April 8 eclipse

[David Thomas]

The Internet ruined eclipses.  In 1979, I knew of it months in advance because of my sister’s Astronomy magazines.  There were a lot of clouds around Walla Walla and the Tri-cities that morning, but we found a spot (on a highway and side streets with very light traffic) with clear skies to the east.  We were on enough of a rise to see the shadow of totality race towards us at 1000 mph.

In 2017, we drove to a small town along the path in Oregon at midnight and the family slept in the car until dawn.  Had we needed to reposition in the last hour, we’d have been unable to.  I’d have liked to remain for the hour after totality, but we left right after totality, rationalizing that the hour after is like the hour before.  So we were at the leading edge of returning traffic and it only took an extra hour to get back to PDX for our flight home.

Similar to selfies at iconic spots like Angel’s Landing or Half Dome, we former knowledge elites have lost our edge to social-media-driven users.

[Jerry Adams]

I saw this in 2017 – little eclipses all over the ground – pinhole cameras

[David Thomas]

Jerry: I took a 4×8 sheet of pegboard to an elementary school for a partial solar eclipse and made 4,608 light lunes on the ground.  But, yeah, gaps through the leaves serve as lens all the time – we’re just so used to the mostly circular pattern beneath the trees, we don’t realize it is imaging the sun’s disc until there’s a partial eclipse.

[John “Jay” Menna]

>I live in Austin. Finally I live in the right place for something I’d like to do outside!

I’ll buy you a beer on the patio at Billy’s on Burnet.    Thats outside.

[Thom]

It was an awesome experience. Sun  totally blocked by moon . Was very dark for like 3 minutes. Viewing was in N Ny ,near the Lawrence river.

thom

[David Hartley]

@Thom – glad you had good viewing. We ended up with pretty cloudy skies near Rochester – we only got the darkness with no ring of fire viewing. If I was a dedicated eclipse viewer I would have hopped in the car in the morning and drove the 3-4 hours it took to get to clear skies once the forecast was clear. We had very little in the way of eclipse traffic issues – I suspect people from out of town modified their plans or quickly left in the morning based on the forecast.

[Ray J]

In North Texas, we lucked out.  We were due clouds and the farther south, was to be worse.  We had plans to go south to a friends place which was almost directly under the totality path.  But with total clouds, we stayed home.  They had 4 minutes totality.   Here in N TX we had over 2 minutes.  It was great.  Clouds were flowing past and dissipating as the event went on. Small night bugs started flying when we were at 80 percent.  Bright flash as it reached totality, darkness, dappled light.  A few stars and a planet were visable.  Birds got quiet.  I laid on the ground for over an hour watching it move in and we watched until it was almost gone.  Wife used a chair but she could lean back for neck support.

[Murali C]

 

 

 

From Austin, Texas!

[Glen L]

Fantastic work Murali. You can be very proud of those fine images.

We didn’t get the full eclipse here but went out into a rugged off trail desert place that is very special with a amazing super bloom as well and captured some interesting images even though the sky was filled with high clouds. During and after few moments before and after an amazing halo surrounded the partially eclipsed sun for some photo drama and a small lens flair under the sun was in the shape of a mini eclipse. Yours are the real deal though. Thanks for sharing your work.

[bradmacmt]

[Jerry Adams]

Nice pictures Murial

I was too lazy to go anywhere.  I looked  at the sun with those glasses (don’t want to use the e word) before the event.  Then it got too cloudy.  Then it was clear again afterwards.  I think it was 30% in Portland so I didn’t miss much : (

2044 and 2045 are next events.  I’ll be 91 if I’m alive then.  2045 it will go through Redding CA.

I asked AI (gemini) when the eclipse was in Austin.  On April 6.  It insisted that the eclipse on April 8 had already happened so it wouldn’t tell me the time of eclipse.  When I corrected it, it apologized and then repeated the error.

[erez a]

I was doing the 2nd impassable zone at the lost coast trail and was so focused on the slippery rocks, i forgot to look. Don’t think it was much of an event in California

[jscott]

“Don’t think it was much of an event in California”

Here in Berkeley it was perfect eclipse weather! No fog or clouds, completely clear skies. During the event, it got a bit darker. Not so much as you’d notice if you didn’t know about the eclipse. And then it got imperceptibly brighter. Just like the last total eclipse that didn’t happen here.

My friend in Austin was delighted with the whole thing, but mostly because it brought everyone out to the park behind her house. She insisted that total eclipses happen all the time out over the ocean where no one sees them. Like, many times a year. I let that pass.  Maybe! what do I know?

[Russ W]

Bloomington, Indiana was perfect, mostly sun and very light and insignificant clouds.

It got darker and darker as I viewed through the glasses, and then you couldn’t see anything, so I removed the glasses and a full corona around the moon with tiny bubbles of plasma visible. Wished I had a lawn chair…still have a crick in my neck from looking up.

Not exactly a backpacking designation but a great experience!

[Nicholas P]

We had perfect weather here in Maine for the event (temps in the 60s  and clear) . We watched it from a random hill nearly smack in the middle of the path of totality, with a tremendous view of a  snowy mount Katahdin sparkling, imposing , luminous just to the south. It was quite the display however fleeting.
For me It was worth the 2 hour drive but if I would have had to travel a much greater distance , as spectacular as it was , I’m not so sure.

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