On March 29th at 6, 7 & 8 P.M., the Georgia Southern Planetarium is going to be projecting a show called “Totality” across the dome screen, to teach viewers about the astronomical occurrences of eclipses. Tickets are available now on the planetarium's event page.
Viewers can look forward to captivating animation and narration that features information and history about the study of eclipses, as well as guidance on how to safely view the upcoming solar eclipse.
Every purchase of a ticket to the show will come with a pair of Thousand Oaks Optical ISO (international standard) glasses that will protect your eyes and allow you to view the solar eclipse safely with proper use.
Dillon Marcy, the planetarium and astronomy lab coordinator, says protecting your eyes during a solar eclipse is very important, and he will be offering the best tips for doing so at the showing on March 29.
“Sunglasses do not count. Multiple sunglasses definitely do not count,” Marcy warned. He says we should be wary of fake ISO eclipse viewing glasses, as they will not protect your eyes from the harmful rays of the sun. He also warns against touching the lenses of your protective shades, as the oils from your hands could cause the film to break down.
Protecting your eyes from the sun’s rays is important even here in Georgia, where we will not be seeing a total solar eclipse, but rather a partial eclipse because we fall within the penumbral shadow. While the solar eclipse is an event we can predict, the weather is more difficult to pinpoint, and the clarity of the event is subject to whichever way the clouds blow around 3 P.M. on April 8.
Additional afternoon showings of "Totality" will be held the first week of April at the planetarium, with the opportunity to pick up a pair of eclipse glasses with your ticket.
Fingers crossed it's a bright, then shady, then bright day on April 8, where we get to see the partial solar eclipse with our protective eyewear!