Solar eclipse 2024: How astronomers are helping blind people “see” the eclipse

Many people in the US will have the opportunity to witness nearly four minutes of a total solar eclipse on Monday, April 8, 2024, as it moves from southern Texas to Maine. But in the United States, more than 7 million people are blind or visually impaired and you may not be able to experience an eclipse the traditional way.

Of course, they, like those with sight, will feel colder as the sunlight dims, and will hear the songs and sounds of birds and insects change as the light dims and becomes brighter. But much of an eclipse is visual.

Thanks to the Lightsound project team at Harvard University, hundreds of blind people will also have a device that will help them absorb this rare astronomical wonder.

“Just because a person can’t see doesn’t mean they can’t do astronomy,” said Harvard astronomer Allyson Barilla.

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Barilla first came up with the idea before the recent 2017 eclipse and teamed up with colleague Wanda Díaz Merced, who is a blind astronomer, to create a device that could use a light sensor to capture light and convert that data into sound.

“Wanda uses this for her research and this is how she thinks about the data,” Barilla said.

When the device interprets the eclipse light, it will use various instruments to connote the different phases. When the light is brighter, the device will play the sound of a flute.

Once the sky darkens, the device will only play a light click, so its users can hear and experience the eclipse in community with those around them.

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“We were trying to build 750 [devices]but we actually ended up building 900,” Barilla said.

LightSound devices have been shipped to libraries, museums, schools for the blind, and even people in their backyard, all ready to turn the sun into a symphony.

“I’m very happy and excited to have developed a tool that can provide access to a group of people that I think are sometimes left out,” Barilla said.