The Next Eclipses

I feel it fitting to end this eclipse week with a preview of what to expect in the next few years.  There will not be a solar or lunar eclipse seen from Calgary for another five months.

On January 31, 2018 we will have a total lunar eclipse visible from Calgary.  This will be an eclipse for early morning risers.  As you go to work at 6:30am the eclipse will be at maximum.  The Full Moon will look like a soft pink orb setting in the western sky.

After this early morning eclipse we will not have the opportunity to see another until January 20 the next year.  This will be another total lunar eclipse peaking just after 10pm Sunday evening.

2020 will have a couple boring penumbral lunar eclipses similar to the one we had back in February.  See: 2017 Week 6: (February 5-11).  The 18 months between May 2021 and November 2022 will have three total lunar eclipses and one partial lunar eclipse.  Then, finally, another partial solar eclipse will occur on October 14, 2023!  It will be similar to the one we experienced this week.  However, there will be no zone of totality in the world.  It will be an annular eclipse.  Don't fret though, there will be a total solar eclipse 7 months later but another partial for us Calgarians.

Penumbral Lunar Eclipse

The 2024 total eclipse is interesting as the zone of totality again transits the United States.  It will move from SW to NE catching much of New Brunswick.  It will, however, miss downtown Toronto, Ottawa and Moncton by mere kilometers.  All you need to do is hop in a car and drive to the totality zone nearby.  The lucky residents of Montreal can sit in their own backyards and see the event for this one!  If you are a resident of Carbondale, Illinois you would have seen totality this past Monday and will again in 2024!  This earned it the nickname Solardale.

Partial Solar Eclipse

Our blog will now go back to its regular schedule of observing updates and weekly things to see in the sky for the casual observer.  Stay tuned as September has an amazing conjunction of three planets, a bright star and the Moon on the same day!  They will be in a line just longer than 10° in the sky!