Partial Solar Eclipse (March 2015)
The largest Solar Eclipse in 15 years is set to darken our skies on Friday 20th March. The partial eclipse will last for two hours and cause a ‘morning twilight’ in Carlisle (our nearest city) from 08.29am to 10.43am. The maximum eclipse will be at 9.34am.
We must remember NEVER to look directly at the Sun, because of the damage this can do to our eyes. There are a number of safe ways to view the eclipse – see the attached leaflet, section 3.
However as the forecast is cloudy and wet for Friday, we hope to use a live internet feed to view the partial eclipse from the safety of the classroom, indoors.
See the attached leaflet for a clear explanation of the eclipse.
The Sun is 400 times bigger than the Earth’s moon and is also 400 times further away. This means that, viewed from the earth, the sun and the moon appear the same size in the sky creating the possibility for total solar eclipses.