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Not anymore! Guess I didn't listen all the way through during my edit.
There were enough breaks and thinness in the clouds here in Hampshire, Illinois to see the Partial Solar Eclipse, including during its greatest magnitude of 89% at 13:18 CDT. Of course I used eclipse glasses with the recommended ISO number. I've seen partial solar eclipses before, so not all that special, but the live shots of the Total Solar Eclipse on TV have been breathtaking.
I bought 30 eclipse glasses in March at less than $1 each and still have some for the 2024 APR 08 eclipse. The duration of totality in 2024 will be longer than today's and the trek for totality will be shorter: Indianapolis. I'll be 78, and may let my Model 3 take me there autonomously.
If we miss that one, there will be one that crosses much of Chicago on 2099 SEP 14. I'll be 153, so I'll have to keep eating my Wheaties.
I bought 30 eclipse glasses in March at less than $1 each and still have some for the 2024 APR 08 eclipse. The duration of totality in 2024 will be longer than today's and the trek for totality will be shorter: Indianapolis. I'll be 78, and may let my Model 3 take me there autonomously.
If we miss that one, there will be one that crosses much of Chicago on 2099 SEP 14. I'll be 153, so I'll have to keep eating my Wheaties.
swaltner
Active Member
I hope everyone's eclipse plans panned out. It was worth the effort.
I flew with a friend from the local Van's Aircraft builder's club in a plane that he built. Three other planes from the same group piloted by their respective builders made the trip as well. In the Midwest, the forecasts were all garbage. We even thought about ditching the planes and just driving because of the chance of bad weather. Late yesterday, forecasts improved marginally, so we made the final decision for Aurora, NE.
We left the Wichita area right after sunrise, flying around a few rain storms on the way up. Heavy cloud cover in Kansas, but clear once we got into Nebraska. As we waited for totality to start, several other planes arrived, some of which had been at some of the alternate destinations that we ruled out.
Halfway between C1 and C2, clouds came in. Couldn't see the sun at all for a while. Would come and go. Some considered trying to fly west, but not many options at that point, so we took our chances and stayed put.
Cloud rolled in at 10 minutes to totality, then with less than 5 to go, we got a lucky break in the clouds and were able to see the total eclipse. Such a cool sight to see!
I recently purchased a Meade Coronado PST telescope which is a Hydrogen-Alpha telescope for safe viewing of the sun. This was a enjoyed by 25+ folks at the airport, both before and during the eclipse. I hadn't figured out the photography with my DSLR and the Coronado, so we all just enjoyed looking directly through the telescope. This is a great toy for any science buffs out there. It produces cool images of the sun.
On the way up and back, saw heavy traffic on the highways that looked like an evacuation (traffic only in one direction), which was kind of funny. Had a quick 1.5 hour flight home instead of the (no traffic conditions) 4 hour drive.
I'll be putting in vacation time for the next total solar eclipse visible in the US on April 8, 2024 once I get back to the office. For THAT eclipse, I'll have my airplane complete and be able to easily fly myself to anywhere in the path of totality. I don't think I'll start flying around the globe in search of eclipse viewings, but you can't pass them up when they're in your backyard. Book your vacation time now!
I flew with a friend from the local Van's Aircraft builder's club in a plane that he built. Three other planes from the same group piloted by their respective builders made the trip as well. In the Midwest, the forecasts were all garbage. We even thought about ditching the planes and just driving because of the chance of bad weather. Late yesterday, forecasts improved marginally, so we made the final decision for Aurora, NE.
We left the Wichita area right after sunrise, flying around a few rain storms on the way up. Heavy cloud cover in Kansas, but clear once we got into Nebraska. As we waited for totality to start, several other planes arrived, some of which had been at some of the alternate destinations that we ruled out.
Halfway between C1 and C2, clouds came in. Couldn't see the sun at all for a while. Would come and go. Some considered trying to fly west, but not many options at that point, so we took our chances and stayed put.
