FLOYD COUNTY, Ky. (WMDJ) – It’s The Great American Eclipse today across America and although eastern Kentucky isn’t in the path of eclipse totality, those in our area will experience a partial solar eclipse of over 90%.
The timeline for today’s eclipse in Floyd and surrounding counties will begin at approximately 1:53 p.m. By 2:36 p.m. half of the moon will be passing in front of the sun. A peak of 92% totality will happen at 3:11 p.m. this afternoon. By 3:45 p.m. the sun will again be covered by half of the moon with the event ending by 4:26 p.m.
The total duration of the eclipse will be 2 hours, 32 minutes and 53 seconds.
The forecast is calling for cloudy skies, with partly cloudy conditions by later today. However, cloudy skies will hinder much of the viewing here locally.
This is the first solar eclipse in North American since 2017. The next total solar eclipse will happen in 2044.
Some things to know about today’s eclipse:
- Floyd County Schools are back in session today following Spring Break, however, classes will be dismissing at 12 noon so students can experience the eclipse at home.
- The East Kentucky Science Center and Varia Planetarium along with Big Sandy Community & Technical College is hosting an Eclipse Extravaganza from 12 noon until 5 p.m. today.
- If you have purchased eclipse glasses, please make sure those glasses indicate that they will block 100% of UV light, 100% of infrared and 99% of visible light. To test your eclipse glasses, hold them up to a regular light bulb. If any part of the bulb can be seen other than the actual light that his shining, they are unsafe to wear.
- Do not look at the eclipse without proper eye protection. You will be at serious risk of injury to look upon the sun during the eclipse for any amount of time with the naked eye.
