Partial eclipse of the heart

In case you haven’t heard, a little celestial event will be taking place across the country on Mon., Aug. 21. But unless you’ve booked a place to stay somewhere in the narrow 70-mile swath of this rare once-in-a-lifetime total solar eclipse, which roughly arcs across the country from Oregon to South Carolina, you’re out of luck. For Coloradans, the closest places for viewing the total eclipse are in Wyoming and Nebraska.

But skygazers in Southwestern Colorado won’t be completely left in the dark. According to NASA, we (as well as about 100 million others) will get to see a little more than 80 percent of the sun eclipsed by the moon during what is being called the “Great American Eclipse.” The prime viewing times locally will be between 10:20 a.m. and 1:10 p.m. MST, with max obscurity at about 11:40 a.m.

For those lucky enough to live in the northern latitudes, you may faintly remember school teachers pricking a hole on a piece of paper through which to watch the last total solar eclipse in North America, which took place over the Northwest and Canada in 1979. The last time an eclipse was visible across the entire country was in 1918 – way before those funny 3-D eclipse glasses were invented.

So, it’s easy to see why sky geeks and astronerds alike are getting their telescopes in a wad over this one. But if you plan on sneaking a peek, better snatch up those special glasses now. The website www.greatamericaneclipse.com contains a wide array of eye-protection, from the sci-fi cheapies ($10) to more fashionable wraparounds ($19.95) and even “sun-oculars” ($129.) And sorry, even though you paid a pretty penny for them, your Ray- Bans and Smiths won’t do the trick.

Of course, all this could be a moot point in the event that Mother Nature chooses to obscure our typically sunny skies that morning. But despair not. Another solar eclipse will take place almost directly over our heads on Aug. 12, 2045. Book your rooms now.