Cloud rolled in at 10 minutes to totality, then with less than 5 to go, we got a lucky break in the clouds and were able to see the total eclipse. Such a cool sight to see!
I recently purchased a Meade Coronado PST telescope which is a Hydrogen-Alpha telescope for safe viewing of the sun. This was a enjoyed by 25+ folks at the airport, both before and during the eclipse. I hadn't figured out the photography with my DSLR and the Coronado, so we all just enjoyed looking directly through the telescope. This is a great toy for any science buffs out there. It produces cool images of the sun.
On the way up and back, saw heavy traffic on the highways that looked like an evacuation (traffic only in one direction), which was kind of funny. Had a quick 1.5 hour flight home instead of the (no traffic conditions) 4 hour drive.
I'll be putting in vacation time for the next total solar eclipse visible in the US on April 8, 2024 once I get back to the office. For THAT eclipse, I'll have my airplane complete and be able to easily fly myself to anywhere in the path of totality. I don't think I'll start flying around the globe in search of eclipse viewings, but you can't pass them up when they're in your backyard. Book your vacation time now!
dhanson865
Well-Known Member
Home in 2017 for me was 99.9% totality, I could have walked my neighborhood to hit totality a few streets over but for so little time I would have worried about trying to sneak a sans glasses viewing.
I drove less than a hour in traffic to get to a spot with 2:18 totality. Putting up with several hours more traffic each way could have gotten it to 2:38. I didn't think 2-6 hours was worth 20 seconds. Happy that I drove the few miles needed to get 2 mins+.
End result was perfect clear skies at my viewing site. Warmer than I'd like but we had access to a bathroom and traffic was light vs other venues. All in all about as well as I could have hoped for it to turn out.
Looking at spots with 4 minutes plus in 2024 would make a drive seem more worth while. But even then I'd sacrifice 20 seconds totality for clear skies and a clean exit.
I drove less than a hour in traffic to get to a spot with 2:18 totality. Putting up with several hours more traffic each way could have gotten it to 2:38. I didn't think 2-6 hours was worth 20 seconds. Happy that I drove the few miles needed to get 2 mins+.
End result was perfect clear skies at my viewing site. Warmer than I'd like but we had access to a bathroom and traffic was light vs other venues. All in all about as well as I could have hoped for it to turn out.
Looking at spots with 4 minutes plus in 2024 would make a drive seem more worth while. But even then I'd sacrifice 20 seconds totality for clear skies and a clean exit.
Near Madras Oregon. An indescribable experience. Worth the 550 mile trip and getting up at 4AM today to make sure to not get caught in traffic (there was none to speak of).
Thanks for sharing your experience
- What is C1, C2?
- I was wondering if the best place to watch the eclipse is from the plane over the clouds, but then I guess you need to have a glass window on the plane ceiling because the sun would be high in the sky. if the eclipse happens sometime morning or evening then I guess a plane above the clouds is a perfect option.
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Didn't bring my Tesla, but I'm in Salem, OR. Here are a couple of pics. Actually it's the same picture but contrast enhanced differently.
We went from Vancouver to Oregon to see the eclipse. What an amazing experience. I read so much about it but to experience it in person is really awesome. To see the surroundings change from yellowish to greenish and then BOOM dark. In the distance you see light. It was so much cooler and a bit more windy. Amazing to see the corona and see Venus pop-up. Through my binoculars I saw Mercury as well, a planet which usually so difficult to see due to its proximity to the Sun.
Then suddenly, a bright streak of light appeared, like a diamond glittering as the Sun reappeared, and the colour of the surroundings changed in reversed order.
This was the most breathtaking natural phenomena I experienced and -- perhaps -- I will ever experience. I now say everyone should see a solar eclipse once in their lifetime. The difference between 99.9% and 100% makes a world of difference. It really is worth a journey..
Then suddenly, a bright streak of light appeared, like a diamond glittering as the Sun reappeared, and the colour of the surroundings changed in reversed order.
