adplus-dvertising
Connect with us

News

‘Ring of fire’: Annular solar eclipse will be partially visible in Canada

Published

 on

File photo of an annular eclipse seen in 2012 in Denver, Colorado. David Zalubowski / Associated Press
Have any plans this weekend? If not, here’s something worth taking a peek at — a solar eclipse will occur across North America on Saturday, Oct. 14.

Unfortunately for Canadians, the eclipse — annular, not total, but more on that later — will track south of the border, though its sky-darkening effects will still be seen north of the 49th parallel.

Click to play video: 'Rare hybrid solar eclipse wows stargazers in Australia'

Rare hybrid solar eclipse wows stargazers in Australia

The eclipse’s path will start over the Pacific Ocean, west of Vancouver Island, then will track southeast.

It will make landfall in Oregon, just below Portland around 9:15 a.m. PT, eventually crossing seven other U.S. states before moving to Mexico and South America.

In Canada, the visual effect will vary greatly, but it will all be under the banner of being a partial eclipse. For example, in Vancouver and B.C.’s Okanagan region, locals will see roughly 80 per cent of the eclipse.

A map showing the path of the annular eclipse on Oct. 14, 2023. NASA

As one moves east, the effect diminishes.

Calgary will see around 70 per cent, with Regina at 60 per cent and Winnipeg at 50 per cent. Toronto will see 30 per cent, with Montreal at 20 per cent. The Atlantic provinces are at 10 per cent.

Now, about that annular note.

An annular eclipse differs slightly from a total eclipse in that the moon doesn’t quite fully block out the sun. As a result, viewers along the darkest part of the path will see a “ring of fire” around the moon.

Click to play video: 'Rising interest in supermoons and upcoming eclipse'

According to NASA, “because the moon is farther away from Earth, it appears smaller than the sun and does not completely cover the sun. As a result, the moon appears as a dark disk on top of a larger, bright disk, creating what looks like a ring around the moon.”

The best viewing would be along the 125-mile-wide path of annularity. But if you plan on travelling south to view the eclipse, it’s best to start looking for rooms now.

Global News phoned some hotels in the coastal community of Florence, Ore., which will be in the middle of the eclipse’s path when it makes landfall, and all said they were nearly booked, though a handful of rooms were available.

On a sidenote, the estimated time of darkness is four minutes and 30 seconds, with the path travelling an estimated 6,400 km/h (4,000 mph).

Click to play video: 'Solar Eclipse: What You Should Know'

Solar Eclipse: What You Should Know

A word of caution, though: if you plan on looking at the eclipse, special eye protection is advised.

“The sun is never completely blocked by the moon during an annular solar eclipse. Therefore, during an annular eclipse, it is never safe to look directly at the sun without specialized eye protection designed for solar viewing,” said NASA.

“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 will instantly cause severe eye injury.”

More information about eye safety during an eclipse is available at nasa.gov.

An interactive map from xjubier.free.fr is also available online.

A Canadian astronomy educator, Gary Boyle, says while solar eclipses are incredible events to view and photograph, they come with risk.

“Unlike a lunar eclipse where the moon slides into the Earth’s shadow, turning a burnt orange or coral colour and is completely safe to view, the sun is a far different story,” he said. “Protective measures must be applied to prevent eye and camera damage.”

He continued, saying “do not look directly at the sun without protective means,” and that with the right equipment, “eclipses are an awe-inspiring wonder of nature that can be enjoyed safely.”

In related news, while residents in eastern Canada won’t get much of a show, they’ll certainly get a great one in six months’ time when a total eclipse darkens the region.

More information about the eclipse on the afternoon of April 8, 2024 — which will cross into parts of Ontario, Quebec and the Atlantic provinces — is available online.

728x90x4

Source link

Continue Reading

News

RCMP end latest N.B. search regarding teenage girl who went missing in 2021

Published

 on

 

BATHURST, N.B. – RCMP in New Brunswick say a weekend ground search for evidence related to the disappearance of a teenage girl in 2021 didn’t reveal any new information.

In an emailed statement, the RCMP said 20 people participated in the search for evidence in the case of Madison Roy-Boudreau of Bathurst.

The release said the search occurred in the Middle River area, just south of the girl’s hometown.

Police have said the 14-year-old’s disappearance is being treated as a homicide investigation.

The RCMP said the search “did not reveal any new information regarding the circumstances of her disappearance.”

There are no plans for another search until police receive a tip or a lead pointing to a new search area.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 21, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

Source link

Continue Reading

News

Man Tasered after trespassing in Victoria school, forcing lockdown

Published

 on

 

VICTORIA – A middle school in Victoria was forced into a lockdown after a man entered the building without permission, and police say they had to use a stun gun to make an arrest.

Victoria police say officers received multiple calls around noon on Monday of an unknown male entering Central Middle School, leading staff to set off emergency procedures that put the building under lockdown.

Police say its emergency response team arrived within minutes and found the suspect, who “appeared to be in a drug-induced state,” in the school’s library.

A statement from police says the suspect resisted arrest, and officers had to use a Taser to subdue the man.

He’s being held by police and has been assessed by emergency medical staff.

