Students and teachers alike were all talking about the total solar eclipse that recently occurred on April 8, but what really causes an eclipse, and why was this one so monumental?
A solar eclipse happens when the moon’s orbit aligns with the orbit of the earth and the sun, creating a phenomenon from the moon’s shadow. This only happens occasionally, as the moon doesn’t orbit the same way the sun and the earth do. On April 8, a total eclipse went over North America and passed over Mexico, Canada, and the United states. A total eclipse describes the event where the sun’s disk is totally covered, allowing only its outermost layer to shine outside the moon’s shadow. These events are fairly rare; the next time there will be a total eclipse will be in 2044.
Junior Kailee Walsh said that she had “Heard a lot about the eclipse, but I didn’t really know why everyone was going crazy about it. When it did happen, I understood, because it was pretty cool to see through the eclipse glasses.”
Before the eclipse took place, social media had various on-going jokes that were going viral. Specifically, people mocked the power of the eclipse and doubted the sun’s strength. This is because if you stare at the sun during an eclipse, your eyes can be harmed from only a short time of exposure. The eclipse itself does not make the sun’s strength stronger, but people can harm their eyesight because the human eye does not have pain receptors, so they will not feel pain until it is too late.
The eclipse creates an illusion that you can look up at the sun, but that is false. Overall it is known that the sun’s radiation should not be stared at directly, but during an eclipse it seems as though the sun is covered and that it is dimmer. This is true, and it is a good piece of advice to not look at the sun for a long period of time ever.
Hingham High junior Jane Betti says that she really enjoyed the eclipse but “I thought that we could get more darkness since I read that we were in a 95% totality region. But it was still cool to see it get a little darker.”
Overall, the eclipse was an event that had everyone talking. Many astronomists and scientists have written on social media that they hope this eclipse will inspire more young people to get involved in all things space-related. The eclipse made people realize the wonders that surround us, constantly reminding us of the expansiveness of the universe. Maybe last Monday was a more influential day than we formerly thought!
