How To Build Your Own Eclipse Viewer

Transcript

00:00Ah, this is so cool!

00:06On August 21st, people across the United States will have a rare opportunity to catch a glimpse

00:11of a total solar eclipse.

00:14During an eclipse, the sun, earth, and moon align during the daytime so that the moon

00:19blocks the light of the sun, either partially or completely.

00:22Even during a total eclipse, looking directly at the sun can cause severe eye damage.

00:27So what are your options?

00:28Well, you could build a personal solar eclipse viewer, kind of like a movie theater for an

00:33audience of one.

00:34Here's what you'll need.

00:36A cardboard box, any type of shoe box will do, a piece of white paper, a pin or a needle,

00:41a piece of tinfoil, an X-Acto knife, and some tape.

00:45Let's get started.

00:46First, we're going to cut a small hole in the box about one inch across near the top.

00:52Next, we are going to cover that hole with a piece of tinfoil.

00:59Then we are going to poke a hole in the tinfoil right in the middle.

01:03So the pinhole is going to be your aperture.

01:05That's how the image of the sun is going to project on the inside of the box.

01:09So now we're going to tape a piece of paper to the inside, and that's going to be your

01:12projection screen.

01:13And we're taping it right across from the hole you just made.

01:16Now, the last thing you're going to need to do is cut a viewing hole, and you're going

01:19to do that on the side of the box that's adjacent to the screen and a little bit closer

01:24to your aperture.

01:25And you want your hole to be about an inch in diameter.

01:27So you have your viewing hole, your aperture, and your projection screen.

01:34Let's go test it.

01:35So to test your viewer, you're going to take it outside on a sunny day.

01:38Now, remember, don't look directly at the sun.

01:41You're going to hold up your viewer so that the aperture, the piece of tinfoil with the

01:44hole in it, that's facing the sun.

01:46Sun is going to project through that inside the box.

01:48And what you're going to do is you're going to look inside the viewing hole, and you will

01:53see a projection of the sun inside the box.

01:58I can totally see the sun.

02:00And so during a total eclipse, you'll be able to see the shadow of the moon moving across

02:04the sun and without frying your eyeballs.

02:07This is Mindy Weisberger for Live Science.

02:09Happy eclipse viewing.