figure out what happens to the ionosphere, a layer of the atmosphere more than 80 kilometres up from the ground in which the air becomes electric. When sunlight interacts with this layer, the UV is able to separate electrons from their atoms to create clouds of charged particles, many of which will recombine into neutral atoms as the Sun sets.
But in an eclipse, sunlight vanishes over a small portion of the land all at once, only to reappear again relatively quickly.
“If you think of the ionosphere as a pond with some gentle ripples on it, the eclipse is like a motorboat that suddenly rips through the water,†Barjatya said. “It creates a wake immediately underneath and behind it, and then the water level momentarily goes up as it rushes back in.â€
It may not sound like a big issue, but instruments including GPS and communications satellites detected the atmospheric changes during the total solar eclipse of 2017. Researchers want to be able to understand what is going on in the ionosphere to ensure that any potential issues that future eclipses might cause can be planned for.
To get a full picture, the three rockets will be launched one after the other, with around 35 minutes in between each to get an idea of before peak eclipse, during the peak and after it. Instruments on the rockets will measure changes in electric and magnetic fields, as well as density and temperature.
“Rockets are the best way to look at the vertical dimension at the smallest possible spatial scales,†Barjatya said. “They can wait to launch at just the right moment and explore the lower altitudes where satellites can’t fly.â€
This partial eclipse will be one of the last opportunities for a while for Canadians to experience an eclipse. But it’s not the last – on April 8, 2024, there will be a total eclipse, which will be visible in parts of Canada.
Eastern Canada will get the best view of the April eclipse as its path takes it through southern Ontario and then across the Atlantic provinces. Those in the Niagara region in Ontario will get to see the eclipse at full coverage, with the Sun totally blotted out at around 3 p.m.
“This is a traditional total solar eclipse. So the moon will be big enough to block the entire sun,†Orbax said.
It’ll also be visible in the U.S., providing a second opportunity for the APEP project. They will be relaunching their rockets again on April 8 next year, helping to round out their measurements to see how widespread the atmospheric impacts are during an eclipse.
After April, Canada won’t have a good view of a solar eclipse for a while, Orbax said.
“We have a few partial eclipses coming up in the next decade or so, but those are with very small coverage. Your next full, total eclipse after April is going to be like 20 to 25 years.â€
According to timeanddate.com, which tracks eclipses, the next partial solar eclipse visible in Canada will be in 2029, and after April 2024, we won’t have a total eclipse that is visible across a wide swathe of Canada until August 2044.
Although we’ll have to wait until April to see the last big eclipse for a while, the annular solar eclipse is far from the only thing to see in the sky this month.
According to Orbax, who creates monthly stargazing guides, this October is a big month for observing fascinating occurrences and objects in the sky.
International Observe the Moon Night is being held Oct. 21, a night in which moon lovers worldwide gather in local events to gaze at the moon together. Jupiter and Saturn will also be large in the sky early in the evening for the duration of the month, he said, while Saturn’s rings will be visible through a telescope.
“We also have two meteor showers coming up this month, Draconids and the Orionids,†he said. “We are looking at Oct. 8 to 9 is the peak of the Draconid meteor shower, coming up this weekend, and Oct. 20 and 21 is the Orionid meteor shower. These are named as the constellations that they appear to radiate from, so the Draconids look like it's coming from Draco the dragon and the Orionids look like it's coming from Orion.â€
Donald Trump has said he wouldn’t be a dictator — 'except for Day 1.' According to his own statements, he's got a lot to do on that first day in the White House.
King Charles III led the nation Sunday in a two-minute silence in remembrance of fallen service personnel in central London as the Princess of Wales looked on, a further sign the royal family is slowly returning to normal at the end of a year in which two of the most popular royals were sidelined by cancer.
The outfield lights at a baseball stadium in Cuba proved to be little match for Hurricane Rafael’s extreme wind.
The black balls – initially thought to be made of tar – were actually mini "fatbergs," made up of human feces, methamphetamine, human hair, fatty acids, and food waste, among hundreds of other vile and befuddling substances.
A 6.8 magnitude earthquake shook eastern Cuba on Sunday, after weeks of hurricanes and blackouts that have left many on the island reeling.
Murray Sinclair’s family members say the late justice and senator has been laid to rest according to his wishes.
As the possibility of mass deportations looms following Donald Trump's re-election on Tuesday, border towns like the City of Cornwall are preparing for a potential influx of asylum seekers.
Police in Newfoundland say a man was electrocuted Saturday by a downed power wire about 10 kilometres north of St. John's, N.L.
Select Porsche owners in Canada have been told to stop driving their cars immediately and to seek repairs after an issue was identified that could cause wheels to separate from vehicles.
