On Friday 20th March, Europe will experience its largest solar eclipse since 1999, plunging Northern Europe into darkness for about three minutes as the moon passes before the sun. But, what does this matter to us? Legend, myth and folklore suggest that it is a sign of bad omen. Historically, the birds have been known to stop singing, confused by the apparent transition between day and night.

However, despite the reservations of our ancestors, in present day the phenomenon opens up this fascinating field to inquisitive minds.  I caught up with Catherine Halliwell, a teacher from Nonsuch High School for Girls and an inspirational amateur astronomer to explain Friday’s event.

“A solar eclipse is when the alignment of the moon, the sun and the earth is such that the new moon moves across the sun and for the observer on the earth it fully covers the sun. The best place to view the partial solar eclipse would be in the far north in the Faroe Islands or in Svalbard. Where in fact, it won’t be a partial solar eclipse but a total solar eclipse.”

Depending on location, it will occur at different times due to the orbits of the moon and the Earth, “In Cheam, the best time is between 8:30 and 10:40.  At 8:31 we will have first contact, which is when the new moon will start to come across the sun. Only 84% of the sun will be covered but, that will be at 9:31. The moon will then pass across the sun and final contact will be just after the bell has rung at 10:41.”

But of course, no matter how spectacular it may be, ill-advised viewing can also be dangerous- the sun emits infrared radiation that can burn the retina of the eye. The Astronomy and Physics staff at Nonsuch have made sure that they have taken extra precautions so that the students may enjoy the event and study the science behind it. “The safest way at Nonsuch is to come to the field between 9 and 10 o’clock. We will have a solar telescope to observe the eclipse, 150 pairs of solar eclipse glasses, many pinhole cameras and a variety of different ways to project the sun so that we don’t have to directly look at it.”

As with any Astronomical event, the Eclipse can be seen as a gateway for anyone to be introduced to the subject- however, humanity has always had an interest with the stars.

“When I was about seven my aunt gave me her Girl Guide handbook, it was a great big handbook and when I opened it a double page opened up and it was a map of constellations. I opened that book thousands of times and looked out of my bedroom window at the skies. I was fascinated. That’s when I first started looking at the skies, realising that there is something more out there. I like the fact that the field’s moving really quickly. Even my GCSE syllabus every day is challenged because there are brand new discoveries. I’m so excited that all the matter in the universe is created by a star that went supernova. It really messes with my head because as a chemist it’s my fundamental interest of how all the matter interacts to make up our universe.”

I asked Catherine Halliwell about one of her most memorable experiences, “In 2004, I’d just become a teacher. I went into teaching a little bit later in life, and the school I was working at got a scholarship to send two of their members of staff to the Kennedy Space centre Florida for a week’s teacher training. During that, I got to put on James Lovell’s gloves and his helmet from the Apollo 13 mission. They’re usually left behind on the moon but of course, Apollo 13 had trouble on the way to the moon and had to return without landing. I wore his gloves and his helmet that he should have worn on the moon!”

It is important, especially in such a rapidly evolving field that students are exposed to events such as these. Speaking of the girls at Nonsuch she says, “They’re thrilled! Students keep stopping me in the corridors, staff too, about their excitement at seeing this once in a lifetime opportunity. This won’t happen again in Europe to this level of partial solar eclipse until 2090 so this truly is a once in a lifetime experience.”

 

By Savannah Howard, Nonsuch High School for Girls