Organize your own eclipse watch party in Montréal on April 8th

The last time this happened in Montréal was 1932, and the next one to come to southern Quebec will be 2106. Suffice to say: this will be the only time you’ll see one in our city.

But there are a few gotchas for Montréal. The time is inconvenient, and you need to be in the right part of the city to see it. If you’re planning an eclipse watch party with family and friends, this article will get you ready.

Location

This is important: not all of Montréal will experience the total solar eclipse.

To see the Moon fully block out the Sun, you need to be in the “path of totality”. This is the shadow created by the Moon over Earth during a solar eclipse, and it’s a narrow band that will pass over parts of Mexico, USA, and Eastern Canada.

The path of totality cuts through the island of Montréal. If you’re in the red part (like Laval and some northern parts of the island), you won’t get the full experience.

If you’re in the blue part, you’re set! But if you’re on the very edge, we recommend trying to find a spot “deeper” in so you get more eclipse time.

There will be several free watch parties going on in the city, such as Montréal Science Center in Old Port, and a free event in Parc Jean-Drapeau.

Time

This will happen Monday, April 8th in the afternoon. The entire process takes a few hours, but here’s the highlights:

• 2:14 p.m.: the Moon begins to partially block out the Sun
• 3:05 p.m.: it begins to start getting visibly darker
• 3:26 p.m.: totality
• 3:28 p.m.: totality ends
• 4:36 p.m.: Moon finishes blocking out the Sun

What you need

To look at the eclipse safely, you must have eclipse glasses. Never look at the Sun without them.

Some events like the Montréal Science Center and Parc Jean-Drapeau will be giving out free pairs of glasses. However, it will be crowded there, and if you want to make sure you’re all set, buy some eclipse glasses beforehand.

Recommended party plan

If you’re doing an event with friends, we recommend everybody take the afternoon off. It will be busy, so leave lots of time to arrive where you need to be. Have everybody together at about 2:00 p,m..

Starting at 2:14 p.m., have everybody outside with their eclipse glasses. Start looking at the Sun, and you’ll notice a little “bite” being taken out of it.

On April 8, this “bite” will be in the bottom-right.

Every 5 or 10 minutes, have folks take a look at the Sun again and notice how much more the Moon has blocked the Sun.

At about 3:00 p.m., start gathering everybody outside. This is when it gets really interesting. It will begin to get visibly darker. The temperature might even drop off a few degrees.

At about 3:15 p.m., look around at the horizon. You’ll notice a 360° sunset as it continues to get darker.

The Sun will continue to get more and more blocked by the Moon. Keep those glasses on as you look at the Sun.

Then, at 3:26 p.m., the Moon will completely block out the Sun! As soon as it goes dark, you can take off your eclipse glasses. What you’ll see is an unforgettable sight. It’ll look like a black hole in the sky, surrounded by the flares of the Sun.

At the bottom-right, you’ll see a bright dot. That’s the planet Venus! In the top-left, you’ll see Jupiter.

Soak this moment in. Take a quick photo if you’d like, but I highly recommend you try to be in the moment as much as you can.

In Montréal, we’ll see this for about 90 seconds. Slowly, the Moon will move and it’ll get light again. Put your eclipse glasses back on and see what the eclipse looks like now.

After this, the Moon will slowly cover less and less of the Sun. The climax is over, but you and your friends can now talk about the incredible experience you just had.

For complete info, you can visit MontrealEclipse.com.