Will clouds eclipse your view of the eclipse?
April 4, 2024 12:31 PM Subscribe
What’s the Cloud Forecast for Eclipse Day? (New York Times gift link) "If you have an eclipse viewing destination in mind, enter it in the box below to see the latest cloud cover forecast. We expect the forecast to become more accurate closer to the day of the eclipse, and The Times will update this map as fresh forecasts become available."
I'm driving about 5 hours myself, but with the way the map looks now, having options will definitely be helpful.
posted by JonathanB at 12:48 PM on April 4
posted by JonathanB at 12:48 PM on April 4
40-60% cloud coverage?
I don't like this forecast. I'm choosing another forecast I like more.
posted by Capt. Renault at 12:50 PM on April 4 [19 favorites]
I don't like this forecast. I'm choosing another forecast I like more.
posted by Capt. Renault at 12:50 PM on April 4 [19 favorites]
But it will still get dark right. That's more excite to me than actual viewing the blackout of the sun thru appropriate glasses.
posted by Czjewel at 12:50 PM on April 4 [1 favorite]
posted by Czjewel at 12:50 PM on April 4 [1 favorite]
Sweet lord, am I so tired of people in my city--which is in the path of totality--being such dicks and killjoys about a once in a lifetime event. Like, if eclipses aren't your jam, fine, but for the love of god, stop being such pills.
I will say again I am glad I don't have to travel anywhere and if the weather is good, I can just step out into the yard with my eclipse glasses and a joint. The city has done a great job of distributing eclipse glasses to the populace through the public library system. It is unfortunate that one of the major bridges in town will be fully closed due to maintenance. One of my girlfriends is turning 50 that day and is holding a small party at her house for it. (We're pretty witchy so she is having a blast about getting a full solar eclipse on the 50th!)
posted by Kitteh at 12:53 PM on April 4 [26 favorites]
I will say again I am glad I don't have to travel anywhere and if the weather is good, I can just step out into the yard with my eclipse glasses and a joint. The city has done a great job of distributing eclipse glasses to the populace through the public library system. It is unfortunate that one of the major bridges in town will be fully closed due to maintenance. One of my girlfriends is turning 50 that day and is holding a small party at her house for it. (We're pretty witchy so she is having a blast about getting a full solar eclipse on the 50th!)
posted by Kitteh at 12:53 PM on April 4 [26 favorites]
I tried to get my students (undergraduates) hyped up about this, since it's going to happen during our class, but they were pretty blasé about it. Now that the cloud cover will be 0-20% (for now) maybe they'll be more excited. If not, they can stay in the classroom and work. I'll be outside.
posted by pangolin party at 12:56 PM on April 4 [6 favorites]
posted by pangolin party at 12:56 PM on April 4 [6 favorites]
hey, NYT visualizers: how about displaying the eclipse times in the timezone of the location you type in?
UTC time for NY state is not a smart move.
posted by lalochezia at 1:07 PM on April 4 [7 favorites]
UTC time for NY state is not a smart move.
posted by lalochezia at 1:07 PM on April 4 [7 favorites]
^ I am remembering the time in elementary school when an eclipse came through and since this was the 80s without mass market eclipse glasses and they kept us inside and closed the curtains and then the class dipshit snuck to the window and peeked outside and then recoiled screaming “my eyes my eyes!” and then pandemonium ensued but he was just fucking with us. 40 years later that’s the shit I remember, thanks for the good times Kevin hope you’re still like that because we need levity
posted by St. Peepsburg at 1:12 PM on April 4 [30 favorites]
posted by St. Peepsburg at 1:12 PM on April 4 [30 favorites]
Same here. 1979, I think. We were locked up in Kindergarten with the curtains closed, and the teacher going on and on about how there was this very special and exciting thing happening right outside the window, which we weren't allowed to look at because we'd be maimed forever.
God, it was torture.
posted by Capt. Renault at 1:20 PM on April 4 [12 favorites]
God, it was torture.
posted by Capt. Renault at 1:20 PM on April 4 [12 favorites]
But it will still get dark right. That's more excite to me than actual viewing the blackout of the sun thru appropriate glasses.
Having experienced the one in 2017, I feel like there's a huge difference between just "it got dark" and actually observing the thing happening, looking at the corona etc.
We've only got about an hour drive to a nice spot for totality, but my parents have decided against going or even using eclipse glasses. Apparently they were camping in 2017 in a partial eclipse area, and my mom didn't step outside the camper, while dad took some pictures of weird tree shadows.
Meanwhile we were having a fine picnic at a winery hanging out with old friends who'd come from all over the US for the gathering, and the actual eclipse was awesome and I got decent photos even on a budget 2014-ish cell phone (with a spare lens from eclipse glasses stuck over the camera).
This time it's just me and my wife but still, I'm looking forward to it...
posted by Foosnark at 1:25 PM on April 4 [7 favorites]
Having experienced the one in 2017, I feel like there's a huge difference between just "it got dark" and actually observing the thing happening, looking at the corona etc.
We've only got about an hour drive to a nice spot for totality, but my parents have decided against going or even using eclipse glasses. Apparently they were camping in 2017 in a partial eclipse area, and my mom didn't step outside the camper, while dad took some pictures of weird tree shadows.
Meanwhile we were having a fine picnic at a winery hanging out with old friends who'd come from all over the US for the gathering, and the actual eclipse was awesome and I got decent photos even on a budget 2014-ish cell phone (with a spare lens from eclipse glasses stuck over the camera).
This time it's just me and my wife but still, I'm looking forward to it...
posted by Foosnark at 1:25 PM on April 4 [7 favorites]
If clouds are fluffy cumulus clouds caused by updrafts, they can vanish during an eclipse as the ground cools and updrafts weaken. No joy for other types of clouds or large weather systems though, alas.
posted by indexy at 1:33 PM on April 4 [5 favorites]
posted by indexy at 1:33 PM on April 4 [5 favorites]
Kevin rules! I hope every single kid in our (Florida. of course.) school district pulls a Kevin. They're of course locking down the schools to prevent the children's eyes from burning out of their heads in Satan's dark, sun-eating hellfire.
