Total Eclipse of the Sun 4/8/2024

This post covers the darkness of a total solar eclipse, and why it's so special. I've read some comments online (and heard some from people I know) that state things like "I can watch it get dark at night!" At a total solar eclipse, it's not just that it gets dark. It's the WAY it gets dark. People are often surprised how much the sun is covered before any change in light is noticed. At that point, the change is so subtle that you wonder if your eyes are fooling you. The sun is significantly covered when the changes in light are noticeable.  But even when 99% of the sun is covered, it's not very dark. The glare is basically gone by this point - you don't have to squint when looking at the landscape- but the brightness is still there. In that final 60 seconds or so, the light level drops VERY rapidly. There is nothing else in nature like it! The very best way to convey this is through video. Please take a look at my video of the 2017 eclipse:  https://w...

This. This right here. Please take 9 minutes out of your day (not necessarily today, but someday soon) to watch this inspiring story: https://shorturl.at/itKOY It features a woman named Liz who had stage 4 cancer and a 5 percent chance of living. Her daughter “imposed” a trip on her to see a total solar eclipse- as a “last hurrah” of her life. Liz wasn’t interested- she preferred “champagne and chocolates.” Watch the video to see the amazing result. Notice that neither one of them were one of the “geeky” eclipse chasers. THIS is the impact of a total solar eclipse. THIS is why I want people to put seeing a total solar eclipse someday on their bucket list, even if they can’t make it to this one in April. THIS is why I want you to take a look at this map:  http://xjubier.free.fr/tse2024map  , try your best to go between the red lines, and spread the word to your friends and family about it. Not everyone who witnesses a total solar eclipse has this level of reaction.  But th...

Today, I'll be covering the topic of choosing an observing location within the path of totality. You don't necessarily have to plan well in advance which exact location from which you'll watch the eclipse, but it might be a good idea to consider which factors are most important to you. Here are some things that you may want to think about:   Most Important   1.   (obviously!)   The observing location must be within the zone of totality. If you're outside the main shadow path (even by a short distance!) you won't see the sun completely blocked, and you'll wonder what the excitement was about. See my previous blog posts about this! As a reminder, the totality path is in between the red lines on this map, courtesy of Xavier Jubier:  http://xjubier.free.fr/tse2024map   2. (obviously!)  Make sure the location that you pick does not have something (hills, trees, tall buildings) that may block the Sun at eclipse time.  The Sun will be about 60...

Happy New Year to everyone! I hope that 2024 will have many blessings for you. So, we are now 3 months away from the solar eclipse! Here’s a bit of science on solar eclipses and how they happen. As we all know, the Moon orbits the Earth and the Earth orbits the Sun. But the Moon’s orbit around the Earth is tilted: meaning that it passes slightly above or below the Sun’s position in the sky in most months.  (see   https://moon.nasa.gov/moon-in-motion/phases-eclipses-supermoons/overview/ and   https://earthsky.org/space/why-is-the-moons-orbit-tilted-collisionless-encounters/ ) Occasionally, the path of the Moon does take it across the face of the Sun. When it does, somewhere on the Earth will see a solar eclipse. A partial eclipse takes place when the Moon covers part of the Sun. Partial eclipses take place over a very wide region. You have likely seen one. Sometimes, the Moon passes directly in front of the Sun, and you can either see a ring of sunlight surrounding the d...