For a few precious minutes next Monday, countless Canadians may marvel as the sky darkens and the moon slips directly between the Earth and sun, a rare and remarkable spectacle in the cosmic ballet, not seen in much of Canada for decades.
“It is one of the most fascinating natural phenomena we can observe,” said astronomer Julie Bolduc-Duval in an interview with CTV News Monday. “It’s fantastic that we all get the chance to see it … for free, over our heads.”
But also remarkable are the myriad impacts that a celestial event like April 8th’s solar eclipse can cause, from an associated spike in traffic accidents along its path, to measurable effects on social interactions and the behaviour of wildlife.
Here are a few lessons we’ve learned from eclipses past, and something we’re hoping to better understand this time around:
Say ‘awe’
It’s no secret that eclipses can inspire wonder. But a team of researchers at the University of California, Irvine have found that the emotional impact of an eclipse is actually something that can be measured.
A 2022 data review encompassing millions of social media users during the 2017 solar eclipse showed a notable increase in what researchers called “prosocial, affiliative, humble, and collective language” among those in its path, compared to those outside it.
“Humans have looked toward the sky for inspiration and guidance for millennia,” the study reads. “Awe-inspiring astronomical events such as a total solar eclipse can arouse tendencies — from greater attention to one’s groups to motivations to care for and affiliate with others — vital to collective life.”
Further research found that users who displayed “elevated awe” during and around the eclipse were more likely to use that language, compared both to their own posts online from before the eclipse and less-awed users.
“I love to think about the fact that there will be millions of us looking at the sky at the same time,” Bolduc-Duval said. “There’s so many things kind of splitting, polarizing us, these days. But everyone will be looking up at the eclipse … that’s a really beautiful thought.”
Eyes on the road
While many will step away from their routine to take in the spectacle, many more will experience the eclipse as just another Monday afternoon, at and around rush hour, which could mean they’ll be behind the wheel.
A new study from the University of Toronto (U of T) and University of British Columbia (UBC) found that based on what the last North American total eclipse showed, fascinating visual phenomena and hurtling down the highway simply don’t mix.
“We found a significant increase in traffic risk in the U.S. around the time of the total eclipse,” lead investigator Donald Redelmeier said in a release from U of T.
Increased traffic, unfamiliar destinations and routes, disproportionate speeding and roadside stops may all factor into the spike, said Redelmeier, who drew a comparison with similar increases to risk around major holidays such as Thanksgiving.
“Clinicians might advise patients to respect speed limits, minimize distractions, allow more headway, wear a seatbelt, and to never drive impaired,” UBC co-investigator John Staples said in the release.
“More broadly, stakeholders should work toward a transportation system that minimizes traffic risks, tolerates human error, and optimized recovery after a crash,” Redelmeier said.
Animal abnormalities
For people across the continent, the eclipse is a long-anticipated event with plenty of warning and centuries of scientific research to help understand its context.
Animals, though, likely won’t get the memo.
Strange behaviour among wildlife has long been anecdotally reported during celestial events like eclipses, from nocturnal animals instinctually assuming that dusk has come early, to a more directionless, panicked response as it will be a totally novel experience for most animals.
For a study published in 2020, a team of U.S. researchers visited Riverbanks Zoo in Columbia, S.C., to monitor 17 species of mammals, birds and reptiles during the 2017 solar eclipse.
They found that roughly three in four of the species exhibited behaviour outside of the norm, with a majority flipping to their natural evening or nighttime routines, and five species, including gorillas, baboons, flamingos, giraffes and parrots, displaying anxious or fearful responses.
Researchers with NASA have also studied the impact of the eclipse on the animal kingdom, recruiting human volunteers for the 2023 partial eclipse and again for this April’s total eclipse to monitor the change in natural noise levels and other observations in their region, such as crickets chirping hours ahead of schedule.
The Eclipse Soundscapes Project, itself a revival of a 1930s study, is expected to feature more than 2,000 volunteers across North America this year.
“We are excited to invite the public to participate in this opportunity to perform real and meaningful scientific research as equal participants,” project co-lead Henry “Trae” Winter said in a press release.
Atmospheric waves
Next week’s event is expected to be a beautiful and jaw-dropping sight, but for those who study the atmosphere itself, it presents what could be a far-more exhilarating opportunity: controlled, predictable data.
Researchers at the University of Colorado Boulder (UCB) are planning to use their roughly two-minute window of the total eclipse to measure how solar radiation impacts the ionosphere, a layer of Earth’s atmosphere that stretches from 60 to 1,000 kilometres overhead, and is crucial to the planet’s radio signals.
The eclipse’s brief disruption to the flow of energy from the sun to Earth allows for unique conditions to learn the dynamics of the ionosphere, which may help scientists understand the implications of launching and maintaining satellites, manned missions to space and telecommunications around the world.
