Keep in mind that the sun rises shortly after the peak of the eclipse in Switzerland (photo: shot at 08:09, Rhone Valley and Alps, Valais, 29 December)
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – Much of Europe will be able to view the partial solar eclipse Tuesday 4 January 2011, weather permitting. The Swiss federal health office has issued warnings to wear special eye protection and not to resort to homemade ones, if you plan to view the eclipse (animated preview). The eclipse will start at 07:54 in Geneva and end at 010:32, with the maximum magnitude at 09:09 (local time), but keep in mind that sunrise in Sion, Valais is only at 08:11 and in Geneva at 08:19 that day.
The weather forecast from MeteoSwiss is for partly sunny skies Tuesday, clearer in the Alps than on the plain or in the north of the country.
Eye warnings: children in particular should be protected against looking directly at the sun, especially as the damage to vision, permanent burning of the retina, is painless when it happens. Dark glass and sunglasses as well as older eclipse-viewing glasses or damaged ones should be avoided. Pharmacies and opticians sell certified “CE” label special glasses that are safe to wear.
Eclipse details for worldwide viewing, HM Nautical Almanac Office, UK
This work by genevalunch.com is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported.
News story, GenevaLunch, 30 December 2010.
Tags: 4 January 2011, dark glass, eye warnings, protection, solar eclipse, sunglasses, Switzerland
January 3rd, 2011 at 10:26 am
[...] Details and safety advice [...]
January 3rd, 2011 at 9:39 pm
So Europe will now see a partial solar eclipse already for the new year. Are there other methods toview the eclipse without really looking at it? I remember in school we made something out of paper, but this was only to see a shape on the paper, not to look at the eclipse.
January 3rd, 2011 at 9:53 pm
Your best bet is to head to a pharmacy and ask about special glasses.