HOLON: A solar eclipse will be visible from Israel at noon on Friday, though only some 7 percent of the sun’s surface will be covered by the moon. Residents of the north will see more of the sun covered than residents of the south.
The eclipse will be total in the far northern hemisphere. The longest period of total eclipse will be two minutes and 47 seconds off the coast of the Faroe Islands, some 300 kilometers east of Iceland, in the Norwegian Sea.
An eclipse occurs when the moon passes between the sun and the earth, blocking all or part of the sun. Friday’s eclipse will begin when the moon starts blocking the sun and casting its shadow over the western coast of Greenland and the northern part of the Atlantic Ocean. The eclipse will be most visible in the northern parts of Europe, as it moves from Greenland, north of Scandinavia and over the North Pole. The shadow will also be visible throughout North Africa, northwestern Europe and Russia.
Israel is near the edge of the visibility band.
“For there to be a total eclipse, it’s not enough for the moon to be new,” said Dr. Yigal Fatal, chairman of the Israeli Astronomical Association. “It also needs to be very close to the plane in which the Earth orbits the sun.”
The last solar eclipse visible in Israel was two years ago and the next one is expected in 2020.
Looking at the sun without protective gear can cause irreparable damage to the eyes. To view an eclipse safely, one must have protective glasses, like No. 14 welders’ glass or special spectacles. Another way is to “broadcast” the sun’s shape on the ground. Perforate a piece of cardboard or tin with a hole 1 millimeter in diameter and let the shape of the sun pass through the hole onto the ground.
The Israel Space Agency and the astronomical association will be conducting observation tours for the public, using special telescopes and featuring explanations of the phenomenon.
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