To get a sharper image, people can cut a square in one of the pieces of paper or cardboard, tape a sheet of aluminum foil over the square hole and poke a pinhole in the foil. Facing away from the sun, people can hold the cardboard or paper with the hole in it and allow the sun to project an image through the pinhole onto the other paper. The best way, Fraknoi says, is to make a pinhole projector by taking two pieces of thick paper or cardboard and making a clean pinhole in one. On their own, viewers can use special glasses or create a way to project the sun to view the eclipse. The Chabot Space & Science Center will be open to viewers at 1:45 p.m. The Foothill College Observatory in Los Altos Hills will open at 2 p.m. Other eclipses go without notice among a majority of the population, Burress said. READ MORE: Clearlake Teen Connerjack Oswalt Found Safe In Utah Nearly 3 Years After Disappearance Burress added that most eclipses are partial eclipses and Bay Area residents and visitors may see the earth’s sunlight dim Thursday. “They don’t happen every day,” said Ben Burress, staff astronomer at the Chabot Space & Science Center in Oakland. and end at 4:32 p.m., according to astronomers.Īn eclipse of the sun happens when the moon gets between the sun and Earth and covers up some or all of the sun. The eclipse will begin in the Bay Area at 1:52 p.m. At 3:15 p.m., about 40 percent of the sun will be covered, the maximum amount that will be covered in this event. The best time to view the eclipse locally is between 3 p.m. He said the eclipse will look “like a giant black bite being taken out of the sun.” “It’s really a fun event,” said Foothill College astronomer Andrew Fraknoi. Observers Warned To Not Stare At The Sun During Partial Solar Eclipse Over Bay Area.READ MORE: Alameda County Courtrooms Reopening To Public For First Time Since Start Of Pandemic Many observatories, science centers and colleges in the Bay Area are holding viewing parties where people can view the eclipse using a filter or other protective equipment. He advised viewers to find a spot with an unobstructed view of the southwest horizon.(CBS SF) - On Thursday afternoon, Bay Area residents and visitors will be able to view a partial eclipse of the sun in the southwestern sky, but experts warn that looking at the sun for more than a glance without proper protection or a filter can damage eyes. It will look red because of how the molecules in the Earth’s atmosphere filter out the shorter wavelengths of blue light emanating from the Sun, he said.īy the time the partial phase of the eclipse ends, shortly before 6 a.m., the moon will have gone out of sight behind the western hills for most viewers in the Bay Area and the sky will have started to lighten.įor those hoping to get a look at the “supermoon” eclipse, there’s no need to get away from bright urban areas, Burress said. Though the moon, Earth, and Sun will be aligned during the total eclipse, slivers of sunlight will still peek around the Earth and reflect off of the shadowed moon, Burress explained. It can take on an almost 3D look to it, like you can reach up and grab it with your hand,” he said. The moon “seems to go very dark and glow dark red. Though the totality of this eclipse will be short, it’s “still very beautiful,” said Burress. It will look “like a little bite has been taken out of a cookie,” said Burress. But by 2:45 a.m., viewers will see the moon start to creep into the shadow of the Earth.