NASA Funds 3 Citizen Science Projects To Study 2024 US Solar Eclipse

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration had provided funding for three science teams so that they can conduct citizen science investigations as a total solar eclipse is expected to sweep across North America on April 8, 2024.

Experts said that the total solar eclipse would cross North America, passing over Mexico, the United States, and Canada.

Safety During Solar Eclipse

Usually, a total solar eclipse happens when the moon passes between the sun and earth, completely blocking the face of the Sun.

The sky will then darken as if it were dawn or dusk and those standing in the path of totality may see the sun's outer atmosphere, or the corona, if and when the weather permits.

Authorities advised that safety is the number one priority when viewing a total solar eclipse.

The public is advised to ensure that they are familiar with when they need to wear specialized eye protection that is designed for solar viewing. They should review the safety guidelines for this phenomenon.

Experts said that except during the brief total phase of a total solar eclipse, when the moon completely blocks the sun's bright face, it is not safe to look directly at the sun without specialized eye protection for solar viewing.

They strongly warned that viewing any part of the bright sun through a camera lens, binoculars, or a telescope without a special-purpose solar filter secured over the front of the optics would instantly cause severe eye injury.

When watching the partial phases of the solar eclipse directly with the eyes, which happens before and after totality, one must look through safe solar viewing glasses ("eclipse glasses") or a safe handheld solar viewer at all times.

Experts explained that eclipse glasses are not regular sunglasses; regular sunglasses, no matter how dark, are not safe for viewing the sun.

They said that safe solar viewers are thousands of times darker and ought to comply with the ISO 12312-2 international standard. So far, NASA does not approve any particular brand of solar viewers.

It is advised to always inspect the eclipse glasses or handheld viewer before using them; if torn, scratched, or otherwise damaged, the said device must immediately be discarded.

Experiments, Observations

In these experiments and observations for the total solar eclipse, volunteers will help study the sun and its ethereal outer atmosphere, called the corona, which is revealed when the oon completely covers the sun's bright disk.

The experiments include the DEB Initiative: Documenting the Corona Moment by Moment, CATE 2024: Capturing Polarized Views of the Corona, and the Eclipse Megamovie 2024: Recording Dynamics Across the Corona.

The said project aims to expand the efforts during the 2017 total solar eclipse, this time including observation sites outside the path of totality where part of the solar disk will remain visible.

Images from these locations are expected to reveal the source of solar material later observed as outflows in the corona, allowing the team to trace them back to their origins on the sun.

Total solar eclipses not only reveal the sun's corona but this phenomenon can also show the thin layer of the sun's atmosphere just below the corona, called the chromosphere.

This project will enlist citizen scientists to explore and characterize how superheated gas (plasma) flows through the corona and chromosphere, as well as through the jets, or tendrils of plasma, in those regions.