17/02/2026
EYE SAFETY IS CRITICAL
Never look directly at the Sun without proper protection!
✅ Use ISO 12312-2 certified solar eclipse glasses
✅ Use a properly filtered telescope or binoculars (solar filter fitted in front)
✅ Use a pinhole projector for indirect viewing
❌ Do NOT use sunglasses
❌ Do NOT use smoked glass
❌ Do NOT look through unfiltered cameras, binoculars, or telescopes
🚨👁️WARNING‼️
Even a small partial eclipse can cause permanent eye damage if viewed incorrectly‼️
🌘☀️ HEADS-UP: Partial Solar Eclipse Over South Africa – 17 February ☀️🌘
🔊Swaicsans, let’s spread the word — share this post so everyone can safely witness this rare celestial event on 17 February. 🌑☀️
On 17 February, a partial solar eclipse will be visible from South Africa- weather permitting. This is a rare occurrence where the Moon passes between the Earth and the Sun, obscuring the Sun.
During a partial solar eclipse, the Moon, Sun, and Earth do not align in a perfectly straight line and the Moon casts only the outer part of its shadow, known as the penumbra, onto Earth.
This appears as though the Moon has taken a “bite” out of the Sun in the afternoon sky. The full eclipse, an Annular Eclipse, often called the “ring of fire,” ( when the Moon passes directly in front of the Sun but appears slightly smaller in the sky, leaving a bright ring of sunlight visible around the Moon’s dark outline) will only be visible from remote parts of Antarctica, but observers in South Africa will be able to witness the partial eclipse as the Moon obscures part of the Sun.
SANSA will use its new solar telescope to stream the eclipse live for viewers, offering a rare chance to witness the dynamic movement of our solar system in real time.
SANSA recently acquired the solar telescope, which will serve as a redundancy for observing the Sun in the SANSA Space Weather Centre. This event provides an opportunity to highlight the telescope’s capabilities.
SANSA will stream the eclipse, as viewed from the solar telescope at SANSA Hermanus on Youtube. You can watch it here: https://youtube.com/live/DfwhUn3OKIs?feature=share
This is a beautiful reminder of Earth-Moon-Sun alignment in action — celestial mechanics playing out above our heads.
The partial eclipse will begin at 14:01 South African Standard Time (SAST), reaching maximum eclipse at 14:23 SAST with about 5% solar coverage in the Western Cape. The partial eclipse will end at 15:24 SAST, with a full duration of 1 hour and 23 minutes.
⚠️ EYE SAFETY IS CRITICAL
Never look directly at the Sun without proper protection!
✅ Use ISO 12312-2 certified solar eclipse glasses
✅ Use a properly filtered telescope or binoculars (solar filter fitted in front)
✅ Use a pinhole projector for indirect viewing
❌ Do NOT use sunglasses
❌ Do NOT use smoked glass
❌ Do NOT look through unfiltered cameras, binoculars, or telescopes
🚨👁️WARNING‼️
Even a small partial eclipse can cause permanent eye damage if viewed incorrectly‼️
For a map on eclipse information, visit: https://www.timeanddate.com/eclipse/eclipse-tips-safety.html
This image shows what the maximum eclipse (14:23) will approximately look like in the Western Cape. (Image credit: timeanddate.com)
Credit to South African National Space Agency (SANSA) and timeanddate.com
