As April 8th approaches, the Valencia High School Vikings  Band and Color Guard reflects on a memorable event from October 14, 2023 –  an annular solar eclipse.

During their regular Saturday morning marching band practice at the Valencia High School Football Stadium, the entire band and color guard rehearsal came to a halt to witness the annular eclipse, also known as a “Ring of Fire.”

Courtesy of Valencia Viking’s band and colorguard

Looking directly at the Sun during the eclipse can cause permanent eye damage, so many Valencia students wore eclipse glasses to view the event.

Courtesy of Valencia Viking’s band and colorguard

Others, including band director Kelvin Flores, used a pinhole projector constructed from two pieces of paper to safely view the eclipse.

The simplest and safest way to view the eclipse is to watch the Sun’s image projected onto a piece of paper and poke a small hole in an index card with a pencil point facing it toward the Sun, and hold a second card three or four feet behind it in its shadow.

Viewers can then see a projected image of the Sun on the second card.

Courtesy of Valencia Viking’s band and colorguard

The next solar eclipse, set to occur Monday, April 8, at about 11:07 a.m. PST. More information on the eclipse and its path can be found on the NASA website.

Courtesy of Valencia Viking’s band and colorguard

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