Police in Newfoundland say a man was electrocuted Saturday by a downed power wire about 10 kilometres north of St. John's, N.L.
Nova Scotia's New Democratic Party says a candidate criticized by the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs for "troubling" and "damaging" social media posts is no longer running for the party in the Nov. 26 general election.
Winnipeg firefighters rescued and reunited a cat with its owners Saturday after a house fire in the city’s Burrows neighbourhood.
Dozens of people gathered in Surrey's Holland Park on Saturday to show their support for the family of missing 18-year-old Joseph Maku.
A woman is dead after a driver crashed a truck through a Boston Pizza in Fort McMurray late Saturday morning.
Brian Avery was three years old when he and his parents packed their belongings into a boat and pulled away from Deer Harbour, N.L., leaving behind their home, their way of life and centuries of family history.
Donald Trump has said he wouldn’t be a dictator — 'except for Day 1.' According to his own statements, he's got a lot to do on that first day in the White House.
Thousands of Spaniards marched in the eastern city of Valencia on Saturday to demand the resignation of the regional president in charge of the emergency response to last week's catastrophic floods that left more than 200 dead and others missing.
Paris police said Sunday that 4,000 officers and 1,600 stadium staff will be deployed for a France-Israel soccer match to ensure security in and around the stadium and on public transportation a week after violence against Israeli fans in Amsterdam.
Gunmen open fired in a bar in central Mexico killing 10 people and injuring seven, a local official said.
Bitcoin on Sunday hit a new record above US$80,000. The world’s largest cryptocurrency surged in the run-up to Tuesday’s US presidential election, rose sharply immediately on election night after it became clear Donald Trump would win and has continued rising in the days since his victory.
The outfield lights at a baseball stadium in Cuba proved to be little match for Hurricane Rafael’s extreme wind.
Murray Sinclair’s family members say the late justice and senator has been laid to rest according to his wishes.
Canada's ambassador to the United States — and co-lead of the federal government's Team Canada war room — says U.S. president-elect Donald Trump has a different understanding of the bilateral relationship than he did during his first term in the White House.
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh has thrown his weight behind a campaign fighting for better work rights for Kal Tire employees, joining a picket line of workers in Burnaby Saturday morning.
Just five more minutes of exercise doesn’t sound so bad, right? Especially when such a small amount may improve your blood pressure, according to a new study.
Researchers say taking a peek inside a person's brain is as difficult as understanding the universe or discovering the ocean in its entirety.
B.C. health officials say they have detected Canada's first-ever case of H5 avian influenza in a human.
Bernadett 'Bett'†Szabó, a 19-year-old Hungarian sex worker, was murdered in the Dutch capital in 2009. Now, more than 15 years after her death, police are hoping to uncover new information about her killing.
In 1916, Harold Wrong plucked a flower from the fields of Somme, France and tucked it into a letter he mailed home to Toronto. For decades, the type of flower sent remained a mystery.
Elwood Edwards, who voiced America Online’s ever-present 'You’ve got mail' greeting, has died Tuesday at his home in New Bern, N. C. He was 74.
On Thursday morning, Dave Penny officially ended a suggested hundred-day isolation period that followed his diagnosis and stem cell treatment for non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma. On Thursday night, Penny returned to a stage at a downtown St. John's bar, regaling a small crowd with songs and stories with a distinctive Newfoundland flair.
The first 'Saturday Night Live' since Donald Trump's election victory began with the most somber of tones as a group of plainly dressed cast members, primarily women and minorities, described their new reality.
Kate Winslet shared an anecdote about an encounter she had with someone from her star-making blockbuster film 'Titanic' while producing her new film 'Lee.'
Shannon Davidson was let go from her executive role at a marketing firm last year after a merger led to cuts. She knew she wasn't done with her career yet, but finding her next workplace in her mid-50s was a daunting prospect.
Bitcoin on Sunday hit a new record above US$80,000. The world’s largest cryptocurrency surged in the run-up to Tuesday’s US presidential election, rose sharply immediately on election night after it became clear Donald Trump would win and has continued rising in the days since his victory.
Contract negotiations resume today in Vancouver in a labour dispute that has paralyzed container cargo shipping at British Columbia's ports since Monday.
Doom spending, or the practice of spending money to soothe fears about broader issues like politics or the economy, shows up everywhere from YouTube and TikTok videos to Reddit to personal finance discussions and data in surveys.
A Vancouver designer is making waves in the architectural world with an outdoor modular building created to address the city’s unrelenting housing crisis.
A rare letter signed by three of the U.S. Founding Fathers of the United States is going on sale, and is expected to fetch up to US$1 million when it goes under the hammer next week.\
The Edmonton Oilers may have found the break they were looking for.
