Shuji Kajiyama / AP, file
An annular eclipse is viewed from a waterfront park in Yokohama, Japan, near Tokyo, Monday, May 21, 2012. On Saturday, Oct. 14, 2023, an annular solar eclipse _ better known as a ring of fire _ will briefly dim the skies over parts of the western U.S. and Central and South America. Proper protection is needed throughout the eclipse, from the initial partial phase to the ring of fire to the final partial phase.
Friday, Oct. 13, 2023 | 3:57 p.m.
NV Energy’s solar production will be quashed for about three hours Saturday as the moon blocks between 80% and 90% of the sun’s rays throughout Nevada during an annular solar eclipse, the utility said.
The moon will cross in front of the sun during the eclipse, which will last from roughly 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. It will peak around 9:26 a.m. in the Las Vegas area.
“You’re going to feel it,” said Alex Hoon, a meteorologist for NV Energy. “It’s going to get visibly darker; it’s going to look like early morning or even sunset. You might feel a change in the temperature.”
The moon will cover about 90% of the sun in Northern Nevada, giving people in cities like Elko, Ely, Winnemucca and Battle Mountain the best views of the eclipse. For the rest of the state, between 80% and 85% of the sun will be obscured.
Hoon said solar panels in Nevada, whether they’re in the middle of the desert or on someone’s rooftop in Las Vegas, would all be affected by the darker conditions.
“They’ve been looking at this for the last couple of months and planning how they’re going to make sure that we keep the power on even when the sun gets blocked out of the sky,” Hoon said.
Vernon Taylor, NV Energy’s director of trading operations, said when the eclipse begins and solar energy starts to wane, the utility’s natural gas plants will ramp up production to make up the difference. As the eclipse ends, solar power will return and natural gas will ramp back down.
“Throughout the rest of the day we should see an increase in our hourly load, and then it’s basically back to a normal Saturday in October as far as our commitment and dispatch of units,” Taylor said.
Natural gas fueled 56% of the state’s electricity in 2022, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. That same year, renewables accounted for 37%, which was mostly solar.
NV Energy also gets electricity produced by geothermal energy plants in Northern Nevada, hydroelectric output from the Hoover Dam and a 10-megawatt hour battery system that stores solar power. The batteries typically charge throughout the morning and discharge in the evening during peak demand hours. Using power generated from the batteries in the morning during the eclipse would be an unusual move.
“We have a very flexible portfolio mix that is there and ready to meet all conditions,” Taylor said.
Hoon said anyone planning on viewing the ring-of-fire eclipse — so named because a bright, blazing border will appear around the moon as it blots out the sun — must remember not to look directly at it without protective eclipse glasses. Generally, sunglasses aren’t enough to prevent eye damage. Proper protection is needed during the eclipse, from the initial partial phase to the ring of fire to the final partial phase.
There are other options if you don’t have eclipse glasses. You can look indirectly with a pinhole projector that you can make yourself, including one made with a cereal box.
Cameras — including those on cellphones — binoculars, or telescopes need special solar filters mounted at the front end.
The bright, blazing border will appear around the moon for as much as five minutes, wowing skygazers along a narrow path stretching from Oregon to Brazil.
A total solar eclipse on Aug. 12, 2045, will be the next to be visible from Nevada, Hoon said. Next year’s total eclipse, which occurs April 8, will not touch the state.
“These eclipses are fairly rare for Nevada,” Hoon said.
— The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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