This was the most breathtaking natural phenomena I experienced and -- perhaps -- I will ever experience. I now say everyone should see a solar eclipse once in their lifetime. The difference between 99.9% and 100% makes a world of difference. It really is worth a journey..
SDRick
Active Member
It's like driving 99% of the way to Disneyland.
dhanson865
Well-Known Member
C1 = start of partial eclipse.
C2 = start of total eclipse.
in between C2 and C3 there is a point of maximum eclipse
C3 = end of total eclipse.
C4 = end of partial eclipse.
I visited my brother in Portland Oregon the weekend before, then we drove at 4:30AM from Portland down to Aumsville, OR. It was close to the center line, but also well situated to get back on the highway heading north after totality was over.
Heading there at 4:30AM traffic wasn't bad at all. I probably could have slept a bit more and started out later, but didn't want to risk missing it. Traffic back to Portland was really heavy, but I was able to get back in 2.5 hours (what would normally take < 1 hour) in plenty of time to catch my flight back home.
It was a breathtaking experience. All around gasped and were in awe when the totality started. I saw a different totality in 1991 and this one looked a bit different but both awesome. Each eclipse has some character... From the differences in distance of moon to earth, solar flare activity, local atmosphere (humidity/smoke/etc), time of day and all that. I found that this eclipse from where I viewed it had more prominent light dispersion further out from the corona. It looked like a big flower in the sky. And pictures just can never do it justice. The shimmering electric nature of the light just can't be captured by a camera. I liken it more to spotlights bouncing off of a diamond, or that intense light you see in a laser show.
Both times I have seen totality left me a bit dumfounded and moved by the experience. I can't really describe the feeling. People who saw only 99% (and a bright sliver still in the sky) don't know what they are missing.
Heading there at 4:30AM traffic wasn't bad at all. I probably could have slept a bit more and started out later, but didn't want to risk missing it. Traffic back to Portland was really heavy, but I was able to get back in 2.5 hours (what would normally take < 1 hour) in plenty of time to catch my flight back home.
It was a breathtaking experience. All around gasped and were in awe when the totality started. I saw a different totality in 1991 and this one looked a bit different but both awesome. Each eclipse has some character... From the differences in distance of moon to earth, solar flare activity, local atmosphere (humidity/smoke/etc), time of day and all that. I found that this eclipse from where I viewed it had more prominent light dispersion further out from the corona. It looked like a big flower in the sky. And pictures just can never do it justice. The shimmering electric nature of the light just can't be captured by a camera. I liken it more to spotlights bouncing off of a diamond, or that intense light you see in a laser show.
Both times I have seen totality left me a bit dumfounded and moved by the experience. I can't really describe the feeling. People who saw only 99% (and a bright sliver still in the sky) don't know what they are missing.
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I tried taking some pictures through a camera filter using my iPhone camera but none of them came out any good. I did much better with 35mm slide film in 1991...
Searching around random internet pictures, I was hoping to find some showing how the moon looks like a "hole punch" in the blue sky with a wide flare around it. This gives some idea:
Doug_G's zoomed in camera views are spectacular, but being there reminds me more of the above.
Searching around random internet pictures, I was hoping to find some showing how the moon looks like a "hole punch" in the blue sky with a wide flare around it. This gives some idea:
Doug_G's zoomed in camera views are spectacular, but being there reminds me more of the above.
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Not quite as good as your example but it has the "hole punch", blue sky and wide flare. It was taken in Kearney, Nebraska.I tried taking some pictures through a camera filter using my iPhone camera but none of them came out any good. I did much better with 35mm slide film in 1991...
Searching around random internet pictures, I was hoping to find some showing how the moon looks like a "hole punch" in the blue sky with a wide flare around it. This gives some idea:
Doug_G's zoomed in camera views are spectacular, but being there reminds me more of the above.
