Tips and even a class trip for Monday's eclipse

Edmunds Central Science teacher Spencer Cody said we will actually get to see up to 63% totality around 2 p.m. on Monday, definitely worth going out to view with proper protective eyewear (eclipse glasses).

The partial eclipse viewed from here will be enough to dim the sun for several minutes. It will be similar to what we experienced during the Canadian fires with an odd filtered sunlight appearance minus the haze.

“Our school and Bowdle will be taking a busload of students down to the eclipse to see totality, hopefully, in Sulphur Springs, Texas, thanks to a NASA Space grant award. We will be visiting Johnson Space Center the day before the eclipse in Houston since they will be having special eclipse programming,” Cody said. “We will be at an Aerostar facility in Sulphur Springs where a couple of other South Dakota research groups will be launching weather balloons to collect data on the eclipse and will be participating in weather balloon retrieval somewhere east of Sulphur Springs.”

It is important that people only use approved eclipse glasses to view the partial eclipse. Even a 1% partial eclipse can cause irreparable damage to your retina. Only in totality where the moon is eclipsing 100% of the sun is it safe to view the sun without any eye protection. This is why we are going to totality. The view of a total solar eclipse is remarkable. We will be able to see all of the planets and stars that are directly adjacent to the sun. We will also be able to see the sun's corona and chromosphere during totality. These features are normally overwhelmed by the sun's bright photosphere. Additionally, other bizarre phenomena tend to occur within the umbra, complete shadow, of a solar eclipse. Weather conditions change. Since all direct sunlight is blocked, localized temperatures plummet. The decreasing temperatures change local air pressures causing changes in wind speed and direction. “I was at totality for the 2017 eclipse in Grand Island, Neb. The temperature dropped substantially and the wind picked up dramatically during totality and then returned back to its prior state after the eclipse was over,” Cody said.