Total Eclipse of the sun

cmmguy

cmmguy

Around The Moon
Anyone have an special plans to catch it?

The last one, August 21, 2017, I flew with some friends up to Perryville Regional in Missouri the night before to watch it. If you have never seen one, it is highly recommended.

Before...... then During
BeforeEclipse.jpegAfterEclipse.jpeg




This years is April 8th. Our plans are to fly to Temple, TX on Thursday or Friday before, depending on weather, to beat the traffic and to hang out with Tom and family until Monday and then watch it from his back yard. They are under the path of totality. Then fly home Tuesday(depending on weather).

eclipse-map-2024-1920-1[1].png

If anyone wants to meet up in Temple, I could be over there on Saturday. I am afriad that Temple will become a zoo on Sunday as all airports under the path will become madhouses. When we went to Perry Regional, there were at least 500 planes on the ground the day before.

science.nasa.gov

2024 Total Eclipse: Where & When - NASA Science

The Monday, April 8, 2024, total solar eclipse will cross North America, passing over Mexico, the United States, and Canada.
science.nasa.gov science.nasa.gov
 
Last edited:
I'm flying commercially to Dallas then driving to San Antonio. I'll consider my options (somewhere to the west) closer to the time.

I was all set to fly to Idaho for the 2017 eclipse but WHG's annual ran late and I only got one test flight in before I had to hit the road. So I drove. It sounds like a cop out but this is one of those events that you really need to be there. Words don't do it justice.
 
Living close to it, I will be watching it, probably from Saint Louis.. Won't be a total here, but will be pretty close to it.
 
laura42 said:
I'm flying commercially to Dallas then driving to San Antonio. I'll consider my options (somewhere to the west) closer to the time.

I was all set to fly to Idaho for the 2017 eclipse but WHG's annual ran late and I only got one test flight in before I had to hit the road. So I drove. It sounds like a cop out but this is one of those events that you really need to be there. Words don't do it justice.
Click to expand...
I agree, it is very cool and eery at the same time.
 
I’ll be heading down to the Niagara region to watch it from there. I’m lucky that totality is just a 25 minute flight away for me. I might even just fly around during totality and let my wife watch it while I fly, if it turns out to be a cloudy day.
 
My first pick was a cabin at Petit Jean state park since I missed out on the meetup there last time. I dragged my feet too long and they all booked up as of 3 days ago though. I'm currently using Google Maps to plot out airports that look like good options. I appreciate the insight about all the airports being busy!

I was able to drive to totality for the last one. It was a cool enough experience that I'm up to a 2 hour flight to totality for this one.
 
If you have an opportunity to be within the totality, you will not regret it. As Laura said, its something that you need to experience to understand. In 2017 it passed through Central Oregon, so we flew the Sierra into it and along its path. It certainly wasnt like night flying, but it was darker then flying under an overcast, even though there wasnt a cloud in the sky. Eery is a very good description of the feeling.
 
We're going somewhere to watch the eclipse. We will fly if our engine is still in the Sierra. We appreciate the suggestions and will also look at the Texas venues.
 
The more I am thinking about it, is to drive down to Perryville and watch it from there! Will be Full Darkness there!
 
Margie and I have to decide if we'll watch in New York state or Vermont. Right now it is a look from Fort Ticonderoga, NY. Middlebury VT is a strong potential. 97% eclipse. We have the hotel booked already.
 
Anne and I are meeting up with friends in Arkansas. We plan to hit the Crystal Bridges Museum (that's been on the list for a while) and that will put is just outside the path of totality. We'll be there a few days ahead so on the 8th we will fly/drive into the path depending on weather so we won't get blocked if there are clouds around. We did the 2017 eclipse in Wyoming and it is an event not to be missed.
 
Don't forget you shoebox with the pin hole in the end for viewing. That's what we did when there was a total eclipse when I was in 3rd or 4th grade. Our teacher didn't want to deal with a bunch of kids with burnt-out retinas.
 
jhbecker said:
Don't forget you shoebox with the pin hole in the end for viewing. That's what we did when there was a total eclipse when I was in 3rd or 4th grade. Our teacher didn't want to deal with a bunch of kids with burnt-out retinas.
Click to expand...
This is a common issue. People can tell something is going on, stare at the sun too long to try to see and hurt their eyes in the process. This picture was a few minutes before totality in 2017: things look weird and the sun is down to a sliver, but it's still far too bright to look at. A pinhole camera is perfectly safe and easy to get right.

