Annular Partial Solar Eclipse Watch Party Held at TAMIU
An annular partial solar eclipse watch party took place at Texas A&M International University (TAMIU) Saturday, October 14, 2023.
The event, which was free and open to the public, was held in front of the Sue and Radcliffe Killam Library.
“The exciting annular or ‘ring of fire’ solar eclipse that will be visible in Laredo is a not-to-be-missed event,” said Peter Davis, director of TAMIU’s Lamar Bruni Vergara Planetarium, “An eclipse is a rare, awe-inspiring celestial event that drastically changes the appearance of the two biggest objects we see in our sky, our Sun and Moon.”
TAMIU’s telescope observation of this eclipse included free protective eclipse glasses for the first 300 event attendees, noted Davis.
Davis emphasized the safety concerns of the event and cautioned spectators hoping to witness the spectacular event that they should take caution to use specialized eye protection like that given out at the Watch Party.
The 3-hour+ long event included several highlights during the following times:
- 10:24 a.m. – Partial Eclipse begins
- 11:53 a.m. – Annularity, or ring-shape, begins
- 11:55 a.m. – Maximum “Ring of Fire” shape is in effect
- 11:56 a.m. – Annularity, ring-shape, ends
- 1:34 p.m. – Partial Eclipse ends.
An annular solar eclipse happens when the Moon appears relatively smaller in the sky, so it does not fully cover the disk of the Sun, leaving a thin outer ring often called a “ring of fire,” Davis explained.
A narrow path of annularity stretches through eight U.S. states from Oregon to Texas.
Free posters with eclipse photos and information were available at the LBV Planetarium Office in the LBV Environmental Science Center, room 373A.
For more information about this annular solar eclipse, visit the Planetarium’s webpage at https://www.tamiu.edu/planetarium/index.shtml or NASA’s website at https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/eclipses/home/.
For additional information, contact Davis at 956.326.3128 or email peter.davis@tamiu.edu.
More TAMIU information can be found on the University’s website, tamiu.edu, and via social channels on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Threads, Twitter, and YouTube.
