LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- People across Kentucky and southern Indiana will be in the sweet spot to see the total solar eclipse on April 8. But, you need to protect your eyes, and the special glasses could be hard to find.
WDRB Meteorologist Hannah Strong has a DIY alternative.
Start by making sure everyone knows it's not safe to look at the sun during the upcoming solar eclipse, so do-it-yourself viewers can give you a safe way to watch, if you can’t find eclipse glasses.
This version is especially great for kids!
You’ll need a cardboard box that's easy to work with -- like a cereal box. But a shoe box will also work, you just need something you can cut. You will also need tape, aluminum foil, and a needle or thumbtack to poke a tiny hole.
Now let’s put everything together. First cut two holes in the small side of your cardboard box. Each hole should only be a couple inches wide. If you’re using a cereal box, just cut the top flaps off to leave one large opening. Now cover most of the opening you just made with smooth aluminum foil.
You need to leave enough of an opening for your eye to look through. If you cut two holes in a different kind of box, cover the hole on the right side with aluminum foil and leave the left side open for your eye to look through.
Next poke one tiny hole in the aluminum. That’s it! Your pinhole viewer is now assembled!
Here’s how it works. You will stand with the sun at your back and look through the eye hole into the box. The sun behind you will shine light through the tiny hole you poked in the aluminum foil and project an image of its shape on the back wall of your box. You’ll watch the shape of the sun change as the moon moves in front of it all without every looking directly at the sun.
Total eclipse:Â
The eclipse will start in the Pacific on April 8 and first reach land over Mexico around 11:07 a.m. local time, NASA predicts. Then, it’ll cross over into Texas and move across parts of the Midwest and Northeast in the afternoon.
For much of the Louisville and southern Indiana area, the eclipse will start around 1:45 p.m. and will be at its max just after 3 p.m. The city of Seymour is ground zero to view totality. The city launched a website — SeymourEclipse.com — to help visitors and residents know where to go for the best glimpse as possible.
That line of totality runs from southwest to northeast, following a line including these cities:
- Dallas, Texas
- Little Rock, Arkansas
- Paducah, Kentucky
- Evansville, Indiana
- Cleveland, Ohio
- Erie, Pennsylvania
- Buffalo, New York
- Burlington, Vermont
A total eclipse will be visible within a 115-mile wide swath — the path of totality. Outside that path, you can still see a partial solar eclipse, where the moon takes a bite out of the sun and turns it into a crescent shape.
To learn more about the eclipse in Indiana, click here.Â
Eclipse coverage on WDRB:Â
You’ll be able to find all our Eclipse coverage on wdrb.com and some of that coverage involves you!
Do you have questions about the eclipse, how to watch safely, or how kids can participate? Send them to us! We will have a panel of experts answer your questions in one of our upcoming segments. You can send those to me on Facebook or X or you can email Hannah Strong: hstrong@wdrb.com
Related stories:Â
- Eclipse countdown | What's the difference between totality and partiality?
- Eclipse countdown | Louisville area prepares for total solar eclipse in our area on April 8
- University of Louisville offering class preparing students for 2024's total solar eclipse
- Southern Indiana city expecting 3 times its population to converge for 2024 solar eclipse
- Indiana DNR preparing for total solar eclipse in April 2024
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