On Monday, April 8th, North America will be treated to a rare and spectacular celestial event: a second total solar eclipse in just seven years. This particular eclipse is expected to be even more breathtaking than the last one, with viewers in the path of totality experiencing the light from the Sun being completely blotted out except for the corona for nearly four and a half minutes.
One such viewer who will have an extra special experience is those who are blind or visually impaired. Thanks to a device called LightSound, they will be able to experience the event in a way that others cannot. The LightSound device was created through a collaboration between Harvard astronomer Allyson Bieryla and astronomer Wanda Díaz-Merced, who herself is blind. Initially used to help members of the Blind and Low Vision community experience the 2017 solar eclipse in the United States, it has since been redesigned to improve sound quality and distributed in Chile and Argentina for the 2019 South American eclipse.
The device emits high-pitch musical tones when under normal light, with the pitch gradually dropping as the Moon blocks the Sun’s light. It emits a series of clicking noises when