This map is excellent--thanks! We have to drive hours and hours and hours but I'm damned if I'm going to miss this one having missed the last one because I idiotically didn't cancel class at the community college that night.
posted by Don Pepino at 1:55 PM on April 4 [5 favorites]
This map is excellent--thanks! We have to drive hours and hours and hours but I'm damned if I'm going to miss this one having missed the last one because I idiotically didn't cancel class at the community college that night.
posted by Don Pepino at 1:55 PM on April 4 [5 favorites]
But it will still get dark right. That's more excite to me than actual viewing the blackout of the sun thru appropriate glasses.
Having experienced the one in 2017, I feel like there's a huge difference between just "it got dark" and actually observing the thing happening, looking at the corona etc.
Also, saw my first total eclipse in 2017. I agree that it's the corona that you want to see, as well as the surreal color of the sky. Possible excitement at being able to see the planets.
But also, during totality you take the glasses off. Put 'em back on as soon as totality ends.
posted by polecat at 1:58 PM on April 4 [5 favorites]
Having experienced the one in 2017, I feel like there's a huge difference between just "it got dark" and actually observing the thing happening, looking at the corona etc.
Also, saw my first total eclipse in 2017. I agree that it's the corona that you want to see, as well as the surreal color of the sky. Possible excitement at being able to see the planets.
But also, during totality you take the glasses off. Put 'em back on as soon as totality ends.
posted by polecat at 1:58 PM on April 4 [5 favorites]
Saw the 2017 eclipse in totality and was unprepared for the temperature drop as soon as the sun was completely covered. It was chilling on a feral and physical level to be reminded how much life depends on a fiery ball of plasma that gives not one bit about us.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 2:05 PM on April 4 [34 favorites]
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 2:05 PM on April 4 [34 favorites]
I'm in Buffalo and it's getting busy. Hoardes of tourists will be upon us very soon.Many Canadians are swooping down and across the Peace bridge. You cannot get a hotel room or a rental car. People are renting out their second bedrooms with the stipulation that they don't use the main bathroom. The restaurants are making wacky concoctions to celebrate...Sun and moon sauce for your wings...the sun part is mustard, god knows what the moon part is ..probably cheese...oh I get it!
posted by Czjewel at 2:08 PM on April 4 [3 favorites]
posted by Czjewel at 2:08 PM on April 4 [3 favorites]
I lived right in the path of the 2017 totality. We had friends and family over and barbecued. It was a really, really good time.
posted by The Manwich Horror at 2:09 PM on April 4 [4 favorites]
posted by The Manwich Horror at 2:09 PM on April 4 [4 favorites]
Maybe I’m just underestimating the intelligence of the American public, but it’s truly baffling to me how everyone is being reminded not to look at the sun. And now various people are telling us to keep our pets indoors because they might look at the sun too. You know what? Dogs know not to look at the sun. As do most humans, because as soon as you even start to look at it it hurts like a m-effer. I have no plans to look at the sun.
posted by Melismata at 2:30 PM on April 4 [4 favorites]
posted by Melismata at 2:30 PM on April 4 [4 favorites]
Oh and I just got my glasses, and got a chuckle out of the warning “don’t use these for sunglasses.” Ya think?? I tried them on, and they are only good for seeing the sun. I couldn’t even see the chair in front of me.
posted by Melismata at 2:32 PM on April 4 [2 favorites]
posted by Melismata at 2:32 PM on April 4 [2 favorites]
This is Indiana. The only forecast you can moderately trust is the one an hour before the event.
posted by Thorzdad at 2:44 PM on April 4 [10 favorites]
posted by Thorzdad at 2:44 PM on April 4 [10 favorites]
But it will still get dark right.
To answer your query, oui.
posted by GCU Sweet and Full of Grace at 2:45 PM on April 4 [2 favorites]
To answer your query, oui.
posted by GCU Sweet and Full of Grace at 2:45 PM on April 4 [2 favorites]
Just arrived in Dallas after a 30hr drive (figured I’d beat the rush with a weeklong Airbnb)
0% clouds today!
(Man has the 21st century not come yet to the area between Flagstaff AZ and Denton, NW of Dallas)
posted by torokunai at 2:48 PM on April 4 [4 favorites]
0% clouds today!
(Man has the 21st century not come yet to the area between Flagstaff AZ and Denton, NW of Dallas)
posted by torokunai at 2:48 PM on April 4 [4 favorites]
Cloud cover: The National Blend of Models from the National Weather Service, "aggregates and post-processes forecasts from a wide variety of weather models"
A local astronomy group, the Stonelick Stargazers, have a facebook page, and they are updating their cloud cover forecast link every day. The eclipse path is also shown on the map. I couldn't get a permanent link to their forecast post, so just scroll down to the Posts column on their page: facebook StonelickStargazers
The Ohio or Indiana forecast has been changing dramatically every day since March 29! 60%, next day 25%, next day 35%... And Texas has been switching between 70%, 30%, and back to 70% now.
The map has a terrible color design: Blue is clouds! White is clear skies! What were they thinking. But use the percentage of cloud cover numbers embedded in the map to make sense of it.
posted by jjj606 at 2:51 PM on April 4 [4 favorites]
A local astronomy group, the Stonelick Stargazers, have a facebook page, and they are updating their cloud cover forecast link every day. The eclipse path is also shown on the map. I couldn't get a permanent link to their forecast post, so just scroll down to the Posts column on their page: facebook StonelickStargazers
The Ohio or Indiana forecast has been changing dramatically every day since March 29! 60%, next day 25%, next day 35%... And Texas has been switching between 70%, 30%, and back to 70% now.
The map has a terrible color design: Blue is clouds! White is clear skies! What were they thinking. But use the percentage of cloud cover numbers embedded in the map to make sense of it.
posted by jjj606 at 2:51 PM on April 4 [4 favorites]
They locked kids in during an eclipse and forbade them from seeing it?! That's some "All Summer in a Day" BS!
I remember during, I think it was the 1979 partial eclipse, in the Chicago area we made shoebox pinhole lens projectors and looked at it that way. That was cool.
As it is I'm taking my kids out of school (high school and college in this case :-) and we're heading down to St. Genevieve, Mo. (current forecast, 20%-40% cloud cover), where we witnessed the last one in 2017. We were actually planning on watching it in Carbondale, Il. but we stopped for a break in St. Genevieve and liked it enough we decided to stay there for it. If it wasn't for our fond memories of the last trip we'd probably stick on the Illinois side of the Mississippi due to recent political developments in Mo.
posted by Reverend John at 2:54 PM on April 4 [3 favorites]
I remember during, I think it was the 1979 partial eclipse, in the Chicago area we made shoebox pinhole lens projectors and looked at it that way. That was cool.
