TORONTO, ONTARIO - Toronto will get a glimpse of a partial solar eclipse Wednesday afternoon, as the moon slides between Earth and the sun and briefly dims the sky. The event runs from 12:55 p.m. to 2:23 p.m., peaking at 1:40 p.m., with the moon covering roughly eight percent of the sun's disc over the city — enough to notice, but far short of the dramatic blackout seen elsewhere. That fuller spectacle, a total eclipse, will unfold along a path stretching from the Arctic near Siberia across the North Pole, eastern Greenland, Iceland, and into northern Spain. Within Canada, the best view belongs to Iqaluit, where the moon will block about 61 percent of the sun.
The Canadian Space Agency notes the partial eclipse will be visible from nearly every part of the country, though the exact timing and how much of the sun gets covered will shift depending on where you're watching from. The agency has published a map showing peak eclipse times for cities across Canada, and is reminding anyone planning to watch to have certified eclipse glasses on hand.
Anyone hoping to watch should take precautions: staring directly at the sun, even during a partial eclipse, can cause serious eye damage. Experts recommend certified eclipse glasses that meet the ISO 12312-2 safety standard, or building a simple pinhole projector — such as one made from a cardboard box — to view the event indirectly.
The eclipse isn't the only celestial event on the calendar this week. Later that same night, the Perseid meteor shower will reach its peak, with NASA estimating stargazers could spot 50 to 100 meteors an hour under clear, dark skies — giving the region a striking pairing of daytime and nighttime sky-watching within a single 24-hour stretch.