How to watch this Saturday's annular solar eclipse safely
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Saturday morning, starting at around 8 a.m. Arizona time, an annular solar eclipse will be visible in Arizona for a few hours.
Sari Custer is the chief of science and curiosity Arizona Science Center. She said it has to do with the moon’s orbit.
“The moon, which has an elliptical orbit, is just a little bit further away,” Custer said. “It’s at its furthest point.”
Custer says it’s important to view the eclipse with the right equipment.
“You really, really, really, really need to be careful,” she said, “because looking directly at the sun can damage your eyes.”
And according to Custer, sunglasses don’t cut it. Solar glasses should meet an international safety standard, and are typically marked with an ISO number of 12312-2 (or sometimes ISO 12312-2:2015) if they do.
“In the past we have seen certain companies that want to capitalize on events like this in, unfortunately, a really unsafe way and provide glasses that aren’t safe,” Custer said. “So you just wanna double check that those glasses you have, have that ISO number on them.”
Custer said events like this eclipse are great opportunities for people to come together with wonder, and a love for science. The Arizona Science Center will give solar glasses to the first 5,000 people at its free viewing party from 7:45 a.m. until noon.