As it is I'm taking my kids out of school (high school and college in this case :-) and we're heading down to St. Genevieve, Mo. (current forecast, 20%-40% cloud cover), where we witnessed the last one in 2017. We were actually planning on watching it in Carbondale, Il. but we stopped for a break in St. Genevieve and liked it enough we decided to stay there for it. If it wasn't for our fond memories of the last trip we'd probably stick on the Illinois side of the Mississippi due to recent political developments in Mo.
posted by Reverend John at 2:54 PM on April 4 [3 favorites]
I’m driving 15 hours to Texas to see my brother, who (just barely) lives in the path of totality; they are forecasting clouds, and the NYT says 40-60% cover, which I guess is reasonable. After traveling about an hour north to see the 2017 eclipse (thanks joeyh for inviting us!) it was an incredible sight! So I am definitely looking forward to seeing this one, but if the clouds screw it up, I will still have a nice family visit. Really hoping we get a good view for my wife’s sake though; she was in the NC mountains in 2017 and clouds came up at the last minute and hid it. Also I saved my eclipse glasses from 2017, so we are covered there as well. Heading out tomorrow morning. Hope everyone else who is making a trip to see it has safe travels and clear skies!
posted by TedW at 3:05 PM on April 4 [1 favorite]
posted by TedW at 3:05 PM on April 4 [1 favorite]
It was chilling on a feral and physical level to be reminded how much life depends on a fiery ball of plasma that gives not one bit about us.
That, but also it was hot as balls where we were that day and it a welcome relief.
posted by Foosnark at 3:07 PM on April 4
That, but also it was hot as balls where we were that day and it a welcome relief.
posted by Foosnark at 3:07 PM on April 4
Speaking of maps, the AirBnb occupancy map is amusing.
posted by CheeseDigestsAll at 3:53 PM on April 4 [6 favorites]
posted by CheeseDigestsAll at 3:53 PM on April 4 [6 favorites]
My little upstate NY village is apparently prime viewing for the eclipse, and so the university has canceled everything on Monday (given the likelihood that we'd all be stuck in traffic/swamped by tourists). I see the local hotels have doubled their prices. But cloudy. Hmm. Anyway, we will stay away from campus and just go out in the backyard.
posted by thomas j wise at 4:11 PM on April 4 [2 favorites]
posted by thomas j wise at 4:11 PM on April 4 [2 favorites]
But it will still get dark right. That's more excite to me than actual viewing the blackout of the sun thru appropriate glasses.
That was totally my experience.
Looking at the disk of the Sun through welders' glass was not very engaging, but watching the darkness sweep toward us across the landscape was overwhelming and ominous — numinous too — and almost brought me involuntarily to my knees. In the moments before totality everything was edged in a silvery, liquid light, and I couldn’t be sure whether the dim and muted colors I was seeing were really reflected light or merely a lingering memory from moments before
There were lots of birds around us, and they really did go silent, and then welcomed the accelerated 2nd dawn of the day with some pretty frantic sounding chirping. I felt something weird too, and had a yawning attack as I calmed back down.
posted by jamjam at 4:25 PM on April 4 [15 favorites]
That was totally my experience.
Looking at the disk of the Sun through welders' glass was not very engaging, but watching the darkness sweep toward us across the landscape was overwhelming and ominous — numinous too — and almost brought me involuntarily to my knees. In the moments before totality everything was edged in a silvery, liquid light, and I couldn’t be sure whether the dim and muted colors I was seeing were really reflected light or merely a lingering memory from moments before
There were lots of birds around us, and they really did go silent, and then welcomed the accelerated 2nd dawn of the day with some pretty frantic sounding chirping. I felt something weird too, and had a yawning attack as I calmed back down.
posted by jamjam at 4:25 PM on April 4 [15 favorites]
This eclipse feels different, culture wise, from the 2017. I don't recall so much discussion or the sheer hordes of people projected to be in places in the path of totality. Is it just me or is this eclipse getting more attention from the populace?
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 4:40 PM on April 4 [8 favorites]
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 4:40 PM on April 4 [8 favorites]
I checked in with my parents who are in the totality path. In my pretty small hometown, and all over the state, really, there are NO hotels. Seems like the entire state, every AirBnB, every single hotel room is booked for Monday. Flights are thousands of dollars, and anyway impossible to get at that.
posted by zardoz at 4:50 PM on April 4
posted by zardoz at 4:50 PM on April 4
Burlington, VT here and we are going from half a foot of snow today to plans for hoards of tourists starting tomorrow. I’m excited and there are plenty of extra glasses in circulation so hopefully everyone will be equipped. I was containing my excitement because of our fickle April weather but less than four days out I’m beginning to get excited. I even picked up some special Celestron sun viewing binoculars for the occasion.
I think this eclipse is getting more press because so many people live within an easy day’s drive of the path of totality.
posted by meinvt at 5:01 PM on April 4 [4 favorites]
I think this eclipse is getting more press because so many people live within an easy day’s drive of the path of totality.
posted by meinvt at 5:01 PM on April 4 [4 favorites]
You know what? Dogs know not to look at the sun. As do most humans, because as soon as you even start to look at it it hurts like a m-effer. I have no plans to look at the sun.
I went on a Google search to try to determine if there were known instances of dogs being injured by an eclipse. All that I found was a lot of news stories with scientists poo-pooing the idea that dogs were likely to look at it at all.
I'm pretty sure the number of people who never heard that you shouldn't look at the eclipse--or are too dense to get the message--is very small, but nonetheless a very small fraction of all the people who see the eclipse still amounts to a lot of eye injuries. The message is sent loud and often in hopes of protecting a few more of those folks.
Yes, we instinctively look away from the painful bright ball in the sky, but if the sun is 90% or more covered, then it's a lot less painful and it looks super weird and interesting. It's tempting to bear a little pain to see something like that--and we know that a lot of people have been hurt in the past. So I think it's a good idea to make extra sure everybody gets the message.
