Seeing a big bite seemingly taken out of the sun is sa国际传媒減robably the coolest thing Isa国际传媒檝e seen,sa国际传媒� said 10-year-old Solan Banke.
The student was one of hundreds of people who enjoyed watching Mondaysa国际传媒檚 partial solar eclipse over the noon-hour from behind the Kerry Wood Nature Centre. Red Deerians of all ages gathered in the sunny weather to watch the rare event unfold overhead as the moon partially covered the sun in its orbit.
This surge of public interest was sa国际传媒渆xtraordinary,sa国际传媒� observed nature centre volunteer David Mathias. Red Deer was far off the sa国际传媒減ath of totalitysa国际传媒� that stretched from Mexico to Newfoundland, so only about a third of the sun was obscured by the moon.
Yet the nature centre still had sold out of about 400 pairs of $2.50 eclipse glasses by mid-morning.
sa国际传媒淭o some degree, we are all still sun worshippers,sa国际传媒� concluded Mathias, who was showing the pin-hole method of tracking the eclipse on paper. He believes this event brings into focus how connected and how dependent we are on the sunsa国际传媒檚 rays.
sa国际传媒滻 think it does speak to something deep inside us. One can imagine what something like this would have meant to the Egyptians,sa国际传媒� Mathias added.
Families and friends who gathered for Mondaysa国际传媒檚 sa国际传媒渆clipse partysa国际传媒� at the nature centre could view the obscured sun in different ways sa国际传媒� through eclipse glasses (which block out harmful ultraviolet rays); through various handmade pin-hole cameras made from cereal boxes and or binoculars; or through light reflected from centre telescopes.
Kathryn Huedepohl, special events programmer at the nature centre, amazed onlookers by demonstrating how sunlight pouring out of a viewing scope was scorching enough to set a crayon smoking.
Folks could also peer at the sun through a large, filtered telescope, 12-inch in width and five feet in length. Kids and their parents marvelled at how two small sun spots sa国际传媒� so tiny they could be mistaken for lint sa国际传媒� were comparable to how the Earth would look in comparison to the massive sun. Thomas Wooff, the centresa国际传媒檚 technician, said it would take more than a million Earths to fill the sunsa国际传媒檚 volume.
It was a great science lesson for Monica Tromsa国际传媒檚 two home-schooled daughters, who brought homemade pin-hole cameras. sa国际传媒淚tsa国际传媒檚 excellent. They are learning about the solar system and how lenses work,sa国际传媒� said Trom.
Some people expressed disappointment the local school districts were not allowing students outside to watch the eclipse as it could damage their eyes. Instead they were watching it indoors on the internet.
Retired teacher Sylvia Kennedy opted to pull her 18-year-old son out of class to watch it in person through eclipse glasses. sa国际传媒淚 think the closer we are to nature the better off we are,sa国际传媒� she explained.
Ula Wiebe taught her preschooler about the eclipse from a YouTube video before bringing the child to the centre. Having seen a near total eclipse in Poland as a child 1999, Wiebe recalled the event was sa国际传媒渧ery excitingsa国际传媒� and impactful.
sa国际传媒淚tsa国际传媒檚 quite an experience, agreed Evelyn Kheong, who, with her friend Cindy Kuiper, enjoyed watching a small wedge of shadow over the sun get sa国际传媒渂igger and bigger.sa国际传媒�
Todd Nivens, executive-director of the Waskasoo Environmental Education Society, was thrilled with all the public interest. He feels the eclipse was a positive experience that helped bring people together. sa国际传媒淓veryone can talk about itsa国际传媒� itsa国际传媒檚 cool and you donsa国际传媒檛 get to see it often.sa国际传媒�
A better view for Red Deerians wonsa国际传媒檛 be available until August 22, 2044, when most of Alberta will be in the path of totality of a solar eclipse.
