UC will carry out special transmission of the eclipse from the Villarrica campus

This Monday, December 14, through the official YouTube channel of UC, a special program will be held from the UC campus located in the La Araucanía Region, a privileged place to observe the phenomenon.

This 2020, La Araucanía will be a privileged area to observe one of the most attractive natural events for people and especially for astronomers: a total eclipse. At around 1:03 p.m., the phenomenon can be fully appreciated, a time closer to noon , with the sun located at a height of more than 70 degrees above the horizon, which will allow it to be appreciated more imposingly versus the one we experienced in 2019 in Coquimbo . It will be two minutes where the sky will be completely dark.

However, this is a different year. The COVID-19 pandemic undoubtedly affected the possibility of appreciating a phenomenon like this for many families . In this context, from the Villarrica campus of the UC a special transmission has been prepared from the official YouTube account of the university , with the aim that people can enjoy this great milestone remotely.

In this regard, the director of the Villarrica campus, Gonzalo Valdivieso, invited you to join this broadcast, which will have different content related to the astronomical event. “We are one of the few communes in the country where the umbra or total darkening will be 100% visible. Therefore, we wanted to share this privilege through the YouTube UC channel, since we will be facing an extraordinary event that many of us will experience once in a lifetime, “ said the Campus Director.

The director also explained that it will be a special program, which will have the participation of academics and experts from different faculties, who will deliver information of interest, incorporating curious and entertaining data about this astronomical phenomenon. “We want to invite each and every member of the community to follow the transmission of the eclipse with their families. Also those who connect from abroad,” said Valdivieso.

13:03: the time of total blackout

Remembering memorable moments of previous eclipses visible from Chile, the transmission will begin on Monday at around 11:30 am with our university authorities.  Then, during the program, the psychologist and academic from the Villarrica Pelayo Benavides campus, will present on  the importance of looking beyond the sky at the time of the eclipse, of observing the environment, flora and fauna and their behavior during an astronomical phenomenon of this type.

Meanwhile, the also academic from the Villarrica campus Andrés Ried will be presenting on the relationship of these phenomena with tourism and the connection that people generate with nature thanks to it.

For their part, the academic and head of Research and Postdoctorates of the UC Astrophysics Institute, Ezequiel Treister, together with the academic of the campus María Isabel Lara, will take a tour of the Mapuche worldview and how they have experienced these phenomena since ancient times.

To this will be added interviews with prominent UC astronomers and academics such as Manuela Zoccali and Thomas Puzia, as well as capsules with interesting data about this phenomenon , its history and the great importance they have for the scientific world.

From approximately 12:45 p.m., when the moment of total darkness approaches, we will link up with the transmission led by the UC Astrophysics Institute from a camp that will place in the Villarrica Volcano at 1,400 meters high . The UC astronomers will carry out a transmission with a telescope and a high-powered lens, to capture images that will be shared with the United States Space Agency, NASA, and that will be relayed through NASA TV .

In addition, they will be sharing images from the  YouTube channel of the UC Institute of Astrophysics , to which is added a sonification of the eclipse, to give the possibility that blind people can also experience the sensation of this phenomenon .

It is important to highlight that the program will be subject to weather conditions and what may happen due to the difficult health crisis we are experiencing. Below you will find the link from which the entire event will be broadcast: