A ring of fire will show up in the daytime sky on Saturday, October 14 when the Annular Solar Eclipse takes place. We can expect around 60-70% of the sun to be blocked by the moon around the Ozarks. If you don’t have solar glasses to view the eclipse, there are still safe ways to watch the ring of fire.

A Kitchen Strainer

The easiest and possibly prettiest way to view the eclipse is through the shadows of a colander. Each of the holes in the colander act as a pinhole camera and you will see dozens of little images of the crescent sun on the ground. This allows you to watch the eclipse unfold safely.

Pinhole Projector

The box pinhole projector takes a little more crafting than grabbing the kitchen strainer, but it is an easy way to get the kids involved. You will need a box (a cereal or shoe box works great), white paper, scissors, aluminum foil, tape and a thumbtack.

Trace the bottom of the box onto the white paper. This will go inside the box.

On the top of the box, cut out two squares. The squares will be on each end of the box, leaving a flap in the middle. You will need to tape the middle piece shut.

Take aluminum foil and cover one of the open boxes. You will want to tape down the foil. The final step is to poke a small, pinhole in the aluminum foil.

To use the pinhole projector, stand with your back against the sun. Hold the open end to your eye, while allowing the end with the pinhole to be in the sun’s view. This will project an image of the eclipse on the bottom of the box.

Tree Leaves

Much like the kitchen colander, tree leaves can act as a pinhole projector. The filtered light between the leaves projects the progress of the eclipse onto the ground. To make the shadows stand-out more, try placing a white sheet or poster board on the ground.