Manitoba to get partial view of solar eclipse Saturday morning

Manitobans with an interest in astronomy are being encouraged to look up at the sky this weekend, but not without proper eye protection.

A solar eclipse is set to hit North America on Saturday, with Winnipeg getting a partial view of the phenomenon, beginning around 10:30 a.m.

It’s an annular eclipse rather than a total eclipse — meaning the moon won’t quite fully block out the sun.

“For all of us in Manitoba, it’s just the partial phase, so you do need to have eye protection to be able to watch it safely,” said Scott Young of the Manitoba Planetarium.

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Young told 680 CJOB’s The Start that eclipse glasses can be purchased at the Manitoba Museum’s gift shop — though they tend to sell out quickly — and some will be available at a public viewing party planned near The Leaf at Assiniboine Park.

“The Planetarium and the local astronomy club, the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada – Winnipeg Centre, are going to have solar telescopes and eclipse glasses and things like that, available for people to just come down and watch the eclipse with us,” he said.

“So as long as it’s clear, we’ll see it live. If it’s cloudy, we’ll still see it, we’ll just watch it from another site online.”

The visual effect is anticipated to be strongest in western Canada, with Vancouver residents likely to see 80 per cent of the eclipse, and will diminish as it moves east, with only 10 per cent visible by the time it reaches the Atlantic provinces.

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