By my reckoning, the real reason dogs aren't at risk is that what happens in the heavens is probably not really interesting to a dog. Smell might be more important to them than vision and I don't think they'll get hurt by directly smelling the eclipse.
posted by polecat at 5:02 PM on April 4 [2 favorites]
I went on a Google search to try to determine if there were known instances of dogs being injured by an eclipse. All that I found was a lot of news stories with scientists poo-pooing the idea that dogs were likely to look at it at all.
I'm pretty sure the number of people who never heard that you shouldn't look at the eclipse--or are too dense to get the message--is very small, but nonetheless a very small fraction of all the people who see the eclipse still amounts to a lot of eye injuries. The message is sent loud and often in hopes of protecting a few more of those folks.
Yes, we instinctively look away from the painful bright ball in the sky, but if the sun is 90% or more covered, then it's a lot less painful and it looks super weird and interesting. It's tempting to bear a little pain to see something like that--and we know that a lot of people have been hurt in the past. So I think it's a good idea to make extra sure everybody gets the message.
By my reckoning, the real reason dogs aren't at risk is that what happens in the heavens is probably not really interesting to a dog. Smell might be more important to them than vision and I don't think they'll get hurt by directly smelling the eclipse.
posted by polecat at 5:02 PM on April 4 [2 favorites]
I have to imagine that the fresh memory of 2017 has got more people interested. At the same time, the memory of 2017's traffic jams have people thinking about 2024's traffic jams more than they otherwise might have.
posted by polecat at 5:08 PM on April 4 [3 favorites]
posted by polecat at 5:08 PM on April 4 [3 favorites]
Cleveland area reporting in. Some local school districts are closed for the day. My boss (daycare) who never closes for anything is closing. I don't look a gift day off in the mouth, but I do wish we got PTO.
Another teacher and I hit up the local libraries for glasses for the kids and I printed out a couple handout to go home tomorrow.
As far as weather, I'll believe the forecast that morning :) Lake Erie is a fickle mistress.
posted by kathrynm at 5:11 PM on April 4 [3 favorites]
Another teacher and I hit up the local libraries for glasses for the kids and I printed out a couple handout to go home tomorrow.
As far as weather, I'll believe the forecast that morning :) Lake Erie is a fickle mistress.
posted by kathrynm at 5:11 PM on April 4 [3 favorites]
I remember during, I think it was the 1979 partial eclipse, in the Chicago area we made shoebox pinhole lens projectors and looked at it that way. That was cool.
I think it must have been the annular eclipse of '94 - we were outside, but there weren't enough pinhole projectors or glasses to go around. So a bunch of us figured out that if we tore apart our little potato chip bags from lunch, the silvery insides did basically the same job as the eclipse glasses. Our teachers were definitely not happy with us doing that, but it did afford us the longest viewing time. I don't remember experiencing any ill effects, so I guess it wasn't too terrible an idea.
don't do this it still seems like a bad idea
posted by god hates math at 5:18 PM on April 4 [5 favorites]
I think it must have been the annular eclipse of '94 - we were outside, but there weren't enough pinhole projectors or glasses to go around. So a bunch of us figured out that if we tore apart our little potato chip bags from lunch, the silvery insides did basically the same job as the eclipse glasses. Our teachers were definitely not happy with us doing that, but it did afford us the longest viewing time. I don't remember experiencing any ill effects, so I guess it wasn't too terrible an idea.
don't do this it still seems like a bad idea
posted by god hates math at 5:18 PM on April 4 [5 favorites]
St. Genevieve
Might hold back the cloud cover
But saints don't bother
with the sun-burned eye
posted by polecat at 5:24 PM on April 4 [5 favorites]
Might hold back the cloud cover
But saints don't bother
with the sun-burned eye
posted by polecat at 5:24 PM on April 4 [5 favorites]
I'm flying to my family in Michigan tomorrow (Ann Arbor/Detroit region) and we'll go to somewhere in Ohio on the day. I hope the weather cooperates but mostly, this was a reason to take a vacation.
I had fun where I was for the 2017 one (I think we had nearly 80%) so whatever I get to see is fine.
posted by edencosmic at 5:32 PM on April 4 [1 favorite]
I had fun where I was for the 2017 one (I think we had nearly 80%) so whatever I get to see is fine.
posted by edencosmic at 5:32 PM on April 4 [1 favorite]
Traffic jams
In 2017 southern Illinois, traffic wasn't too busy driving in to the eclipse path. Some viewers got there a day early to camp out, others arrived from dawn to close to the eclipse time.
But most everyone leaves right after it's over! Traffic backups at 4-way stops out in the country, fast food places ran out of most items. Hours later, big traffic jams on the main interstates near Louisville, far from the eclipse path.
posted by jjj606 at 5:46 PM on April 4 [3 favorites]
In 2017 southern Illinois, traffic wasn't too busy driving in to the eclipse path. Some viewers got there a day early to camp out, others arrived from dawn to close to the eclipse time.
But most everyone leaves right after it's over! Traffic backups at 4-way stops out in the country, fast food places ran out of most items. Hours later, big traffic jams on the main interstates near Louisville, far from the eclipse path.
posted by jjj606 at 5:46 PM on April 4 [3 favorites]
You know what? Dogs know not to look at the sun. As do most humans
OTOH, Presidents are not 100% on this.
posted by rhamphorhynchus at 6:04 PM on April 4 [7 favorites]
OTOH, Presidents are not 100% on this.
posted by rhamphorhynchus at 6:04 PM on April 4 [7 favorites]
I remember the 2017 eclipse quite well; I camped out at a nice nearby campground the night before, got to a park, the sky was clear, got the full experience. I also remember the drive back, which took at least twice as long as it should have.
