This Sunday evening May 20th will be a feast for sky-bound eyes as a partial solar eclipse is expected early evening. Â Viewing from Griffith Observatory should be spectacular. Billed as the most extensive solar eclipse in LA since 1992, the moon will pass between the Earth and the Sun in the west-northwest sky with most moon-over-sun coverage happening at 6:38 pm.
The Griffith Park Observatory will be open all day from 10 am-10 pm and telescopes with proper filters will be set up on the lawn for viewing. Patrons may also purchase official Griffith Observatory Solarama viewing filters or Eclipse glasses from the gift shop. Â And yes, it’s still true: one should never look directly at the sun without proper eye protection.
Observatory staff will be on site to answer questions and give talks throughout the day. But with the prime time viewing between 5:24-7:42 pm expect some traffic bottlenecks in the area and limited parking. Observatory officials suggest taking the Metro Red Line to the Sunset/Vermont station and then hopping the weekend Observatory Shuttle from there for only 50 cents each way.
More detailed information from the planetary professionals:
Griffith Observatory: Public Viewing of the Partial Solar Eclipse
NASA: Eclipses During 2102 website