Police say the man was not armed and there were no continuing safety concerns for students and staff following the arrest.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 21, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

Source link

Continue Reading

News

B.C. Greens’ ex- leader Weaver thinks minority deal with NDP less likely than in 2017

Published

 on

 

VANCOUVER – Former B.C. Green leader Andrew Weaver knows what it’s like to form a minority government with the NDP, but says such a deal to create the province’s next administration is less likely this time than seven years ago.

Weaver struck a power-sharing agreement that resulted in John Horgan’s NDP minority government in 2017, but said in an interview Monday there is now more animosity between the two parties.

Neither the NDP nor the B.C. Conservatives secured a majority in Saturday’s election, raising the prospect of a minority NDP government if Leader David Eby can get the support of two Green legislators.

Manual recounts in two ridings could also play an important role in the outcome, which will not be known for about a week.

Weaver, who is no longer a member of the Greens, endorsed a Conservative candidate in his home riding.

He said Eby would be in a better position to negotiate if Furstenau, who lost her seat, stepped aside as party leader.

“I think Mr. Eby would be able to have fresh discussions with fresh new faces around the table, (after) four years of political sniping … between Sonia and the NDP in the B.C. legislature,” he said.

He said Furstenau’s loss put the two elected Greens in an awkward position because parties “need the leader in the legislature.”

Furstenau could resign as leader or one of the elected Greens could step down and let her run in a byelection in their riding, he said.

“They need to resolve that issue sooner rather than later,” he said.

The Green victories went to Rob Botterell in Saanich North and the Islands and Jeremy Valeriote in West Vancouver-Sea to Sky.

Neither Botterell nor Valeriote have held seats in the legislature before, Weaver noted.

“It’s not like in 2017 when, you know, I had been in the (legislature) for four years already,” Weaver said, adding that “the learning curve is steep.”

Sanjay Jeram, chair of undergraduate studies in political science at Simon Fraser University, said he doesn’t think it’ll be an “easygoing relationship between (the NDP and Greens) this time around.”

“I don’t know if Eby and Furstenau have the same relationship — or the potential to have the same relationship — as Horgan and Weaver did,” he said. “I think their demands will be a little more strict and it’ll be a little more of a cold alliance than it was in 2017 if they do form an alliance.”

Horgan and Weaver shook hands on a confidence-and-supply agreement before attending a rugby match, where they were spotted sitting together before the deal became public knowledge.

Eby said in his election-night speech that he had already reached out to Furstenau and suggested common “progressive values” between their parties.

Furstenau said in her concession speech that her party was poised to play a “pivotal role” in the legislature.

Botterell said in an election-night interview that he was “totally supportive of Sonia” and he would “do everything I can to support her and the path forward that she chooses to take because that’s her decision.”

The Green Party of Canada issued a news release Monday, congratulating the candidates on their victories, noting Valeriote’s win is the first time that a Green MLA has been elected outside of Vancouver Island.

“Now, like all British Columbians we await the final seat count to know which party will have the best chance to form government. Let’s hope that the Green caucus has a pivotal role,” the release said, echoing Furstenau’s turn of phrase.

The final results of the election won’t be known until at least next week.

Elections BC says manual recounts will be held on Oct. 26 to 28 in two ridings where NDP candidates led B.C. Conservatives by fewer than 100 votes after the initial count ended on Sunday.

The outcomes in Surrey City Centre and Juan de Fuca-Malahat could determine who forms government.

The election’s initial results have the NDP elected or leading in 46 ridings, and the B.C. Conservatives in 45, both short of the 47 majority mark in B.C.’s 93-seat legislature.

If the Conservatives win both of the recount ridings and win all other ridings where they lead, Rustad will win with a one-seat majority.

If the NDP holds onto at least one of the ridings where there are recounts, wins the other races it leads, and strikes a deal with the Greens, they would have enough numbers to form a minority government.

But another election could also be on the cards, since the winner will have to nominate a Speaker, reducing the government’s numbers in the legislature by one vote.

Elections BC says it will also be counting about 49,000 absentee and mail-in ballots from Oct. 26 to 28.

The NDP went into the election with 55 ridings, representing a comfortable majority in what was then an 87-seat legislature.

Jeram, with Simon Fraser University, said though the counts aren’t finalized, the Conservatives were the big winners in the election.

“They weren’t really a not much of a formal party until not that long ago, and to go from two per cent of the vote to winning 45 or more seats in the B.C. provincial election is just incredible,” he said in an interview Monday.

Jeram said people had expected Eby to call an election after he took over from John Horgan in 2022, and if he had, he doesn’t think there would have been the same result.

He said the B.C. Conservative’s popularity grew as a result of the decision of the BC Liberals to rebrand as BC United and later drop out.

“Had Eby called an election before that really shook out, and maybe especially before (Pierre) Poilievre, kind of really had the wind in his sails and started to grow, I think he could have won the majority for sure.”

He said he wasn’t surprised by the results of the election, saying polls were fairly accurate.

“Ultimately, it really was a result that we saw coming for a while, since the moment that BC United withdrew and put their support behind the conservatives, I think this was the outcome that was expected.”

— With files from Darryl Greer

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 21, 2024.

Source link

Continue Reading

Trending