No. 15 LSU has been criticized for unveiling a live caged tiger in its stadium for the first time in almost a decade before they were routed 42-13 by No. 11 Alabama in their SEC showdown.
A Maui man who lost a part of his leg to a shark bite is now out of the hospital and thanking those who saved his life and helped him recover.
Select Porsche owners in Canada have been told to stop driving their cars immediately and to seek repairs after an issue was identified that could cause wheels to separate from vehicles.
A driver's trip from London, Ont. to Ottawa to visit their girlfriend ended in a traffic stop for speeding on Highway 417, according to police.
Recall notices have been issued for some Volkswagen models from 2006 to 2019 for airbag safety issues.
A congestion crisis, a traffic nightmare, or unrelenting gridlock -- whatever you call it, most agree that Toronto has a congestion problem. To alleviate some of the gridlock, the Ontario government has announced it plans to remove bike lanes from three major roadways.
For the second year in a row, the ‘Gift-a-Family’ campaign is hoping to make the holidays happier for children and families in need throughout Barrie.
Some of the most prolific photographers behind CTV Skywatch Pics of the Day use the medium for fun, therapy, and connection.
A young family from Codroy Valley, N.L., is happy to be on land and resting with their newborn daughter, Miley, after an overwhelming, yet exciting experience at sea.
As Connor Nijsse prepared to remove some old drywall during his garage renovation, he feared the worst.
A group of women in Chester, N.S., has been busy on the weekends making quilts – not for themselves, but for those in need.
A Vancouver artist whose streetside singing led to a chance encounter with one of the world's biggest musicians is encouraging aspiring performers to try their hand at busking.
Ten-thousand hand-knit poppies were taken from the Sanctuary Arts Centre and displayed on the fence surrounding the Dartmouth Cenotaph on Monday.
A Vancouver man is saying goodbye to his nine-to-five and embarking on a road trip from the Canadian Arctic to Antarctica.
Contract negotiations in a labour dispute that has paralyzed container cargo shipping at British Columbia's ports since Monday have been called off.
Mounties on Vancouver Island are out with a warning about a "concerning" scam that has recently targeted several victims.
A Vancouver designer is making waves in the architectural world with an outdoor modular building created to address the city’s unrelenting housing crisis.
Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour is coming to Toronto this month and will likely be the most commercially successful concert series the city has ever seen.
Patrons were inside a movie theatre when a suspect fired bullets at the business’ doors on Saturday night, before the cinema was shot at again hours later in a second incident, police say.
A weapon that posed a “significant concern†for public safety, with photos allegedly shared across social media, has been confiscated from a Hamilton encampment.
A pair of 105-mm howitzers bark constantly as they turn plywood tank targets into kindling kilometres away on the windswept landscape of one of Canada's largest military bases.
On Saturday the City of Calgary held the first of three open houses seeking public input regarding the the intersection and roadways of Sarcee Trail and Bow Trail S.W.
The soon-to-be-operational Halkirk 2 wind farm was shut down on Friday after a turbine broke.
Three people, including an eight-month-old have died after a two-vehicle collision on Highway 401 in eastern Ontario Saturday afternoon, according to the Ontario provincial Police (OPP).
A stabbing incident that happened in the early hours of Sunday morning in the ByWard Market has seriously injured two individuals, according to the Ottawa Paramedic Service.
The Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) holiday train will be passing through several eastern Ontario cities next month.
Researchers say taking a peek inside a person's brain is as difficult as understanding the universe or discovering the ocean in its entirety.
It's a century-old tradition that's carried on year after year with pride – we wear a poppy to honour our nation's veterans. But to retired lieutenant-colonel Henry F. Hall it's so much more.
Montreal police say a car was set on fire overnight Sunday in Montreal's Pointe-aux-Trembles area.
The Edmonton Oilers may have found the break they were looking for.
An investigation is underway in relation to an armed robbery that took place Thursday night in Wabasca, Alta.
A boy is in hospital after being stabbed at a McDonald's in Beaumaris on Friday.
Here’s what’s opened and closed across the Maritimes on Remembrance Day.
New Brunswick health officials are urging residents to get vaccinated after 11 new cases of measles were confirmed in the province.
It's been a trip to cherish for a group of Canadians visiting Belgium this week to honour the legacy of Indigenous soldiers.
Murray Sinclair’s family members say the late justice and senator has been laid to rest according to his wishes.
Winnipeg police have identified two men involved in a stabbing incident earlier this week.
The Winnipeg Blue Bombers whipped the Saskatchewan Roughriders 38-22 in Saturday's CFL West Division final to earn their fifth consecutive trip to the Grey Cup.
