Be prepared for the total eclipse this afternoon, which will block about 75 percent of the sun on the Mississippi Gulf Coast this afternoon.
The eclipse will last about three hours, from noon to 3 p.m., and will peak for about two or three minutes at about 1:30 p.m., according to TimeAndDate.com, which provides eclipse details for every city in the U.S.
If you haven’t gotten your solar eclipse glasses yet, it’s not too late. NASA has came up with a low-tech and cost-friendly idea to make sure people can still view the eclipse while also preserving their eyesight. Using some items you can find around the house, you can make a pinhole projector, which allows you to see a reflected image of the event.
Materials
Cereal box
Paper
Aluminum foil
Pencil
Tape
Scissors
How to make it
Trace the bottom of a box on paper.
Cut out the rectangle.
Tape paper to inside bottom of box. (If you can’t tape the paper to the bottom of the box, you can just place it there – it should stay securely in place.)
Close the top of the box.
Cut two holes in the top of the box.
Cover one hole with foil.
Poke a small hole in the middle of the foil.
How to use it
Take your pinhole projector outside and face away from the sun so that its light shines into the pinhole.
Look through the hole you did not cover and you will see the sun projected on the white piece of paper inside the box.
