ATLANTA — The Great American Eclipse is less than one month away. Residents from Texas northeastward into Maine and all of the states in between are getting ready for a view of totality. While Georgia is just outside of the total eclipse, it will still be something to see and you don't have to miss out.
Seeing a solar eclipse in the path of totality doesn’t happen that often. Far northeast Georgia was in that path of a total eclipse in 2017.
If you didn’t know the eclipse is happening on April 8, you might go through the day not even noticing.
“We will experience an eclipse that will cover about 80 and 85% of the sun. Sounds like a lot. But again, if you're not looking at it with safe protective equipment, you'll probably never know," said Mark Lancaster, an astronomer at Fernbank Science Center in DeKalb County. "The lighting will change a little bit, but that's about it."
It is worth watching though, but you have to be careful.
Here are three ways to safely view the partial eclipse here.
1. Protective glasses
If you want to look up at the sun, you must have protective glasses. You may remember the "eclipse glasses” from 2017. When searching online to buy them, you must make sure they are ISO certified. You can’t depend on sunglasses and most welding glasses. Those lenses just aren’t enough to protect your eyes from looking directly at the sun. If you still have your eclipse glasses from 2017, use them with caution. If they have any cracks or tears on them, they aren’t safe.
If you don’t have eclipse viewing glasses, you still have options.
2. Shadow boxes
"Shadow boxes work very well. Just a pinhole camera. Just put a pinhole in something and let the sun project it on the ground or a piece of white paper," Lancaster said.
Here’s how to make your own shadow box with some things you probably already have at your house.
You’ll need a shoe box, tape, foil, paper, pencil and scissors.
Start by cutting 2 holes on one side of the box. Then put some tape on the foil and place the foil over one of the holes in the box.
Use the tip of a pencil to put a small hole in the foil.
Then put some tape on your piece of white paper and stick it inside the box opposite of the holes and put the lid on top. When the eclipse is happening put your back to the sun and look through the open hole.
The light will pass through the hole in the foil to the paper in the back of the box. You will see the image of the eclipse as it happens.
If you don’t make a box, you still have some options.
3. Looking down
You can also see the effects of the eclipse, not by looking up -- but by looking down. The shadows on the ground will look different while the eclipse is happening.
“My favorite is just to find a bush or a tree with that sunlight filtering through it and it’ll make hundreds of little eclipse images on the ground. It’s really cool."
On April 8, the eclipse will begin in Texas. The path of totality will stretch northeast from there through parts of the Midwest up to the northeast. While our state isn’t in the path of totality, we will get to see a partial eclipse.