Some people go overboard and don't look at all. Partial phases, yes, you have to do it right. Totality, on the other hand, is the most amazing thing you'll ever see.
 

Attachments

  • SAM_2636.jpeg
    SAM_2636.jpeg
    282.1 KB · Views: 7
Another thing is those who plan to take pictures... Be sure to get the Appropriate ND Filters... Don't use your Cellphone for it either as will damage the CCD.

For Cellphone: https://www.amazon.com/Eclipse-Camera-Smartphone-Universal-Enhancing/dp/B0CWWH6DT3

For 35mm, these can be ordered online from B&H Photo! https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1776723-REG/tiffen_95cnd54_95c_neutral_density_filter.html (just a reminder for 35mm or Video, you need to make sure you get the right size filter for the lens! Video Cameras are a bit more difficult to figure out, so you may have to do trial and error to find the right size!
 
sparkie951 said:
Another thing is those who plan to take pictures... Be sure to get the Appropriate ND Filters... Don't use your Cellphone for it either as will damage the CCD.

For Cellphone: https://www.amazon.com/Eclipse-Camera-Smartphone-Universal-Enhancing/dp/B0CWWH6DT3

For 35mm, these can be ordered online from B&H Photo! https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1776723-REG/tiffen_95cnd54_95c_neutral_density_filter.html (just a reminder for 35mm or Video, you need to make sure you get the right size filter for the lens! Video Cameras are a bit more difficult to figure out, so you may have to do trial and error to find the right size!
Click to expand...
Using a digital camera (cell phone or otherwise) will only damage the CCD if you're keeping it pointed at the sun for a long time. If you're just snapping a quick photo of the eclipse, you should be fine. You won't get a very good photo, though - at least, not one you'll want to frame. But if you've mounted your phone on something and are trying to do a timelapse of the eclipse or something like that - then yeah, you should absolutely have a very dark filter - preferably like 16+ stops. Unfortunately the one linked here from Amazon is only an 8.6 stop filter - better than nothing, but I wouldn't trust it for keeping your phone pointed at the sun for any length of time.
 
laura42 said:
This is a common issue. People can tell something is going on, stare at the sun too long to try to see and hurt their eyes in the process. This picture was a few minutes before totality in 2017: things look weird and the sun is down to a sliver, but it's still far too bright to look at. A pinhole camera is perfectly safe and easy to get right.

Some people go overboard and don't look at all. Partial phases, yes, you have to do it right. Totality, on the other hand, is the most amazing thing you'll ever see.
Click to expand...
I ordered these from Amazon for eclipse viewing:

(2-Pack) Celestial Optical EclipseGuard: Plastic Frame Premium Eclipse Viewing Glasses - AAS and NASA Recommended​


There are similar ones on the main US .com site.

Just don't try to fly with them on - you can't see a thing other than the sun!
 
The ones that I have are very dark... Picked those up for an example of protection... Guess I should have chosen darker ones!
 
cmmguy said:
Anyone have an special plans to catch it?

The last one, August 21, 2017, I flew with some friends up to Perryville Regional in Missouri the night before to watch it. If you have never seen one, it is highly recommended.

Before...... then During

This years is April 9th. Our plans are to fly to Temple, TX on Thursday or Friday before, depending on weather, to beat the traffic and to hang out with Tom and family until Monday and then watch it from his back yard. They are under the path of totality. Then fly home Tuesday(depending on weather).

If anyone wants to meet up in Temple, I could be over there on Saturday. I am afriad that Temple will become a zoo on Sunday as all airports under the path will become madhouses. When we went to Perry Regional, there were at least 500 planes on the ground the day before.

science.nasa.gov

2024 Total Eclipse: Where & When - NASA Science

The Monday, April 8, 2024, total solar eclipse will cross North America, passing over Mexico, the United States, and Canada.
science.nasa.gov science.nasa.gov
Click to expand...

April 8th, not 9th. Also, all the warnings about eye (and camera) damage are only true until (and after) totality. Once that happens, take the glasses off and just stare straight up (if you're like me, also with your mouth hanging open). I was in Casper WY for the last one. This time, it's Austin TX. A little too far for me to fly myself, so I'll be going commercial the day before. I'll be wearing my 2017 eclipse T-Shirt. :)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top