“The ionosphere is like a wavy surface in a pool, and by measuring the characteristics of the waves produced there, we can learn more about the pool and what can disturb it, when, and by how much,” researcher Terry Bullett said in a release from UCB.
Eesha Das Gupta, an astronomy researcher and graduate student at U of T, says eclipses have long offered research opportunities for a variety of disciplines and fields, including visual evidence supporting Einstein’s theoretical research.
But as someone with a lifelong obsession with astronomy, this time around is also a personal opportunity.
“I’ve experienced the total solar eclipse before, but I haven’t actually seen it,” she said in an interview Tuesday with CTVNews.ca, recalling a 2009 eclipse that was tragically obscured by storm clouds.
“I’ve checked the weather forecast [for April 8] so many times … I hope I’m able to see the sun; it’s not supposed to be storming.”
TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — A rare Bronze-Era jar accidentally smashed by a 4-year-old visiting a museum was back on display Wednesday after restoration experts were able to carefully piece the artifact back together.
Last month, a family from northern Israel was visiting the museum when their youngest son tipped over the jar, which smashed into pieces.
Alex Geller, the boy’s father, said his son — the youngest of three — is exceptionally curious, and that the moment he heard the crash, “please let that not be my child” was the first thought that raced through his head.
The jar has been on display at the Hecht Museum in Haifa for 35 years. It was one of the only containers of its size and from that period still complete when it was discovered.
The Bronze Age jar is one of many artifacts exhibited out in the open, part of the Hecht Museum’s vision of letting visitors explore history without glass barriers, said Inbal Rivlin, the director of the museum, which is associated with Haifa University in northern Israel.
It was likely used to hold wine or oil, and dates back to between 2200 and 1500 B.C.
Rivlin and the museum decided to turn the moment, which captured international attention, into a teaching moment, inviting the Geller family back for a special visit and hands-on activity to illustrate the restoration process.
Rivlin added that the incident provided a welcome distraction from the ongoing war in Gaza. “Well, he’s just a kid. So I think that somehow it touches the heart of the people in Israel and around the world,“ said Rivlin.
Roee Shafir, a restoration expert at the museum, said the repairs would be fairly simple, as the pieces were from a single, complete jar. Archaeologists often face the more daunting task of sifting through piles of shards from multiple objects and trying to piece them together.
Experts used 3D technology, hi-resolution videos, and special glue to painstakingly reconstruct the large jar.
Less than two weeks after it broke, the jar went back on display at the museum. The gluing process left small hairline cracks, and a few pieces are missing, but the jar’s impressive size remains.
The only noticeable difference in the exhibit was a new sign reading “please don’t touch.”
VICTORIA – The British Columbia government is partnering with a bear welfare group to reduce the number of bears being euthanized in the province.
Nicholas Scapillati, executive director of Grizzly Bear Foundation, said Monday that it comes after months-long discussions with the province on how to protect bears, with the goal to give the animals a “better and second chance at life in the wild.”
Scapillati said what’s exciting about the project is that the government is open to working with outside experts and the public.
“So, they’ll be working through Indigenous knowledge and scientific understanding, bringing in the latest techniques and training expertise from leading experts,” he said in an interview.
B.C. government data show conservation officers destroyed 603 black bears and 23 grizzly bears in 2023, while 154 black bears were killed by officers in the first six months of this year.
Scapillati said the group will publish a report with recommendations by next spring, while an independent oversight committee will be set up to review all bear encounters with conservation officers to provide advice to the government.
Environment Minister George Heyman said in a statement that they are looking for new ways to ensure conservation officers “have the trust of the communities they serve,” and the panel will make recommendations to enhance officer training and improve policies.
Lesley Fox, with the wildlife protection group The Fur-Bearers, said they’ve been calling for such a committee for decades.
“This move demonstrates the government is listening,” said Fox. “I suspect, because of the impending election, their listening skills are potentially a little sharper than they normally are.”
Fox said the partnership came from “a place of long frustration” as provincial conservation officers kill more than 500 black bears every year on average, and the public is “no longer tolerating this kind of approach.”
“I think that the conservation officer service and the B.C. government are aware they need to change, and certainly the public has been asking for it,” said Fox.
Fox said there’s a lot of optimism about the new partnership, but, as with any government, there will likely be a lot of red tape to get through.
“I think speed is going to be important, whether or not the committee has the ability to make change and make change relatively quickly without having to study an issue to death, ” said Fox.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 9, 2024.
The European Space Agency is fast-tracking a new mission called Ramses, which will fly to near-Earth asteroid 99942 Apophis and join the space rock in 2029 when it comes very close to our planet — closer even than the region where geosynchronous satellites sit.
Ramses is short for Rapid Apophis Mission for Space Safety and, as its name suggests, is the next phase in humanity’s efforts to learn more about near-Earth asteroids (NEOs) and how we might deflect them should one ever be discovered on a collision course with planet Earth.
