Update: Due to weather forecasts, the Adler Planetarium announced Friday it has canceled its outdoor viewing event. Meteorologist Tom Skilling will still greet guests in the museum’s Cosmic Cafe (free admission).
A partial solar eclipse will be visible in the Chicago area this Saturday — if clouds and weather cooperate — and the Adler Planetarium wants to help you watch.
The eclipse will be visible beginning at 10:37 a.m. Oct. 14 in the Chicago area, according to the Adler, reach its peak at 11:58 a.m. and last until 1:22 p.m. A solar eclipse occurs when the moon passes between Earth and the sun, casting a shadow on Earth. At the height of this eclipse, about 43% of the sun will be covered as seen from Chicago.
The planetarium will host Eclipse Encounter ’23, a free outdoor event (weather dependent) on the Museum Campus. Telescopes fitted with solar filters will be set up around the museum grounds to view the eclipse safely, solar viewers will be given out as supplies last and Adler staff and volunteers will be on hand — as will WGN meteorologist Tom Skilling.
As in past solar eclipses, it could be dangerous for your eyes to view the eclipse without solar viewers. According to NASA, “looking directly at the sun is unsafe except during the brief total phase of a solar eclipse, when the moon entirely blocks the sun’s bright face, which will happen only within the narrow path of totality.” The 2023 eclipse will not have a moment of totality. Looking directly at the sun can burn your eyes’ retinas and cause potentially permanent vision impairment.
Inside the museum (standard admission from $19), the Adler has brought back and refreshed its “Chasing Eclipses” temporary exhibition, which was originally created for the 2017 total solar eclipse in Chicago.
If you can’t make it to the Museum Campus, a special edition of the Adler’s “Sky Observers Hangout” show on YouTube will stream beginning at 10:15 a.m. with a live viewing of the eclipse.
Again, all weather permitting. Current AccuWeather forecasts predict a strong chance for rain and cloud cover for the Chicago area on Saturday.
If it’s a rainout, take heart. The next total solar eclipse visible in the United States will be April 8, 2024. In Chicago, 94% of the sun will be covered, according to the Adler, with totality occurring in southern Illinois and places further south.
Adler Planetarium, 1300 S. DuSable Lake Shore Drive; more information at adlerplanetarium.org
dgeorge@chicagotribune.com
