Thursday afternoon, a partial solar eclipse — where the moon covers a part of the sun — will be visible across much of the USA, barring any pesky clouds that could block the show.
The eclipse will occur over most of North America — except for a small slice of eastern Canada and eastern New England.
In Houston, we'll only get a slight view of the partial eclipse. Those in the northwestern states will get the best view possible.
In most areas, about half the sun will be covered, with the northern USA seeing about 65% of the sun covered and the Southern states closer to 40%, reports Universe Today, an online astronomy site.
KHOU 11 Meteorologist Chita Johnson says Houstonians can look up (using proper eye protection) starting around 4:30 p.m. with the eclipse peaking around 5 p.m. Houston time.
DO
• Use a solar filter to protect your DSLR camera sensor
• Use protective eyewear, such as welder's glasses
• Use a tripod or mount to avoid a blurry photo
• Manually focus your camera
• Set your camera settings before the solar eclipse – test those settings on a non-eclipse day
• Use a high ISO setting and high resolution
DON'T
• Use a smartphone
• Look directly at the sun with your camera/eyes unless both are protected
• Forget to share your solar eclipse photos at yourtake.usatoday.com, and tell us where the photo was taken
WHEN TO WATCH
New York City: The eclipse starts at 5:49 p.m. ET. The eclipse will still be going on as the sun sets at 6:03 p.m. ET.
Washington: The eclipse starts at 5:52 p.m. ET. The eclipse will still be going on as the sun sets at 6:17 p.m. ET.
Chicago: The eclipse starts at 4:36 p.m. CT. The eclipse will be at its maximum at 5:43 p.m. CT and the sun will set while still in eclipse.
Denver: The eclipse starts at 3:18 p.m. MT. The eclipse will be at its maximum at 4:35 p.m. MT and will end at 5:44 p.m. MDT.
Los Angeles: The eclipse will start at 2:08 p.m. PT. The eclipse will be at its maximum at 3:28 p.m. and will end at 4:40 p.m. PT.
Unless you use a special filter, such as welder's glasses, never look directly at the sun during the eclipse, or at any time for that matter. Universe Today warns that dangerous ultraviolet and infrared light focused on your retinas will damage your vision for the rest of your life.
Your camera also needs a special filter in order to photograph the eclipse.
The USA's next solar eclipse — which will be a total eclipse — won't occur until August 2017.
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