Monday’s total solar eclipse is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that shouldn’t be missed, experts say.
York University astrophysics professor Sarah Rugheimer told Global News another one won’t occur over Toronto and eastern Ontario for another 375 years, until the year 2399.
Experts also warn looking at the sun without special glasses can cause serious and even permanent damage to your eyes.
But if you’ve not yet secured your ISO 12312-2 international standard glasses yet, there is another way to observe the eclipse — with a pinhole projector.
You should not use the projector to look directly at the sun. Instead, you can use it to see an image of the eclipse.
Here’s how to make one, according to NASA.
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Gather a cereal or shoebox, a piece of paper, scissors, tape, some aluminum foil and a pen or other object with a point.
Use the pen to trace the bottom of the cereal box onto the piece of paper (or left or right side of the shoebox if you’re holding it as if to open it and access the shoes).
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Cut along the line you just traced and place the smaller piece of paper at the bottom of the cereal box. If you’re using a shoebox, turn it on its side and place the paper on what is now the bottom.
Cut a small square out of the top of the box towards the outer edge. Cut another small square out towards the other edge.
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Place aluminum foil overtop one of the cut-out squares and tape it in place. Then poke a very small hole in it using the pen or other sharp object.
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When the eclipse is taking place, turn away from it and hold the box in front of your head so you can see inside through the cut-out square. The aluminum foil with the pinhole should be facing the sun.
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The sun’s rays will enter through the pinhole and an image of the eclipse will be projected onto the piece of paper at the bottom of the box.
Marin and Fiona Poon look through home-made pinhole viewers as hundreds of people gathered at Western University to view the partial solar eclipse, in London, Ont., on Monday, Aug. 21, 2017.