In order to launch in time to rendezvous with Apophis in February 2029, scientists at the European Space Agency have been given permission to start planning Ramses even before the multinational space agency officially adopts the mission. The sanctioning and appropriation of funding for the Ramses mission will hopefully take place at ESA’s Ministerial Council meeting (involving representatives from each of ESA’s member states) in November of 2025. To arrive at Apophis in February 2029, launch would have to take place in April 2028, the agency says.
This is a big deal because large asteroids don’t come this close to Earth very often. It is thus scientifically precious that, on April 13, 2029, Apophis will pass within 19,794 miles (31,860 kilometers) of Earth. For comparison, geosynchronous orbit is 22,236 miles (35,786 km) above Earth’s surface. Such close fly-bys by asteroids hundreds of meters across (Apophis is about 1,230 feet, or 375 meters, across) only occur on average once every 5,000 to 10,000 years. Miss this one, and we’ve got a long time to wait for the next.
When Apophis was discovered in 2004, it was for a short time the most dangerous asteroid known, being classified as having the potential to impact with Earth possibly in 2029, 2036, or 2068. Should an asteroid of its size strike Earth, it could gouge out a crater several kilometers across and devastate a country with shock waves, flash heating and earth tremors. If it crashed down in the ocean, it could send a towering tsunami to devastate coastlines in multiple countries.
Over time, as our knowledge of Apophis’ orbit became more refined, however, the risk of impact greatly went down. Radar observations of the asteroid in March of 2021 reduced the uncertainty in Apophis’ orbit from hundreds of kilometers to just a few kilometers, finally removing any lingering worries about an impact — at least for the next 100 years. (Beyond 100 years, asteroid orbits can become too unpredictable to plot with any accuracy, but there’s currently no suggestion that an impact will occur after 100 years.) So, Earth is expected to be perfectly safe in 2029 when Apophis comes through. Still, scientists want to see how Apophis responds by coming so close to Earth and entering our planet’s gravitational field.
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“There is still so much we have yet to learn about asteroids but, until now, we have had to travel deep into the solar system to study them and perform experiments ourselves to interact with their surface,” said Patrick Michel, who is the Director of Research at CNRS at Observatoire de la Côte d’Azur in Nice, France, in a statement. “Nature is bringing one to us and conducting the experiment itself. All we need to do is watch as Apophis is stretched and squeezed by strong tidal forces that may trigger landslides and other disturbances and reveal new material from beneath the surface.”
The Goldstone radar’s imagery of asteroid 99942 Apophis as it made its closest approach to Earth, in March 2021. (Image credit: NASA/JPL–Caltech/NSF/AUI/GBO)
By arriving at Apophis before the asteroid’s close encounter with Earth, and sticking with it throughout the flyby and beyond, Ramses will be in prime position to conduct before-and-after surveys to see how Apophis reacts to Earth. By looking for disturbances Earth’s gravitational tidal forces trigger on the asteroid’s surface, Ramses will be able to learn about Apophis’ internal structure, density, porosity and composition, all of which are characteristics that we would need to first understand before considering how best to deflect a similar asteroid were one ever found to be on a collision course with our world.
Besides assisting in protecting Earth, learning about Apophis will give scientists further insights into how similar asteroids formed in the early solar system, and, in the process, how planets (including Earth) formed out of the same material.
One way we already know Earth will affect Apophis is by changing its orbit. Currently, Apophis is categorized as an Aten-type asteroid, which is what we call the class of near-Earth objects that have a shorter orbit around the sun than Earth does. Apophis currently gets as far as 0.92 astronomical units (137.6 million km, or 85.5 million miles) from the sun. However, our planet will give Apophis a gravitational nudge that will enlarge its orbit to 1.1 astronomical units (164.6 million km, or 102 million miles), such that its orbital period becomes longer than Earth’s.
It will then be classed as an Apollo-type asteroid.
Ramses won’t be alone in tracking Apophis. NASA has repurposed their OSIRIS-REx mission, which returned a sample from another near-Earth asteroid, 101955 Bennu, in 2023. However, the spacecraft, renamed OSIRIS-APEX (Apophis Explorer), won’t arrive at the asteroid until April 23, 2029, ten days after the close encounter with Earth. OSIRIS-APEX will initially perform a flyby of Apophis at a distance of about 2,500 miles (4,000 km) from the object, then return in June that year to settle into orbit around Apophis for an 18-month mission.
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Furthermore, the European Space Agency still plans on launching its Hera spacecraft in October 2024 to follow-up on the DART mission to the double asteroid Didymos and Dimorphos. DART impacted the latter in a test of kinetic impactor capabilities for potentially changing a hazardous asteroid’s orbit around our planet. Hera will survey the binary asteroid system and observe the crater made by DART’s sacrifice to gain a better understanding of Dimorphos’ structure and composition post-impact, so that we can place the results in context.
The more near-Earth asteroids like Dimorphos and Apophis that we study, the greater that context becomes. Perhaps, one day, the understanding that we have gained from these missions will indeed save our planet.
