Chilly darkness has begun falling over millions of people across North America as a total solar eclipse begins sliding across the continent, unfolding first around midday above an eager crowd watching totality begin off the western coast of Mexico.
Despite a few clouds threatening to block their view, thousands of people in Mazatlán, Mexico, were plunged into totality at 1:05 p.m. ET. Sitting together in deck chairs on the coastline, crowds looked skyward through eclipse glasses as the moon slid between the sun and the Earth.
For a few minutes, the sun’s corona — an eerie white ring around its outer edge — became visible to the human eye.
“It was absolutely remarkable. The sky was a little bit cloudy … but the eclipse totality was not obscured at all,” said Joy Daniels, an eclipse chaser who travelled to Mazatlán from her home in Calgary with 13 friends and family members.
“It went quite dark…. The birds, they all went to sleep and the temperature went way, way down.”
The show began over the southern Pacific Ocean before reaching Mexico. The darkness moved up into the United States, starting in Texas, and will continue northeast before totality reaches Canada around 3 p.m. ET. The coast of Newfoundland will be the last stop just after 5:15 p.m. ET.
As the moon blocks the sun over Mazatlán, Mexico — one of the first parts of North America to experience totality — CBC’s Heather Hiscox and Astronomy in Action’s Ryan Marciniak break down what people are seeing.
In Canada, the path of totality — the stretch where the moon will block the sunlight entirely — includes parts of Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, P.E.I. and Newfoundland and Labrador. People outside the path of totality could see partial solar eclipse by early afternoon, with just a chunk of the sun obscured by the moon.
Cloudy skies could make it challenging to see the eclipse on parts of the continent. The clearest weather is expected at the tail end of the eclipse in Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine, as well as New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Prince Edward Island.
The big day is here, skywatchers, as a total solar eclipse makes its way across western P.E.I.
Environment Canada predicted Monday will be “mainly cloudy” in Hamilton, Niagara Falls, St. Catharines and Kingston, Ont.
Here’s what you need to know.
A total solar eclipse happens when the moon passes between the sun and the Earth, completely blocking the face of the sun. People watching from the path of totality will experience what’s called a total solar eclipse. The sky will go dark as if it were dawn or dusk. Weather permitting, people along the path of totality will see the sun’s corona, which is an eerie white ring usually washed out by the bright light of the sun.
Outside the path of totality, the moon will still move between the sun and Earth — but the three won’t line up perfectly. Only a part of the sun will be covered, giving it a crescent-like shape.
The eclipse’s path in North America:
After Monday, the next total solar eclipse over North America won’t be until Aug. 23, 2044.
Beyond that, this event is particularly special because the path of totality is passing over densely populated parts of Canada, Mexico and the U.S. (Most solar eclipses happen over the ocean.)
This one should also be a longer show, with darkness lasting nearly two minutes longer over some areas in the path of totality than the last solar eclipse on Aug. 21, 2017.
Yes. It’s always dangerous to look at the sun with the naked eye. Space agencies and ophthalmologists agree that looking at a partial solar eclipse without approved eye protection can cause lasting eye damage. The Canadian Space Agency and NASA have both extended advice for protecting your vision.
Eclipse glasses are sold at a variety of stores, both in person and online, but it’s important to check for one key feature: Your glasses should be marked with the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 12312-2 code. That code specifies the properties that a solar viewer should have to protect your eyes.
Video footage from NASA shows a partial eclipse over Mazatlán, Mexico — one of the first areas of North America to see the celestial phenomenon on April 8.
Photographers don’t recommend it. Just like the immense amount of direct light from the sun can damage your eyes, it can damage the lens of a camera.
If you’re really compelled to take a photo of the sun, photographers say you should cover the lens with a solar filter — though they say their favourite photos are the ones that captured people as they experience the show.
Will the weather co-operate with the plans of millions to see today’s total solar eclipse? Chris Murphy of the Weather Network has today’s forecast.
Likely. Many photographers and eclipse chasers have spent months, if not years, planning for the total solar eclipse. Some have spent thousands of dollars travelling to what they hope will be the best vantage point. Cities in the path of totality expect hundreds of thousands of people to flood their communities on Monday, potentially creating traffic jams. (Niagara Falls, Ont., is expected to be so crowded that the region declared a state of emergency 11 days in advance.)
A total solar eclipse is set to pass through parts of Canada, the United States and Mexico on April 8. CBC News spoke with an expert at Toronto’s York University to learn three easy ways to view the cosmic event without harming your eyes.