And the same place does not look super-promising WRT the weather, even though it's still in the area of totality. I missed out on a transportation option that might have worked, which would have been to get on a train going to and from a stop in the totality zone. Partial eclipse will be fine this time, I think.
posted by Halloween Jack at 6:36 PM on April 4
And the same place does not look super-promising WRT the weather, even though it's still in the area of totality. I missed out on a transportation option that might have worked, which would have been to get on a train going to and from a stop in the totality zone. Partial eclipse will be fine this time, I think.
posted by Halloween Jack at 6:36 PM on April 4
I'm expecting to be cloud covered so I can be pleased if Dallas has no clouds and not be super disappointed if we have a lot.
posted by gentlyepigrams at 6:39 PM on April 4 [1 favorite]
posted by gentlyepigrams at 6:39 PM on April 4 [1 favorite]
My son and I are leaving Buffalo fairly early in the morning on Monday to drive to a farm sanctuary that typically is about an hour's drive away. Fingers crossed that we'll be going in the opposite direction from most of the traffic. We're looking forward to experiencing the eclipse and observing the reaction of the resident animals.
posted by Scout405 at 6:43 PM on April 4 [1 favorite]
posted by Scout405 at 6:43 PM on April 4 [1 favorite]
Five reasons 2024’s solar eclipse will be better than the one in 2017. Basically: we’re at solar maximum now; in 2017 we were at solar minimum.
posted by Melismata at 6:47 PM on April 4 [3 favorites]
posted by Melismata at 6:47 PM on April 4 [3 favorites]
All I know is that on Tuesday I'm loading up on 1/2 price commemorative eclipse T-shirts.
posted by credulous at 7:12 PM on April 4 [6 favorites]
posted by credulous at 7:12 PM on April 4 [6 favorites]
I have never in my life been SOOO interested in the weather in Central Texas. Flying out tomorrow morning and I swear I've been refreshing the weather forecast pretty much hourly all week.
posted by gingerbeer at 7:14 PM on April 4 [1 favorite]
posted by gingerbeer at 7:14 PM on April 4 [1 favorite]
FBG has been picture-perfect weather for the past few days, and at least I'll have memories of day-drinking and getting aggressively upsold on wine club memberships should the skies turn sour.
posted by credulous at 7:25 PM on April 4
posted by credulous at 7:25 PM on April 4
Parked on the playa just outside Mazatlan. If we have clouds, s’okay, we will still have ocean.
posted by Abehammerb Lincoln at 8:27 PM on April 4 [1 favorite]
posted by Abehammerb Lincoln at 8:27 PM on April 4 [1 favorite]
40%-60%, according to the map and other forecasts. I was originally going to go to a Home Depot parking lot about an hour and a half north of here (because who would go to a Home Depot parking lot to watch an eclipse, right?), but now my nephews want to come, so I'm going to shoot for the state park slightly closer, with Home Depot parking lot as plan B.
posted by dirigibleman at 8:27 PM on April 4 [1 favorite]
posted by dirigibleman at 8:27 PM on April 4 [1 favorite]
Gonna be driving ~eight hours to an Airbnb outside Dallas; my brother and his GF will be flying in from LA. The cloud cover forecast remains extremely iffy depending on what model you ask -- could be nice, could be solidly overcast and rainy. But even if it's a bust, I won't be mad -- the one in 2017 was about as picture-perfect as one could ask for.
posted by Rhaomi at 8:48 PM on April 4 [2 favorites]
posted by Rhaomi at 8:48 PM on April 4 [2 favorites]
Maybe I’m just underestimating the intelligence of the American public, but it’s truly baffling to me how everyone is being reminded not to look at the sun.
TFG (Trump) viewing the sun during the last eclipse.
But besides that it the only dangerous thing the 24 hr news cycle can lead their stories with in an attempt to drive engagement.
posted by Mitheral at 9:30 PM on April 4 [3 favorites]
TFG (Trump) viewing the sun during the last eclipse.
But besides that it the only dangerous thing the 24 hr news cycle can lead their stories with in an attempt to drive engagement.
posted by Mitheral at 9:30 PM on April 4 [3 favorites]
If you want continuing cloud forecasts for other reasons:
cleardarksky.com (scroll down to find your location)
https://weather.us/model-charts/euro/usa/total-cloud-coverage.html (click on "Change model and model run" to check out predictions from different weather models around the world)
posted by clawsoon at 3:04 AM on April 5 [6 favorites]
cleardarksky.com (scroll down to find your location)
https://weather.us/model-charts/euro/usa/total-cloud-coverage.html (click on "Change model and model run" to check out predictions from different weather models around the world)
posted by clawsoon at 3:04 AM on April 5 [6 favorites]
I saved my official glasses from last time, so I am ready to go!
I work at a college and last time I sat outside on the quad and watched the eclipse on my coffee break. I had extra glasses and let someone borrow a pair.
Forecast here in New England is sun and 92% totality: it's gonna be great!
posted by wenestvedt at 4:22 AM on April 5 [2 favorites]
I work at a college and last time I sat outside on the quad and watched the eclipse on my coffee break. I had extra glasses and let someone borrow a pair.
Forecast here in New England is sun and 92% totality: it's gonna be great!
posted by wenestvedt at 4:22 AM on April 5 [2 favorites]
The New York Times said Hillary would win. Just sayin.
posted by gimonca at 4:38 AM on April 5 [4 favorites]
posted by gimonca at 4:38 AM on April 5 [4 favorites]
I find it hard to get excited about these things. I mean, if you want to see a total eclipse, all you have to do is go where the moon is occluding the sun to see it. Once we have cheap and available spaceflight, it's trivial to find a spot where that's occurring pretty much whenever you want it. To be fair, I've been waiting for cheap and available spaceflight since I was a kid in the 70's. What we got was the space shuttle and (waves hands vaguely) *this*.
posted by mikelieman at 4:53 AM on April 5 [1 favorite]
posted by mikelieman at 4:53 AM on April 5 [1 favorite]
My 2017 experience: I had a cheap motel room in Lincoln, Nebraska. Got up early in the morning to check the weather. Rain likely.
Got in the car a little before 7:00 am, there were storms to the east, including a couple with dramatic lightning in the clouds. Headed west right away. A former co-worker was texting me, he was driving around with his family, they went to Grand Island. I went further west to Broken Bow. Both of us had a near-perfect viewing experience. If I had stayed in Lincoln, it would have been overcast, I would have missed it.
Bill Nye the Science Guy was nearby at an event in Beatrice, Nebraska. They got rained out. Another couple of friends of mine drove to the Kansas City area, they also had rain, and barely saw it through the clouds.
I'm staying with family in south Texas this time. The challenge this time is that the path of totality is southwest-to-northeast. Last time, you could drive west to escape the weather and stay in the eclipse path. This time, it could be easy to drive west and get clear skies, but you'll be out of the path.
I've heard Bill Nye is in Fredericksburg, Texas this time, hope he gets better skies this round.
posted by gimonca at 4:54 AM on April 5 [1 favorite]
Got in the car a little before 7:00 am, there were storms to the east, including a couple with dramatic lightning in the clouds. Headed west right away. A former co-worker was texting me, he was driving around with his family, they went to Grand Island. I went further west to Broken Bow. Both of us had a near-perfect viewing experience. If I had stayed in Lincoln, it would have been overcast, I would have missed it.
