It'll go by quick, so you might miss it!..................
Posted on 08/21/2017 9:12:49 AM PDT by Kaslin
Americans with telescopes, cameras and protective glasses staked out viewing spots along a narrow corridor from Oregon to South Carolina to watch the moon blot out the midday sun for a magical couple of minutes Monday in what promised to be the most observed and photographed eclipse in history.
Sky-watchers everywhere — and millions were expected to peer into the sun — set out lawn chairs and blankets and awaited the first total solar eclipse to sweep coast-to-coast across the U.S. in practically a century. Astronomers were giddy with excitement.
Jim Todd, a director at the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry, warmed up the crowd at an amphitheater in Salem, Oregon.
“The world is watching us, folks, because we are going to get the first, best show and the weather is gorgeous,” Todd said. “The weather forecast is crystal clear throughout the state.”
David Avison showed up in Salem before dawn with his wife and relatives, after traveling by car and overnight train from their suburban Portland home. They couldn’t get reservations at a nearby resort, despite making plans six years ago.
“I’m telling people if you want to see the one in 2024, you’d better make your reservations now,” Avison said.
With 200 million people within a day’s drive of Monday’s path of totality, towns and parks braced for monumental crowds. Clear skies beckoned along most of the route, to the relief of those who feared cloud cover would spoil this once-in-a-lifetime moment.
(Excerpt) Read more at apnews.com ...
Space science is king today.
It'll go by quick, so you might miss it!..................
Okay, folks. A bit of a reality check here. Yeah, you should cover your eyes by using special dark lenses for most of the eclipse in the path of totality. HOWEVER, for the brief time that it is a total eclipse (moon completely covering sun) it is okay to watch with naked eye. In fact, you will see much more detail and color that way than if you keep the dark glasses on. I know because I have seen a total eclipse. Here is a relevant quote from this ARTICLE:
"The only time you can look at the sun with your naked eye is A) if you're in the path of totality, where the sun will be completely covered by the moon, and B) during those two minutes or less when the sun is completely covered.
During those brief and geographically constrained moments, the brightness of the sun is reduced to that of a full moon, which can be viewed safely without anything over your eyes."
Dang, I gotta poop.
I was impressed, though not especially surprised, that the Atlantic managed to make race a big deal in the eclipse. I tried reading the piece. Besides the ridiculous content, it was waaaay longer than one could imagine for such drivel. Impressive in a rather moronic way.
I’ve looked at the sun a lot over my years.. is it somehow different because of the moon obstruction?
Ha! Just bought a used Eclipse Spyder over the weekend. It is fast!!
| Eclipse Begins | Totality Begins | Totality Ends | Eclipse Ends | ||
| Madras, OR | 09:06 a.m. | 10:19 a.m. | 10:21 a.m. | 11:41 a.m. | PDT |
| Idaho Falls, ID | 10:15 a.m. | 11:33 a.m. | 11:34 a.m. | 12:58 p.m. | MDT |
| Casper, WY | 10:22 a.m. | 11:42 a.m. | 11:45 a.m. | 01:09 p.m. | MDT |
| Lincoln, NE | 11:37 a.m. | 01:02 p.m. | 01:04 p.m. | 02:29 p.m. | CDT |
| Jefferson City, MO | 11:46 a.m. | 01:13 p.m. | 01:15 p.m. | 02:41 p.m. | CDT |
| Carbondale, IL | 11:52 a.m. | 01:20 p.m. | 01:22 p.m. | 02:47 p.m. | CDT |
| Paducah, KY | 11:54 a.m. | 01:22 p.m. | 01:24 p.m. | 02:49 p.m. | CDT |
| Nashville, TN | 11:58 a.m. | 01:27 p.m. | 01:29 p.m. | 02:54 p.m. | CDT |
| Clayton, GA | 01:06 p.m. | 02:35 p.m. | 02:38 p.m. | 04:01 p.m. | EDT |
| Columbia, SC | 01:03 p.m. | 02:41 p.m. | 02:44 p.m. | 04:06 p.m. | EDT |
Because the shadow of the moon will move from west to east, totality will occur later in the day the farther east you travel. Use the NASA interactive eclipse map to find out exactly when totality will occur and how long it will last in the location where you plan to observe the eclipse. Just click on a spot on the map, and an informational box will appear with specific times.
I hope that everybody is making sure that their pets are protected from the eclipse today....
Getting on a plane in a few minutes at Laguardia. Headed to Atlanta. Should be able to see this from the air. Hopefully I’m close to the totality zone at the proper time..
We are a nation full of illiterates and barely literates. You are making distinctions that will elude or confuse a very large percentage of people.
I know a few in particular that didn’t even know the eclipse was happening until several days ago when my wife told them.
I’m in the 97% of totality band. At my age I’m always cautious with what remains of my vision (not too bad) and hearing (horrible).
I hope Hillary is out staring at the sun all day today.
My dogs are asleep they don’t care about an eclipse.
THEY’RE DOGS !
I just went out and looked at the solar ellipse and it looks like a circle, not an ellipse. Just how much flattening is a solar ellipse supposed to have?
Drudge’s link to NASA Eclipse site:
https://www.nasa.gov/eclipselive/#NASA+TV+Public+Channel
Allows local countdown and featurettes about science of eclipses. Neat.
An Austin, TX (the looney lib Berkeley of the South) news gal just said scuba divers are viewing the eclipse from under water...
Clarksville, TN is one of the places where the eclipse is visible.
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