Where to view Monday’s solar eclipse in Joliet, Will County

A total solar eclipse is happening Monday, April 8, across the U.S., and there are opportunities in Will County to participate in public viewing events.

Joliet Junior College will provide the community an opportunity to safely view the eclipse from outside the Event Center on the Main Campus, 1215 Houbolt Road, Joliet.

The JJC solar viewing event will begin at 12:30 p.m. and conclude at 2:30 p.m. The eclipse will begin at 12:51 p.m., reach its maximum at 2:06 p.m. and end at 3:21 p.m. The moon will obscure 94.2% of the sun’s disk at maximum eclipse.

A limited number of solar eclipse viewers will be available, according to a news release from Joliet Junior College. Guests also will be able to view projected images of the sun using Sunspotter telescopes and a Sun Funnel on an 8-inch telescope. In addition, a specialized solar telescope will be available to view solar prominences, according to the release.

A LightSound device attached to a loudspeaker will be available for blind and visually impaired guests to experience the eclipse via sound. As the intensity of sunlight changes during the eclipse, the musical tone output by the device will change, according to the release.

Attendees are welcome to bring their own food and drink to this free event. Restrooms will be available inside the Event Center. In the event of rain or clouds, the event will move indoors to the Event Center.

More information is available by visiting jjc.edu or by emailing professor Noella Dcruz at ndcruz@jjc.edu.

The Forest Preserve District of Will County is offering three viewing parties.

Solar-bration: Solar Eclipse Viewing Parties are scheduled from 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. at the Goodenow Grove Nature Preserve in Crete Township, the Hickory Creek Preserve – LaPorte Road Access in Mokena and Whalon Lake in Naperville. The free, all-ages programs are timed to coincide with the total solar eclipse as it passes through Illinois, according to a release from the forest district.

The first 50 attendees at each program will receive free viewing glasses to safely view the event. The party also will include eclipse activities, marshmallow toasting and a roaring fire. If it’s cloudy or rainy, the viewing parties will not be held, according to the forest district.

Attendees should bring their own chairs or blankets. If you want to be even more prepared for the eclipse, check out a weekend Solar-bration: Get Psyched about the Solar Eclipse program that is scheduled from noon to 4 p.m. Saturday, April 6, and Sunday, April 7, at the Four Rivers Environmental Education Center in Channahon.

Registration is not required for the viewing parties or the weekend preparation program, the forest district said.

Safe viewing

The Illinois Department of Public Health is reminding everyone that you will cause serious and potentially permanent eye damage if you look directly at a solar eclipse. Dark sunglasses are not safe for viewing the sun.

”To directly view the eclipse, people must use special safe eclipse viewers, which meet the ISO 12312-2 international standard,” the IDPH said. “Check the link to see if your eclipse viewers meet this standard.”

You also can safely view an eclipse with a pinhole projection, according to NASA.

While residents in the Joliet area will see a deep partial solar eclipse, people in parts of western and northeastern Mexico, parts of the southern and Midwestern U.S. (including southern Illinois), and eastern Canada will experience a total solar eclipse in a path that is 115 miles wide.

During totality, the sun will be completely covered by the moon for up to four minutes and 28 seconds. NASA’s live feed of the total solar eclipse will be played in the Event Center (EC-1000 and 1001) during the event, according to the release.

A total solar eclipse will not occur again in the U.S. until 2044.