Image of a 2017 Total Solar Eclipse as viewed at the Northern Cascades National Park. Photo by NASA/Bill Ingalls. Photo courtesy of NASA.
By: Lydia Crawley
The Parsons Advocate
A Partial Solar Eclipse will be viewable from Tucker County on April 8th. The Eclipse will be able to be viewed in the County starting just before 2 p.m. with the Time o f Maximum coverage to be around 3:16 p.m. The event is part of a larger Total Solar Eclipse that will be passing over Mexico, the U.S. and Canada.
According to NASA, it is not safe to look directly at the Sun without specialized eye protection during the event. NASA also warns that regular sunglasses are not safe safe for viewing a solar eclipse. NASA also warns against viewing the sun through a camera lens, telescope, binoculars or an other optical device while wearing eclipse glasses or using a handheld viewer as the the concentrated solar rays can burn through the filter and cause serious eye injury. “When watching the partial phases of the solar eclipse directly with your eyes, which happens before and after totality, you must look through safe solar viewing glasses (“eclipse glasses”) or a safe handheld solar viewer at all times,” NASA said.
The NASA website has a listing of manufacturer of ISO 12312-2 compliant viewers at https://eclipse.aas.org/eye-safety/viewers-filters . NASA also suggests inspecting viewers prior to use to check for tears, wear, scratches or any other damage and if damage is found, the device should be discarded and not used during the Eclipse. NASA also recommends supervising children while viewing the event. “Eclipse glasses are NOT regular sunglasses; regular sunglasses, no matter how dark, are not safe for viewing the Sun. Safe solar viewers are thousands of times darker and ought to comply with the ISO 12312- international standard. NASA does not approve any particular brand of solar viewers,” NASA said.
NASA recommended an indirect viewing method if individuals do not have eclipse glasses or a handheld viewer. This method, according to NASA, does not involve looking directly at the sun or sky and involves the use of a pinhole projector or other indirect method. NASA provides instruction on how to construct a pinhole projector and other related information on their website https://science.nasa.gov/eclipses/future-eclipses/eclipse-2024/.
While the Eclipse will not be at totality in the Tucker County area, the following cities will be the closest to see the Full Solar Eclipse: Columbus, Springfield, Akron, Dayton and Maysville in Ohio or Indianapolis and Bloomington in Indiana.
The following small towns are also in the path of totality for the eclipse: North Vernon, Versailles, Seymour, Scottsburg, Salem, Harrison, and Fairfield in Ohio. Big Oaks National Wildlife Refuge in Ohio will also be in the path of totality.
The following is the Eclipse schedule for the Tucker County area.
| AREA | TYPE OF ECLIPSE | ECLIPSE COVERAGE | PARTIAL ECLIPSE BEGINS
(edited to exclude seconds) |
TIME OF MAXIMUM COVERAGE |
| Auvil | Partial | 93.14% | 2:00 p.m. | 3:16:53 p.m. |
| Benbush | Partial | 92.83% | 2:00 p.m. | 3:17:10 p.m. |
| Canaan Heights | Partial | 92.55% | 2:00 p.m. | 3:17:15 p.m. |
| Coketon | Partial | 92.77% | 2:00 p.m. | 3:17:10 p.m. |
| Cortland | Partial | 92.45% | 2:00 p.m. | 3:17:14 p.m. |
| Davis | Partial | 92.66% | 2:00 p.m. | 3:17:13 p.m. |
| Dryfork | Partial | 92.27% | 2:00 p.m. | 3:17:03 p.m. |
| Elk | Partial | 92.46% | 2:00 p.m. | 3:17:02 p.m. |
| Gladwin | Partial | 92.43% | 2:00 p.m. | 3:17:01 p.m. |
| Hambleton | Partial | 92.77% | 2:00 p.m. | 3:16:56 p.m. |
| Hannahsville | Partial | 93.31% | 2:00 p.m. | 3:16:53 p.m. |
| Hendricks | Partial | 92.73% | 2:00 p.m. | 3:16:57 p.m. |
| Hovatter | Partial | 93.35% | 2:00 p.m. | 3:16.53 p.m. |
| Jenningston | Partial | 92.36% | 2:00 p.m. | 3:17:05 p.m. |
| Laneville | Partial | 92.17% | 2:00 p.m. | 3:17:11 p.m. |
| Leadmine | Partial | 93.02% | 2:00 p.m. | 3:17:06 p.m. |
| Parsons | Partial | 92.85% | 2:00 p.m. | 3:16:53 p.m. |
| Pierce | Partial | 92.86% | 2:00 p.m. | 3:17:11 p.m. |
| Pleasant Run | Partial | 92.76% | 1:59 p.m. | 3:16:45 p.m. |
| Porterwood | Partial | 92.80% | 1:59 p.m. | 3:16:51 p.m. |
| Red Creek | Partial | 92.35% | 2:00 p.m. | 3:17:05 p.m. |
| Shafer | Partial | 93.07% | 2:00 p.m. | 3:17:08 p.m. |
| St. George | Partial | 93.08% | 2:00 p.m. | 3:16:54 p.m. |
| Thomas | Partial | 92.76% | 2:00 p.m. | 3:17:11 p.m. |
| William | Partial | 92.87% | 2:00 p.m. | 3:17:13 p.m. |
