Galwegians hoping to see tomorrow’s partial solar eclipse can view the event from a viewing point in Salthill, thanks to members of Galway Astronomy Club.
The club is inviting people to go along to its viewing point, opposite Toft Park on the Promenade, tomorrow morning to see the eclipse, which cannot be safely viewed with the naked eye.
The phenomenon — the first partial eclipse viewable from Ireland since 1999 — is expected to last two hours from 8.30am to 10.30am, with maximum eclipse occurring at around 9.30am. It is expected that 95 per cent of the sun will be covered at this point.
Galway Astronomy Club will be providing a variety of options to view the eclipse, including a telescope with solar filters, solar projection equipment which allow viewers to see the sun indirectly, and solar glasses.
The club has warned that viewing a solar eclipse without appropriate equipment can cause eye damage, and people should not attempt to view the eclipse directly, or through a telescope or binoculars without appropriate filters.
A solar eclipse occurs when the moon passes between Earth and the sun, partially blocking the sun as it passes across the face of the star. Tomorrow’s total eclipse — where the sun is completely covered by the moon, revealing the sun’s bright corona — will occur in the North Atlantic tomorrow, and be viewable from Ireland as a partial eclipse.
The next solar eclipse in Ireland will occur on August 12 2026.
Galway Astronomy Club holds regular events, including public talks, workshops, and the annual Galway Astronomy Festival. The next workshop will take place this Monday, March 23, in Room 220 in the NUI Galway physics department. At the event Ronan Newman of Galway Astronomy Club will discuss methods of observing satellites and using night sky software such as Stellarium.
The club’s next monthly meeting will take place on Monday April 13 at 7.30pm in the Westwood House Hotel, where Dr Mark Lang will give a talk on supernovae.
For more information see www.galwayastronomyclub.ie or find Galway Astronomy Club on Facebook.
