Total Eclipse
No, not of the heart, you Bonnie Tyler fans. It’s just like some people to make a big deal out of nothing at all. Here, I try to share about the sun in the sky and all y’all wanna do is rock out. Jeez, Louise, let’s try to stay on topic. Now, where was I? Oh yeah:
I’m talking about the upcoming
Total Solar Eclipse
This year, on August 21, we will have yet another Eclipse. This time, America will have an excellent chance to see it.
They put up a map of the path it’s going to take. Where I live, we’ll see about an 89% totality. Which means, of course, looking directly at it is not advisable.
Here’s the map:
(To see the interactive version, here’s the PDF file for download)
Now, according to NASA’s Total Eclipse website, “The first point of contact will be at Lincoln Beach, Oregon at 9:05 a.m. PDT. Totality begins there at 10:16 a.m. PDT. Over the next hour and a half, it will cross through Oregon, Idaho, Wyoming, Montana, Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia, and North and South Carolina. The total eclipse will end near Charleston, South Carolina at 2:48 p.m. EDT. From there the lunar shadow leaves the United States at 4:09 EDT. Its longest duration will be near Carbondale, Illinois, where the sun will be completely covered for two minutes and 40 seconds.”
How cool is that? I know there have been eclipses before and will be again. Different places have a view of the Totality each time. I think (I know, dangerous) this will be the most of one I will have experienced.
I have a glimmer of a memory from my childhood; while in school, an Eclipse Event neared. We were tasked with trying to make various Pinhole Viewers. Unlike the models of today, we were instructed to use a plain index card. I don’t remember it clearly, I only have little snippets of recall.
So, if you live in the US, get busy and get prepared. If you also happen to reside in the path of 100% eclipse, I am so jealous.
As always, comments, thoughts and reblogs are not only requested but appreciated. Do you have an interesting story about a previous viewing of an eclipse? I’d love to hear about it.
3 Replies to “Total Eclipse”
thanks for explaining – now I can enjoy all the more 🙂
I would think the best part would be in the area where they have the totality. When the moon blocks out the entire sun, stars will be visible that we can’t see normally. Not that I’ll be one of the ones to be able to view them, but there is a NASA site that will be streaming the live view, so there’s that.
Also, this is the first one to travel from the East coast to the West of the US in almost a hundred years and this is the first time the internet will help anyone who wishes to witness it to do so. That, in itself, is an exiting opportunity. 😀
to be honest, I’m a little confused about seeing the eclipse – I saw one in early 90’s, I think – sure, the whole idea is amazing — but where’s the fun in just looking at a shadow on a piece of paper. am glad not everyone thinks like me, tho – want all to appreciate nature & our place in it – thx for great post 🙂