eclipse

Partial Solar Eclipse October 23rd 2014

October 23, 2014

There will be a partial solar eclipse later today October 23rd 2014. It will be visible over much of North America. We have looked at eclipses many times in the past, including: 2006, 2008 1,2, 2009, 2010,2012 and 2013.

Several of the sites or KMLs that we have pointed to in the past either no-longer work or do not include this eclipse – probably because it is only a partial eclipse. However, the HeyWhatsThat eclipse page, which uses the Google Earth plugin, still works correctly and will show you the path of today’s eclipse. Be sure to tick ‘penumbra’ near the bottom right. You can also watch the partial eclipse live on Slooh, an online community observatory. For more technical information about the eclipse see the NASA page

Eclipse track on HeyWhatsThat.

Following the November 3 solar eclipse in Google Earth

October 25, 2013

One week from Sunday brings a bit of a rare event, with a “hybrid” solar eclipse for much of the world to see. Most solar eclipses are either a “total” or “annular” eclipse, but this one brings a bit of each with it.

Xavier Jubier has a comprehensive page of eclipse data that you can view in Google Earth, include a KMZ file for the eclipse this Sunday.

You can also view Xavier’s data in Google Maps by using this link.

The uniqueness of the eclipse is described well by Sky & Telescope:

When the Moon passes directly between the Sun and Earth, the usual outcome is either a total or annular solar eclipse. But the event on November 3rd is something of a hybrid. At the point in the North Atlantic where the Moon’s umbral shadow begins its dash across Earth, about 600 miles (1,000 km) east of Jacksonville, Florida, an extremely well-placed observer would get to see a vestigial ring of Sun surrounding the Moon’s silhouette for a few fleeting seconds just after sunrise.

Check out their article for more information, use Xavier’s files to see if it’s an event you’ll be able to witness from your house, then head out Sunday to see it firsthand if you’re in the path.

Some great tools for information about the solar eclipse

May 19, 2012

Over the next few weeks, the earth will be seeing a series of unique celestial events. Tomorrow many of us we will be able to see a a solar eclipse, June 4 will feature a lunar eclipse, and June 6 is the Transit of Venus. As you might expect, there are great Google Earth tools to help you make the most of all three events.
For the solar eclipse, the eclipse viewer from HeyWhatsThat.com is a great way to see where the best locations for the viewing the eclipse are located.

You can use the dropdown box in the lower right corner of the site to view other simulations, both past and future. You can learn more about the features available on their site by reading this text file.
Another great resource for this eclipse is Xavier Jubier’s map.

In addition to this eclipse, he has an extensive collection of data from other eclipses from 1961 through 2039 available to view.
Tomorrow’s eclipse should be visible to many of our readers, weather permitting. Let us know if you’re able to see it!

Simulating the upcoming lunar eclipse

December 20, 2010

Early tomorrow morning, December 21, there will be a total lunar eclipse. It will be completely visible to those in North America (assuming clear skies, of course) and people in Europe will be able to see the beginning of it.
For the solar eclipse this past summer, we showed you the great tool that was created by Michael at HeyWhatsThat.com.
He’s back again with a similar tool to determine the best time to view the lunar eclipse from your location. Check out the tool here to see when you should step outside to view the eclipse.

If you’re not in a location that can view the eclipse, or if cloud cover obscures your view, NASA has a live feed that you can tune into to see the eclipse as it happens. UPDATE: Or watch it live in Google Earth using Slooh.
(via GoogleMapsMania)

Watch this weekend’s solar eclipse in Google Earth

July 9, 2010

A few weeks ago, on June 26, there was a partial lunar eclipse for part of the world to see. This weekend, it gets even better with a full solar eclipse in the South Pacific on Sunday.
Michael at HeyWhatsThat.com has built a very impressive eclipse simulator using the Google Earth Plug-in. You can choose the eclipse that you want to view (like the upcoming “2010 July 11 Total Solar Eclipse”), then choose a place on the globe and a time to see what your view will look like.

Here is Michael’s his brief description of how it works:

I use two instances of the Google Earth plug-in, one showing the Earth and the other the sky. Set your location by clicking on the Earth, set the time by clicking on the green timeline, and start an animation by clicking on the timeline’s arrow. Use the dropdown menu on the bottom right to view other eclipses. (Note that the timeline shows your computer’s local time, not the time at the chosen viewer location.)

Here is a video of the simulator in action:

If you want to try it for yourself, just head over to his site

and explore. It’s a very impressive simulation, and is a great use of the Google Earth Plug-in.