A rare and very special event, an annular eclipse of the sun, will be visible along a track through New Mexico at mid-morning on October 14, 2023, the last Saturday of this year’s International Balloon Fiesta!
Albuquerque is in the exact spot to see the sun become a perfect ring of light (when viewed safely). Get ready for this amazing experience; it won’t be visible again in New Mexico until 2077!
There are special viewing events and more at the NM Museum of Natural History & Science, and at UNM’s Department of Physics & Astronomy…
AT THE NEW MEXICO MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY Before the Eclipse:
Attend a pre-eclipse talk at the Museum to find out what to expect and how to view it safely – Thursday, October 5 – 5:00-5:50 pm in the Planetarium. Free with museum or planetarium admission.
Monday-Friday. October 9-13 – every day Noon-3:00 pm:
Gear up for the big day with “Solar Family Afternoons” at the Museum. Hands-on activities, eclipse planetarium show, solar viewing, and a special short talk by a special guest NASA solar expert. There will be a different guest speaker each day who will speak on his or her solar research, information about the sun and upcoming eclipse, or other topics such as the ancestral record of sunwatching in Chaco Canyon.
All activities, including the short talk, are free with museum or planetarium admission.
Saturday, October 14, AT THE NM MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY:
9:00 am-2:00 pm — View the annular eclipse from the Museum grounds and come inside to view the event through monitors linked to our own observatory and to NASA live feeds from around the country. Participate in hands-on activities about the Sun and the NASA missions that are intended to study the Sun. Walk on the Moon with our one-of-a-kind lunar floor map and talk with experts from NASA’s Lunar Reconnaisance Orbiter mission. (The Sun and the Moon are both part of the eclipse story!)
Viewing from outside the Museum on Oct 14 is free. Viewing, activities, and continual planetarium presentation from inside the Museum on Oct. 14 are free with regular museum admission.
Note: no regular planetarium shows scheduled for that day.
The New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science is located at 1801 Mountain Rd NW, Albuquerque, NM 87104.
https://www.nmnaturalhistory.org
The full eclipse period extends from approximately 9:15 am to Noon with total annularity at 10:34 am that lasts a little over 4 minutes. At no time during this entire time period is it safe to look directly at the sun without protection.
AT THE UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO:
To celebrate such a rare sighting here in New Mexico, the Department of Physics & Astronomy is planning a viewing party, UNM Enchanted Eclipse 2023, during the morning of Saturday, October 14 at UNM’s Johnson Field.
The event starts at 8:30 am MST on October 14. Learn all about solar eclipses, enjoy activities, and view this spectacular event together. Receive an early pair of Eclipse Viewing Glasses with a gift of $15 to the new Campus Observatory. RSVP Here.
10:36 am is the PEAK for 4 min and 48 seconds. The full size of the moon will cover most of the Sun. Only a small ring of the sun will remain visible. This is sometimes called the ‘ring of fire’. The eclipse will be over at 12:09 pm.
- You can get free eclipse glasses and field maps at tables on the southwest side of Johnson Field
- We’ll show you how to use pinhole cameras to view the eclipse
- Light games: learn how astronomers determine the makeup of the sun by splitting light into its color components, and how we use polarized light to learn about Earth’s atmosphere (bring your polarized sunglasses!)
- The sunny side of eclipses and eclipses on other planets: find out what astronomers are learning about the Sun during solar eclipses, and what eclipses outside the Solar System tell us about other stars and their planet
- Experience the eclipse with all your senses: “see” the Solar corona with your hands, hear the eclipse progress with our solar eclipse sonification devices, and use your own body to experience the celestial body alignments that give rise to eclipses
- Eclipse photography: Get tips on how to safely take pictures of eclipses from an expert photographer
- Group solar viewing tents
- Telescopes for safe solar viewing will be set up throughout the field
- Enjoy a solar system walk along Redondo Drive
- Support our goal of a new Campus Observatory for UNM
Location: UNM Johnson Field, just off Central Avenue at the University of New Mexico.
physics.unm.edu/?_gl=1*k7fmu0*_gcl_au*OTg2MzI3MTg2LjE2OTYzOTM3NTU.
On Saturday, October 14, parking is free on city streets off campus.
On campus, pay station parking at $1.75/half hour is available on Redondo Drive and at the Cornell parking structure.