Bill Nye the Science Guy was nearby at an event in Beatrice, Nebraska. They got rained out. Another couple of friends of mine drove to the Kansas City area, they also had rain, and barely saw it through the clouds.
I'm staying with family in south Texas this time. The challenge this time is that the path of totality is southwest-to-northeast. Last time, you could drive west to escape the weather and stay in the eclipse path. This time, it could be easy to drive west and get clear skies, but you'll be out of the path.
I've heard Bill Nye is in Fredericksburg, Texas this time, hope he gets better skies this round.
posted by gimonca at 4:54 AM on April 5 [1 favorite]
We won't get totality here in Chicago like we did last time, but 92% is good enough for me so I am not traveling. I do have the time blocked out on my work calendar. We've had drizzly cold rain or wintry mix for like 5 days in a row now with not a peek of sun, but the map says our fortunes may improve by Monday, so here's hoping.
I think the constant reminders to not look up are good, and from my experience not any more loud/frequent than in 2017. The company I worked for at the time ordered eclipse glasses for everyone, so we walked out onto Michigan Avenue in downtown Chicago to watch it, which was fun. Here's where I'll admit I'm a bit of an idiot: despite the constant warnings and the eclipse glasses in my hand, when I first exited our building I briefly glanced up out of pure instinct to get an idea of where the sun was in the sky. It was I immediately looked back down, I didn't like stare or anything, but I don't think there's a such thing as too many warnings. I don't think it would have happened if I were out in a field, but standing in a sea of skyscrapers it was just instinctual to glance up to know what direction to look because it wasn't immediately obvious. And the eclipse glasses are so dark I didn't put them on indoors so when I first walked out the doors I didn't have them on.
There were a surprising number of people just looking up without glasses though. IDK if they were tourists or what (probably so) and if I remember correctly they were just glancing, not outright staring, but IMO warnings = good.
posted by misskaz at 5:02 AM on April 5
I think the constant reminders to not look up are good, and from my experience not any more loud/frequent than in 2017. The company I worked for at the time ordered eclipse glasses for everyone, so we walked out onto Michigan Avenue in downtown Chicago to watch it, which was fun. Here's where I'll admit I'm a bit of an idiot: despite the constant warnings and the eclipse glasses in my hand, when I first exited our building I briefly glanced up out of pure instinct to get an idea of where the sun was in the sky. It was I immediately looked back down, I didn't like stare or anything, but I don't think there's a such thing as too many warnings. I don't think it would have happened if I were out in a field, but standing in a sea of skyscrapers it was just instinctual to glance up to know what direction to look because it wasn't immediately obvious. And the eclipse glasses are so dark I didn't put them on indoors so when I first walked out the doors I didn't have them on.
There were a surprising number of people just looking up without glasses though. IDK if they were tourists or what (probably so) and if I remember correctly they were just glancing, not outright staring, but IMO warnings = good.
posted by misskaz at 5:02 AM on April 5
That AirBNB map reminds me of people searching for flu symptoms on Google...
posted by NotMyselfRightNow at 5:05 AM on April 5 [1 favorite]
posted by NotMyselfRightNow at 5:05 AM on April 5 [1 favorite]
In central Illinois we're getting the same ~95% coverage we had in 2017. I'd love to see totality but not enough to take time off and travel for an unknown thing. My friend is going to be in Austin for work and was so excited about the timing, but it looks very likely to be cloudy/rainy there - I'd be so disappointed if I traveled (especially to Texas, yuck) only for that purpose and the weather was like "nah." Here we're expected to have a clear day so we should have a good view! I know it won't compare to totality, but it was still extremely cool last time I saw it, and I'll definitely be running outside for it. I loved seeing so much of the staff at the hospital outside sharing in this neat moment.
posted by obfuscation at 6:04 AM on April 5 [2 favorites]
posted by obfuscation at 6:04 AM on April 5 [2 favorites]
Just a heads up for those waiting to see their first or another total eclipse: The next one will be August 12, 2026, visible in Greenland and Spain.
Even more exciting is that there are several upcoming annular eclipses, which is similar to a total eclipse. But the moon doesn't completely cover the sun, leaving a "ring of fire"!
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 6:32 AM on April 5 [1 favorite]
Even more exciting is that there are several upcoming annular eclipses, which is similar to a total eclipse. But the moon doesn't completely cover the sun, leaving a "ring of fire"!
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 6:32 AM on April 5 [1 favorite]
Dogs take their cues from us and I've seen dogs bark at the moon like it was a ball to catch so maybe some dogs might look at the eclipse? I'm sure dumb humans are the worse risk.
The 2017 one in Chicago was rad. I was downtown on LaSalle and everything sort of stopped. People milling about, a quiet murmur instead of traffic. And yes, the cold drop in temp when it was at its peak. Very cool. Probably will be cloudy during this one so not sure what to expect but I'll be at home this time. I'm impressed with folks traveling like 8 hours to see it!
posted by tiny frying pan at 6:52 AM on April 5 [1 favorite]
The 2017 one in Chicago was rad. I was downtown on LaSalle and everything sort of stopped. People milling about, a quiet murmur instead of traffic. And yes, the cold drop in temp when it was at its peak. Very cool. Probably will be cloudy during this one so not sure what to expect but I'll be at home this time. I'm impressed with folks traveling like 8 hours to see it!
posted by tiny frying pan at 6:52 AM on April 5 [1 favorite]
If you find yourself, out without the gear or a pinhole camera, find a leafy tree and look at the shadows. That's also pretty cool.
I was in Indianapolis in 2017 and used my phone camera to get a look at the sky. I think we were a hair off the path of totality but way closer than I'd have been at home in New Jersey.
posted by Karmakaze at 7:01 AM on April 5 [4 favorites]
I was in Indianapolis in 2017 and used my phone camera to get a look at the sky. I think we were a hair off the path of totality but way closer than I'd have been at home in New Jersey.
posted by Karmakaze at 7:01 AM on April 5 [4 favorites]
My father in law bought some eclipse glasses off of Amazon. Got (and forwarded to me) an email that says...
posted by OnceUponATime at 7:49 AM on April 5 [1 favorite]
Dear Amazon Customer,Good, I guess, that they're warning people and issuing refunds. But it sums that they sold these in the first place. People are going to have a hard time getting replacements at this point...
