Solar Eclipse Grazes NYC

There was a Partial Eclipse in NYC & a Total Eclipse in Buffalo

April 9, 2024 / NYC Parks & Environment / NYC Neighborhoods / Queens Buzz NYC.

NYC Weather as of 4.9.24. Sunset 7.30 pm. Sunrise 6.24 am. Other than a forecast of nearly an inch of rain between 8 pm Thursday and 11 am Friday, the rest of the week should be dry. The temperatures will hit 70 today and possibly Sunday, otherwise in the 60's, while the lows will be in the 50's. The winds will range from 5 - 10 mph, except from the evening of Thursday, through Friday, and descending into the weekend. The humidity will rise through the week, until Friday when it hits about 60% and then begins dropping into a very dry Saturday [35%], before climbing on Sunday.

The image at right shows a number of New Yorkers out in the park observing the solar eclipse on Monday.

• CLICK here to read the rest of our report on NYC Solar Eclipse & NYC Earthquake.

Solar Eclipse Grazes NYC

There was a Partial Eclipse in NYC & a Total Eclipse in Buffalo

April 9, 2024 / NYC Parks & Environment / NYC Neighborhoods / Queens Buzz NYC. Continued.

Last Friday, April 4th, 2024 we made the following announcement.

Monday, April 8, 2024 from 2.51 - 3.58 pm there's a Solar Eclipse in NYC. The peak darkening period is at 3.25 pm. Be sure to take proper precautions 1) in evaluating any eyewear you use to view it, and 2) if you do view it, do so briefly, as staring at the sun can cause severe eye damage. The NY Public Library is handing out free solar eclipse glasses. For details copy & paste - https://www.nypl.org/press/new-york-city-public-libraries-distribute-free-solar-eclipse-glasses-safe-eclipse-viewing

Experiencing the Solar Eclipse in NYC

The solar eclipse was the talk of the town the past week. And it's likely to continue to be a subject of conversation running through the rest of the week. In NYC we had about a 90% eclipse [coverage] of the sun, but as folks who were out yesterday well know, 10% of sunlight, is still pretty light out. In fact, with a partial eclipse, such as the one we experienced, the amount of light out makes it kind of feel like a cloudy day.

Most spectators wore the special sunglasses, which greatly enhan ce the experience. Not just because the y protect your eyes, but because they filter out enough light for you to actually see the super natural phenomenon. As I photographed the folks looking up at the sun, I noticed they were vigilant in not staring up for very long, which can significantly damage one's eyes. So I reckon most folks came through the event no worse for the wear. I had checked with the local library around 3 pm for free sunglasses, which they had been handing out for about a week [possibly longer], but they had given them all away. The librarian told me that the last pair had been handed out that [Monday 4/8/24] morning.

Thankfully, one of my fellow spectators lent me his sunglasses, which I used to photograph the eclipse, as you can see in the photo at right. It's not as good as the photos I took in 2017, when I had spent more time preparing for the event, as well as covering it. Here's a link to the last solar eclipse in NYC in 2017.

The photo at right shows a shot of the solar eclipse through the special glasses, in NYC on Monday around 3.20 pm.

Buffalo Experiences a Total Eclipse of the Sun for 3 - 4 Minutes

In Buffalo they had a 100% eclipse, which darkened the skies for about 3 to 4 minutes. As you can see from the map at right, Buffalo was more directly underneath the path of the moon, than was NYC, which accounts for the difference.

Nonetheless, a great many folks came out to experience this very natural phenomenon, which won't occur again [as significantly] until August of 2044. The last time Buffalo had a similar eclipse was in 1925. This is not to say there won't be any solar eclipses between now and 2044, as solar eclipses happen every few years, but the moon does not block the sunlight nearly as significantly, as it did on Monday. And the sun is so powerful, that even 10% of unblocked sunlight is still an incredible amount of light.

The image at right was provided by NASA, showing the flight path of the solar eclipse darkening, which spans about 100 miles in width.

NYC Experienced an Earthquake on Friday

As long as we're talking about supernatural phenomena, let's touch on the earthquake that hit last Friday morning. On Friday, April 5th, 2024 we experienced an earthquake which registered 4.8 on the Richter Scale. The epicenter was in Whitehouse Station, NJ. Whitehouse is located along Interstate Highway 75 about halfway between here and Allentown, PA. The quake hit around 10.23 am on Friday, April 5th.

There's a 2% chance of a tremor within a week of the quake.

The photo at right shows NYC shortly after the peak period of the solar eclipse in NYC [around 3.30 pm] where one almost wouldn't know there's an eclipse in process, because even 10% of the light provided by the sun, is quite an abundance.

Have a good week. We have a lot of weekend events coming next weekend, so stay tuned.