Total Solar Eclipse: How Much We’ll See In Caldwell, When To See It

CALDWELLS, NJ — Excitement is building in the Caldwells for the April 8 total solar eclipse. And although the town’s residents aren’t among the 32 million Americans living in the “path of totality,” they can still catch a partial glimpse of the celestial rarity.

In the United States, the path of totality extends from Texas to Maine, but each of the 48 continental states will see some of the solar eclipse, which occurs when the moon slips between our bright star and Earth. See Related: You Must Protect Your Eyes, Regardless Of Eclipse Totality: What You Need

In Caldwell, the moon will cover about 90.6 percent of the sun at the peak of the eclipse, according to a NASA map that is searchable by ZIP code.

Here are the local details for Caldwell:

• Partial eclipse begins: 2:10 p.m.
• Totality begins: 2:51 p.m.
• Maximum: 3:25 p.m.
• Totality ends: 3:58 p.m.
• Partial ends: 4:36 p.m.

The total solar eclipse starts in Mexico, entering the United States in Texas and traveling through Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine, as well as small parts of Tennessee and Michigan, before entering Canada in southern Ontario through Quebec, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Cape Breton before exiting continental North America on the Atlantic coast of Newfoundland, Canada.

If you plan to take in the total eclipse of the sun on April 8, the right eye protection is crucial for safety. Sunglasses won’t cut it.

Except during the brief total phase of a total solar eclipse, when the moon completely blocks the sun’s bright face and only solar corona visible, it is unsafe to look directly at the sun without specialized eye protection to block harmful solar radiation, according or NASA. See Related: 2024 Great American Eclipse: What To Know

Amazon has a wide collection of NASA-approved solar eclipse glasses, and the American Astronomical Society has more vendors whose eclipse glasses have been certified as safe. Wherever you acquire protective eyewear, it should meet or exceed the international safety standard of ISO 12312-2:2015.

One other safe way to view the eclipse is with a do-it-yourself pinhole projector that shows the sun on a nearby surface. The American Astronomical Society has pinhole projector DIY instructions.

Eclipse chasers who plan to photograph the event or view it through binoculars or telescopes need to take precautions, too.

“Viewing any part of the bright Sun through a camera lens, binoculars, or a telescope without a special-purpose solar filter secured over the front of the optics will instantly cause severe eye injury,” NASA said.

Also, solar filters protect the camera’s imaging sensor as well as correct for the exposure, according to camera maker Nikon. See Related: How To Hear The Eclipse When It’s Unsafe To View It, Even With Protective Eyewear

This article contains reporting from the Patch national desk

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