Simulation of the October 14th eclipse. An inset shows the close-up view of the sun and moon at maximum coverage, 9:19am

Partial Solar Eclipse at the DAO

New! Friends of the DAO has selected local business AOT Technologies’ YepDesk application for event ticketing. Get your tickets when available right here on our events page!

Saturday Morning October 14th 2023 in the morning is the date and time for a partial eclipse in Victoria, and you're invited to come up to Observatory Hill to see it with us (but don't look at the sun)!

Annular Eclipse showing Ring of Fire

It's an Annular Eclipse, meaning that the moon is a little too far away to cover the sun's disk completely, leaving a Ring of Fire.

The true 'annular' eclipse (from the Latin annulus meaning "ring") is visible further south, but here in Victoria we will see a partial eclipse with about 79% of the sun covered. Victoria cloud cover permitting, of course.

But you'll get to see the eclipse virtually through our monitors and live streams which we'll have on our displays in the Centre of the Universe.

Partial and Annular eclipse do not block out the sun completely, so it is important that you DO NOT LOOK at the sun with naked eyes at any time. Instead we are providing for participants ISO 12312-2 certified Solar Safe eclipse glasses procured in collaboration with the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada.

Another annular eclipse scenario, where the moon’s disk is slightly smaller

The sun will be in the moon's shadow when it rises at 7:31am, and the maximum eclipse will be at 9:19am.

We will livestream video from the path of the annular near-totality in the Centre of the Universe so that even if it is cloudy in Victoria, as long as its clear somewhere on the annular path you will be able to see it.

The event will also feature

• Eclipse presentations
• Kids' activities and crafts
• Planetarium shows

Tickets for the event are available for individuals and families and the cost includes the eclipse glasses.

Refreshments will be available onsite.

Oh, and did we tell you not to look at the sun?

Click the button below to see the bifold brochure we’ll hand out for the event.