A rare total solar eclipse will cast a brief darkness and an orange glow across select areas of Australia - including Orange.
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In four years time, the phenomenon will traverse through northern parts of WA through NSW covering Orange, Dubbo and Sydney in its path.
Amateur astronomer from Orange, Gary Sanders is excited for the upcoming eclipse, describing it as a "phenomenal" and "rare" event.
"The Moon, Sun and Earth will align with each other blocking the face of the Sun," Mr Sanders said.
"On average it only happens in an area about once every 375 years.
"So, it's great for Orange to be in that location."
The total solar eclipse will last for approximately two minutes and thirteen seconds in Orange and the temperature will also drop about ten degrees during this time.
Mr Sanders started exploring astronomy in his teenage years and he's been fascinated by it ever since. A room in his house is dedicated for his telescopes, space-related books and his phone has every space app imaginable.
"We're a small, little grain of sand floating around this big universe, it's just amazing what's out there ... galaxies, nebulas and planets, it's just incredible."
Mr Sanders said on clear nights he can see galaxies from his property in west Orange.
"You can see the Milky Way out here and you can't do that in Sydney," he said.
"On a clear night, you can actually see the Orion Nebula, which is 1400 light years away."
Despite better visibility in comparison to Sydney, Mr Sanders said light pollution has been "building up" in Orange.
"There's more light at night which is unfortunate, as the darker it is, the more stars become visible," he said.
"It would be great If Orange council would have a policy of dark skies at night, so we can eliminate much wasted light."
This celestial event coincides with the completion of Orange's planetarium expected to be open by midway through 2026.
Mr Sanders hopes the facility will encourage space enthusiasts to gather and observe the eclipse.
"Hopefully when it's up and running they'll have the telescopes out there on the day and it will be a very cool event," he said.
The partial solar eclipse will occur in Orange on 22 July 2028 at approximately 12.36pm and will finish just after 3pm. The total solar eclipse will begin around 1.30pm and will last for approximately two minutes and thirteen seconds.
Orange is situated off-center of the solar eclipse corridor, so it will not receive the maximum total eclipse. Other Central West towns including Dubbo, Mudgee and Lithgow are closer to the centre, experiencing a slightly longer total eclipse.