We write to notify you of a potential safety concern with a product that you purchased on Amazon.com.
Affected Product: "biniki Solar Eclipse Glasses AAS Approved 2024 - CE & ISO Certified Safe Shades for Direct Sun Viewing(6 Packs)"
The product listed above was not included in the American Astronomical Society’s list of safe suppliers of solar eclipse viewers and filters and therefore may not be safe for viewing a solar eclipse.
If you still have this product, out of an abundance of caution, we recommend you not use it for the upcoming eclipse on April 8, and review the following information for more details, including how to view a solar eclipse safely and how to identify unsafe eclipse glasses.
[...]
Refunds will be issued to the original payment method used for the purchase, or if the original payment method is no longer available, we will apply an Amazon Gift Card to your account. You do not need to return this product to receive the refund.
posted by OnceUponATime at 7:49 AM on April 5 [1 favorite]
If you have the ability to get into the path of totality, but are thinking about skipping the craziness because you're nearby in an area that will have high-90s totality, hear my cautionary tale from the last one: What does it look like outside when 2% of the sun is still above the horizon? That's what I didn't figure out until it was too late. Everyone will be on the road and it will be madness, but if you have the ability, it is worth it to suffer hardships to get into the path of totality. Especially if you're nearby to begin with.
posted by ob1quixote at 7:59 AM on April 5 [6 favorites]
posted by ob1quixote at 7:59 AM on April 5 [6 favorites]
I had a perfect cloudless sky for the totality of the 2017 eclipse. I was the person at our university who realized that, even though we were only a mile from the edge of totality, we got a whole minute. We had about five thousand people at our party.
The sight of the impossible blackness of the Moon against the ghostly white corona, with its pink central highlights, was certainly one of the amazing things about the eclipse. But another of the amazing things was watching the Moon's shadow race towards us from the west, at hundreds of miles per hour; envelop us during totality (but not entirely, since we were on the southwest edge of the path); then race away to the east.
If it's cloudy on Monday, I'm still driving up to see the eclipse. I will be near the edge of totality this time, too, because I don't want to have to cross the Ohio River on one of its few bridges afterwards when everyone else is returning from Illinois to Tennessee. If the clouds break, then I get to see the totality with all the complexity of a partly-cloudy sky on a spring day. And if the clouds don't break, then I get to watch the shadow of the Moon race past me from the west to the east across the tops of the clouds, and I'll understand the thickness of a layer of springtime clouds in a three-dimensional way for the rest of my life, better than any of my friends who will have never seen such a shadow, better than I'll ever be able to explain properly.
Suppose it storms. Big deal. Being out of doors in a rainstorm is one of life's simple pleasures, made optional by the existence of sturdy buildings with porch swings, and made even more optional by the existence of sturdy buildings with sturdy glass windows. The fact that it's optional is what makes it a pleasure (when chosen) rather than "an adventure," which might or might not be a pleasure. One of my favorite things is being outdoors all day on a day before and after a big storm is blowing through, so that I can see the clouds forming on the distant horizon. I can see the rain under the clouds there, taking half a minute to move in gusts from the cloudbase to the ground; I can see there's no rain under the clouds there; but I can see rain under the clouds there, at least as thick and dark as the cloud itself. I can see the remains of the storm charging off afterwards, with rainbows in tow if the Sun is low enough. Now I imagine this beautiful ballet of rain and mist modulated by a racing shadow on the sky where the light gets suddenly dimmer by a factor of 1000, and brighter by a factor of 1000 afterward.
I'm not doing any solar science during Monday's eclipse. I'm not going to study the weather to maximize the joy of my experience. I'm prepared to be amazed by whatever the world hands me.
posted by fantabulous timewaster at 8:10 AM on April 5 [8 favorites]
The sight of the impossible blackness of the Moon against the ghostly white corona, with its pink central highlights, was certainly one of the amazing things about the eclipse. But another of the amazing things was watching the Moon's shadow race towards us from the west, at hundreds of miles per hour; envelop us during totality (but not entirely, since we were on the southwest edge of the path); then race away to the east.
If it's cloudy on Monday, I'm still driving up to see the eclipse. I will be near the edge of totality this time, too, because I don't want to have to cross the Ohio River on one of its few bridges afterwards when everyone else is returning from Illinois to Tennessee. If the clouds break, then I get to see the totality with all the complexity of a partly-cloudy sky on a spring day. And if the clouds don't break, then I get to watch the shadow of the Moon race past me from the west to the east across the tops of the clouds, and I'll understand the thickness of a layer of springtime clouds in a three-dimensional way for the rest of my life, better than any of my friends who will have never seen such a shadow, better than I'll ever be able to explain properly.
Suppose it storms. Big deal. Being out of doors in a rainstorm is one of life's simple pleasures, made optional by the existence of sturdy buildings with porch swings, and made even more optional by the existence of sturdy buildings with sturdy glass windows. The fact that it's optional is what makes it a pleasure (when chosen) rather than "an adventure," which might or might not be a pleasure. One of my favorite things is being outdoors all day on a day before and after a big storm is blowing through, so that I can see the clouds forming on the distant horizon. I can see the rain under the clouds there, taking half a minute to move in gusts from the cloudbase to the ground; I can see there's no rain under the clouds there; but I can see rain under the clouds there, at least as thick and dark as the cloud itself. I can see the remains of the storm charging off afterwards, with rainbows in tow if the Sun is low enough. Now I imagine this beautiful ballet of rain and mist modulated by a racing shadow on the sky where the light gets suddenly dimmer by a factor of 1000, and brighter by a factor of 1000 afterward.
I'm not doing any solar science during Monday's eclipse. I'm not going to study the weather to maximize the joy of my experience. I'm prepared to be amazed by whatever the world hands me.
posted by fantabulous timewaster at 8:10 AM on April 5 [8 favorites]
> I saved my official glasses from last time, so I am ready to go!
Eeek! Are they disposable kind? I remember being told they had an expiration date, as the plastic degrades.
> This eclipse feels different, culture wise, from the 2017. I don't recall so much discussion or the sheer hordes of people projected to be in places in the path of totality.
