BREC’s Highland Road Park Observatory prepares for solar eclipse by offering solar viewings
BATON ROUGE, La. (BRPROUD) — BREC’s Highland Road Park Observatory is preparing for the partial solar eclipse on April 8.
A partial solar eclipse happens about twice a year, where the moon, sun and the Earth are not aligned in a perfect straight line, and the moon only casts only the outer parts of its shadow.
Amy Northrope, Education Program Specialist at BREC Highland Road Park Observatory, says that the springtime is usually the most active time for the sun. She says that with the eclipse happening soon, the sun has already started to create different patterns and movements.
“It’s an especially exciting time to do it right now because we are approaching the period of greatest solar activity,” said Northrope.
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The observatory has special telescopes that they use to show people the activity of the sun.
“With our visible light telescopes they can see sunspots,” said Northrope. “We also have a hydrogen alpha that lets you see a different layer of the sun’s atmosphere and you can actually see solar flares.”
Many of what can be shown with the sun cannot be seen with a naked eye. She says that much of the sun’s activity can create many changes to the Earth and certain areas.
For example, she mentioned that almost two weeks ago, a solar flare created an aurora in New Zealand. In 1989, a solar flare created a black out in the city of Quebec. She says that learning of these changes can help us stay alert on the pattern of the sun.
“It’s important that we learn and monitor the sun so we can make preparations,” said Northrope.
She says that this is an exciting time for many, as they get to see the solar eclipse in real time.
“It is a very exciting time to look at the sun,” said Northrope.
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The BREC Highland Park Observatory is in partnership with the Baton Rouge Astronomical Society and LSU Department of Astronomy and Physics. The observatory will be hosting a viewing of the partial eclipse on April 8 from 10:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
The next solar viewings will be held on April 27, July 27 and Aug. 31.
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