The Saskatchewan Roughriders extended their Grey Cup drought to 11 years after losing 38-22 to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in the CFL’s Western Final on Saturday.
The final round of ballots from Saskatchewan’s provincial election were tallied on Saturday, and a race that was previously too close to call has officially been declared.
Urban municipalities across southern Saskatchewan are preparing for their civic elections on November 13.
A man has been charged after a stabbing at an apartment building in Kitchener.
The Guelph Police Service is putting out a warning after two deaths in the downtown area.
A Kitchener woman is facing multiple charges after a concerned citizen called in a potentially impaired driver.
The Saskatchewan Roughriders extended their Grey Cup drought to 11 years after losing 38-22 to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in the CFL’s Western Final on Saturday.
The Regina Rams claimed the Hardy Cup after a hard fought battle against the Saskatoon Huskies 19-14 on Saturday in the first all Saskatchewan U-Sports western conference final since 2002.
Elections Saskatchewan completed the final step in the vote counting process from the provincial election on Saturday.
CTVNewsNorthernOntario.ca is livestreaming the annual Remembrance Day ceremony at the Sudbury Community Arena starting Monday at 10:30 a.m.
Donald Trump has said he wouldn’t be a dictator — 'except for Day 1.' According to his own statements, he's got a lot to do on that first day in the White House.
Police have arrested a 15-year-old in connection with a break-in and $50,000 in damage done to the Centennial Arena in Elliot Lake in September.
Three people were taken to hospital after a plane crashed in the Municipality of Southwest Middlesex.
London Knights Logan Hawery and Caleb Mitchell are returning from the U17 World Hockey Challenge with gold medals around their necks.
Donald Trump has said he wouldn’t be a dictator — 'except for Day 1.' According to his own statements, he's got a lot to do on that first day in the White House.
Crews responded to an overnight porch fire at a residence in Orillia, where all occupants managed to escape without injury.
OPP are investigating a Saturday evening incident in Caledon that resulted in one death.
The Southeast Asian Association of Simcoe County (SAASC) hosted a special gala for Diwali in Barrie Saturday evening, celebrating the Hindu Festival of Lights with a Diya lighting ceremony at General John Hayter Southshore Community Centre.
One person has been arrested after Chatham-Kent Police Service (CKPS) received multiple complaints about an alleged drunk driver.
An individual is dead following a collision involving a motorcycle in Kingsville.
Donald Trump has said he wouldn’t be a dictator — 'except for Day 1.' According to his own statements, he's got a lot to do on that first day in the White House.
Contract negotiations in a labour dispute that has paralyzed container cargo shipping at British Columbia's ports since Monday have been called off.
Mounties on Vancouver Island are out with a warning about a "concerning" scam that has recently targeted several victims.
B.C. health officials say they have detected Canada's first-ever case of H5 avian influenza in a human.
The emergency department at South Okanagan General Hospital in Oliver, B.C., will be closed for 31 hours this weekend, the second such closure in a week and the third since the start of November.
Police in Kamloops, B.C., are reminding parents and guardians to check their children's Halloween candy after receiving a report of a mother finding a razor blade in one of her daughter's treats.
More than two years after Alannah Brown and Douglas Barker were found dead north of Penticton, police are asking for help identifying a vehicle they believe was associated with the crime.
The Southern Alberta Recreation Association is officially announcing the Town of Taber as next year’s host for the Southern Alberta Summer Games.
The Lethbridge Hurricanes broke open a close game with three goals in the first two minutes of the third period as they defeated the Warriors 7-3 in a game played Friday night in Moose Jaw.
There might not a lot snow just yet, but many southern Albertans are still itching to get outdoors.
Police have arrested a 15-year-old in connection with a break-in and $50,000 in damage done to the Centennial Arena in Elliot Lake in September.
Mayors of the five largest cities in northern Ontario met in North Bay the last two days to discuss a range of critical issues impacting their cities and the region.
Residents in the Sault expressed concerns ranging from vandalism to privacy invasions during recent consultations on the city's plan to install automated speed enforcement cameras.
Police in Newfoundland say a man was electrocuted Saturday by a downed power wire about 10 kilometres north of St. John's, N.L.
On Thursday morning, Dave Penny officially ended a suggested hundred-day isolation period that followed his diagnosis and stem cell treatment for non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma. On Thursday night, Penny returned to a stage at a downtown St. John's bar, regaling a small crowd with songs and stories with a distinctive Newfoundland flair.
A Memorial University scientist says the mysterious white blobs washing up on Newfoundland beaches are actually gobs of plastic -- and they need to be cleaned up.
The Shopping Trends team is independent of the journalists at Â鶹ӰÊÓ. We may earn a commission when you use our links to shop. Read about us.
