JACKSON, Wyo. — An upcoming astronomical event might be visible as far north as Jackson Hole, according to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
On Saturday, Oct. 14, the moon will pass between the Earth and the sun. At this point in its elliptical orbit, the moon will be near apogee, its farthest distance from the Earth. This will create an annular eclipse, which will result in a sort of “ring of fire” effect for viewers in the eclipse’s direct path.
From Jackson, which lies north of the eclipse’s path, viewers might see about 70% of the eclipse, which would look like roughly two-thirds of the solar disk being covered by the moon.
Samuel Singer, founder of Wyoming Stargazing, told Buckrail the difference in sunlight would not be entirely noticeable unless people look in the sun’s direction, which must be done with proper eye protection.
“It will still be very bright,” Singer said. “Nothing like what we got in 2017,” Singer said, referring to the total solar eclipse that wowed Jackson a few years ago. “This is like the difference between a kiddie pool and an Olympic-sized swimming pool.”
Still, Singer said, the event will be notable.
“A partial solar eclipse is cool,” he said. “It’s worth taking 10 minutes out of your day to look at it.”
The eclipse will begin around 9 a.m., peak around 10:30 a.m. and end around noon. Its path of totality will first be visible in North America over Oregon, and it will travel south over Nevada and the Four Corner states before shining over Texas. Next it will be seen from Central and South America before ending over the Atlantic Ocean, around sunset.
Viewers will need to observe the eclipse indirectly, through eclipse glasses or homemade viewing boxes. Welders glass could also work. Do not look directly at the eclipse.
Astronomy enthusiasts might consider a road trip to get a better view of the event. See NASA’s interactive map to find a close viewing location. Southern Utah could end up being a popular destination for Wyomingites.
The U.S. National Weather Service’s office in Riverton, Wyoming, shared this video to explain the phenomenon.
According to the Farmer’s Almanac, many cultures historically viewed solar eclipse activity as quite ominous, developing myths about the sun being eaten or bitten.
In ancient China, it was a celestial dragon, and in southeast Asia, they imagined it to be a giant turtle, frog, or toad. In Korea, it was thought that fire dogs were trying to steal the Sun or Moon, and when they bit it, an eclipse resulted. For the Vikings it was a hungry wolf named Sköll (whose name means “Treachery”) that raced across the sky, hunting down and eating the Sun. Even to cultures like Greece and Rome, which had enough mathematical and observational knowledge to be able to predict eclipses, they were often viewed as bad omens, portents of evil and astrological events to be feared.
In Hindu mythology, it was believed that the demon Rahu stole an elixir of immortality, called amrita, but was beheaded by the god Vishnu before he could fully swallow it. Consequently, the demon’s severed head, forever alive, floats around and occasionally devours the Sun. To this day, in India, people make noise by banging pots and pans and setting off fireworks during a solar eclipse to scare Rahu away and make him cough up the Sun.
A northwestern Native American tribe [The Sho-Ka-Wah tribe native to California] has a legend that a solar eclipse is the result of a quarrel between a great bear and the Sun, ending with the bear taking a huge bite out of it. In fact, the tribe’s name for a solar eclipse translates to Sun got bit by a bear.
Farmer’s Almanac