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swaltner
Active Member
@dhanson865 already correctly replied, but those are the various "contact times" related to an eclipse. I had watched so much stuff from the SmarterEveryDay YouTube channel before the eclipse that I forgot that I just learned those terms a month or so ago. I get after people at work for speaking in jargon or acronyms without defining it on the first mention and here I do the same thing.
As far as watching from a plane, if that was the only option, I guess it would be fine. I suspect you would miss quite a bit of the changes by being in an airplane. You definitely wouldn't notice the changes in animal activity from the air. I suspect you wouldn't be able to really notice much of the lighting changes happening right around totality.
That's a perfect way to explain it. I talked to my brother last night. He stayed here and saw the 90% eclipse and said, "I don't get it. What's the big deal." "Well, you weren't in totality." "But it was so lame here, you couldn't see any difference." "Again, you weren't in totality." Maybe I'll get him to travel in 2024.
Also, wonderful pictures. Thanks for posting them.
Skotty
2014 S P85 | 2023 F-150L
My group was lucky and found the perfect spot between storms and clouds a ways north east of Kansas City. We had to move a short ways, deciding an hour before to move our location, and ended up parked out in the boonies next to a rural church. Clouds blocked much of the partial before total, but we got mostly clear views for the last 20 minutes before total (periodic small clouds passing in front, but generally good view) and no blockage during total. Had me, my wife, my kids, and a few other family members with us. Three other cars stopped on the same rural dirt road to join us.
Agree that 99% just doesn't cut it. The last 30 seconds before and the first 30 seconds after are quite dramatic in how quickly the light level changes (I didn't time it; might have been less, perhaps only 15 seconds). And of course totality was spectacular. Very surreal.
You can live without it, so don't feel too bad if you missed it due to other obligations or cloud cover, but it is worth making the attempt. We went out with the intent of having a picnic day, treating the eclipse as just a bonus. This was a mindset as to not be overly disappointed if clouds blocked our view.
I expect I'll plan a trip for the next one in 2024. Again, I'll probably plan it as a mini vacation so it's not all for not if the weather misbehaves.
Agree that 99% just doesn't cut it. The last 30 seconds before and the first 30 seconds after are quite dramatic in how quickly the light level changes (I didn't time it; might have been less, perhaps only 15 seconds). And of course totality was spectacular. Very surreal.
You can live without it, so don't feel too bad if you missed it due to other obligations or cloud cover, but it is worth making the attempt. We went out with the intent of having a picnic day, treating the eclipse as just a bonus. This was a mindset as to not be overly disappointed if clouds blocked our view.
I expect I'll plan a trip for the next one in 2024. Again, I'll probably plan it as a mini vacation so it's not all for not if the weather misbehaves.
Your eyes start to dilate (pupils get larger) as the sun gets obscured so the darkening isn't as noticeable as one might think. Even though you could still see everything fine around you with 95% of the sun blocked ("what's the big deal?") I found other things interesting:
#1: Temp quickly dropping feeling like it was very early morning, not later in the day.
#2: Man made lights (like street lamp-posts) coming on from their darkness sensors.
#3: Always on lights like neon store signs and traffic lights look really bright again.
#4: Roosters start crowing.
I have heard a number of people report situations where the weather was fine until near totality then everything got cloudy and ruined it for them.
The eclipse event causes some temporary localized weather changes.
#1: Temp quickly dropping feeling like it was very early morning, not later in the day.
#2: Man made lights (like street lamp-posts) coming on from their darkness sensors.
#3: Always on lights like neon store signs and traffic lights look really bright again.
#4: Roosters start crowing.
I have heard a number of people report situations where the weather was fine until near totality then everything got cloudy and ruined it for them.
The eclipse event causes some temporary localized weather changes.
⚡️ELECTROMAN⚡️
Village Idiot
I noticed increased fish activity. Jumping and making ripples at the surface.
I took one shot of the totality. Turned out pretty good for an iPhone shot.
I took one shot of the totality. Turned out pretty good for an iPhone shot.
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