Total Solar eclipse on 20 th March 2015? The total eclipse will only be visible in the Faroe Islands and Svalbard in Norway. Look for the tiny black shadow on the next slide!

Solar Eclipse

A partial solar eclipse will be visible from the UK from 0826 to 1041 on Friday 20 March a school day! It will be at maximum at More than 80% of the Sun will be covered by the Moon. A total solar eclipse will be visible from The Faroe Islands and Svalbard. The next time a decent partial eclipse will be visible from the UK of this magnitude will be 12 Aug After that the next total solar eclipse for the UK will be 23 Sept The previous one was the very cloudy day of 11 Aug It is the last total solar eclipse visible in Europe until the eclipse of August The eclipse occurs as the Sun rises at the north pole for the first time in six months.

Upcoming UK Solar Eclipses 20 March % of the Sun covered 10 June % 25 October % 12 August % 23 September % - total solar eclipse

The next total solar eclipse in the UK

Tips and ideas for viewing Do not look directly at the Sun at any time during a partial eclipse Do not look through binoculars or a telescope - you can cause very serious damage to your eyes Project the Sun onto a piece of card placed behind binoculars or telescope Measure the radioactivity in the direction of the Sun – the Moon should block some cosmic rays Contact a school at least 100 miles away and compare precise timings to calculate the distance to the Sun Observe what happens in nature Measure the light intensity e.g. Using the LuxMeter app Measure the temperature throughout

Moon Size Due to the Moon’s elliptical orbit

Solar Eclipse

Shadow of the Moon on Turkey and Cyprus, seen from the ISS during a 2006 total solar eclipse

Solar Eclipse Umbra Penumbra

 Why don’t we get a solar eclipse every month when the Moon goes between the Earth and Sun? The orbital plane of the Moon is tilted at 5 o so the new Moon is usually above or below the Sun in the sky

What are we going to look for? Temperature changes throughout Radiation changes Changes in light levels Changes in nature –Bird song? –Roosting behaviour? –Plants/ flowers? Observe a projected image of the eclipse

How to make a pinhole camera:

Project with 2 pieces of card When using any kind of pinhole projector, you should stand with your back towards the sun. Do not look at the Sun through the pinhole or through the paper.Do not look at the Sun You need: 2 pieces of plain white paper - the kind you use for printing is perfect. A thumbtack or a sharp pin. What to do: To make a quick version of the pinhole projector, take a piece of paper and make a very small hole in the middle of it using a pin or a thumbtack. Make sure that the hole is round and smooth. With your back towards the Sun, hold one piece of paper above your shoulder allowing the Sun to shine on the paper. The second sheet of paper will act as a screen. Hold it at a distance so that an inverted image of the Sun is projected on it through the pinhole. To make the image of the Sun larger, move the screen further away from the pinholed sheet.

Resources for cloudy day Explanation solar-eclipse.htmlhttp:// solar-eclipse.html Live online Viewing from SLOOH: planets-asteroids-webcasts.htmlhttp:// planets-asteroids-webcasts.html BBC stargazing live 2http:// 2