Maybe it's regional? I went camping in Oregon to be in the path of totality and the news was full of dire warnings about how ATMs would crash, that we should bring cans of gasoline because the stations would all be overwhelmed, etc.
posted by The corpse in the library at 8:53 AM on April 5
Eeek! Are they disposable kind? I remember being told they had an expiration date, as the plastic degrades.
> This eclipse feels different, culture wise, from the 2017. I don't recall so much discussion or the sheer hordes of people projected to be in places in the path of totality.
Maybe it's regional? I went camping in Oregon to be in the path of totality and the news was full of dire warnings about how ATMs would crash, that we should bring cans of gasoline because the stations would all be overwhelmed, etc.
posted by The corpse in the library at 8:53 AM on April 5
I am deeply amused by the fact that KGH (Kingston General Hospital) will have opthamalogists on call the day of the eclipse. My manager said, "Yeah, it will probably be in case of kids looking without protection." "Oh, I don't think it's the kids we need to worry about," I replied dryly.
posted by Kitteh at 9:24 AM on April 5 [2 favorites]
posted by Kitteh at 9:24 AM on April 5 [2 favorites]
A week before the 2017 eclipse my wife called me and said "we should really go see this". I'd been thinking that it wasn't a big deal, the 2024 one was much nearer to us, and we'd just wait. She always liked an adventure, so she pushed me and we got last minute flights into Atlanta, stayed in a hotel just outside the zone, and picked our viewing destination (Toccoa, GA) based on the cloud forecast in the morning. It was everything she was hoping for. She passed away a couple of years ago, so I'm grateful to have this memory, and that we didn't wait for 2024. I'll be in the totality again on Monday.
posted by rhamphorhynchus at 10:43 AM on April 5 [24 favorites]
posted by rhamphorhynchus at 10:43 AM on April 5 [24 favorites]
I printed out a NASA letter about the eclipse and eclipse viewing safety for our parents. We collected enough glasses from CCPL so that all the kids get a pair to take home. I even reminded the parents to be safe if watching the eclipse on the kid's day sheet. Hopefully everything will be ok with them.
posted by kathrynm at 11:25 AM on April 5
posted by kathrynm at 11:25 AM on April 5
I saved my official glasses from last time, so I am ready to go!
Eeek! Are they disposable kind? I remember being told they had an expiration date, as the plastic degrades.
If you see "ISO 12312-2:2015" on your glasses, they should not expire: From The American Astronomical Society's website: "as noted on our Eye Safety page, modern solar viewers last indefinitely as long as they're stored and maintained in good condition" (also here). The advice to throw them out after three years applies to older glasses from before the ISO standard came out.
posted by dirigibleman at 1:51 PM on April 5 [6 favorites]
Eeek! Are they disposable kind? I remember being told they had an expiration date, as the plastic degrades.
If you see "ISO 12312-2:2015" on your glasses, they should not expire: From The American Astronomical Society's website: "as noted on our Eye Safety page, modern solar viewers last indefinitely as long as they're stored and maintained in good condition" (also here). The advice to throw them out after three years applies to older glasses from before the ISO standard came out.
posted by dirigibleman at 1:51 PM on April 5 [6 favorites]
I've got disposable eclipse glasses with the ISO standard and the manufacturers mailing address printed on them, but it also says to discard them after 10 years, right below all that info.
posted by peppermind at 4:11 PM on April 5 [1 favorite]
posted by peppermind at 4:11 PM on April 5 [1 favorite]
I am in Austin for an eclipse-oriented and extensively organized cousins reunion and I am so bummed.
posted by brambleboy at 12:12 PM on April 6
posted by brambleboy at 12:12 PM on April 6
In 1999 there was a solar eclipse over the UK. At the time I was working for a law firm in Barking, Essex about a 15-minute walk from the local park. Just before the eclipse, we closed the office, we all walked down to the park and watched the eclipse reflected in the lake. As it grew dark, I and another woman started dancing and singing "This is the Dawning of the Age of Aquarius..." All the park winos sitting in the bandstand looked at us like we were nuts. It's an experience I will never forget.
posted by essexjan at 6:05 AM on April 7 [3 favorites]
posted by essexjan at 6:05 AM on April 7 [3 favorites]
we came to clayton, ny to catch it from nyc and it's looking like cloudy as fuck all the way from Burlington to Cleveland
we should have gone to maine, damn you!
posted by lalochezia at 5:13 PM on April 7
we should have gone to maine, damn you!
posted by lalochezia at 5:13 PM on April 7
Hoping the skies keep clearing here in Texas.
posted by gingerbeer at 9:41 AM on April 8 [1 favorite]
posted by gingerbeer at 9:41 AM on April 8 [1 favorite]
Sitting in the Old Greenville Rec Area, just outside Greenville, Mo. Watching a bank of high wispy clouds taunting us, threatening to move in and solidify. Crossing our fingers.
posted by Reverend John at 10:16 AM on April 8
posted by Reverend John at 10:16 AM on April 8
I'm glad we decided to ignore the NYT visualizer. I think we'd have been much, much worse off it we'd followed it. We did look at it though. Honestly just checking various weather sites and current satelite cloud images was the best.
We drove up from Pittsburgh having considered going up to Erie but deciding instead to drive past Cleveland and then up through Elyra to the lake. The plan was to find a small park off the lake, and we could see google maps reporting traffic slowdowns at the bigger parks along the lake, we knew to avoid them. We slipped into a nice not crowded park, my kids got to play with other kids, the view was clear for the eclipse and wow, just wow.
But the real data visualization was google maps on the way back. So many out of state plates! So much traffic! And we learned that you need to turn off the 'save gas' feature on google maps so it would give us a quicker route. And I had two cell phones navigating so I could forsee the traffic slowdowns. Avoided two 20+ minute red zones by getting shifted to some back highways -- which were still filled with lines of cars leaving the totality zone a hundred miles away.
A great day all around!
posted by Catblack at 8:53 PM on April 8 [1 favorite]
We drove up from Pittsburgh having considered going up to Erie but deciding instead to drive past Cleveland and then up through Elyra to the lake. The plan was to find a small park off the lake, and we could see google maps reporting traffic slowdowns at the bigger parks along the lake, we knew to avoid them. We slipped into a nice not crowded park, my kids got to play with other kids, the view was clear for the eclipse and wow, just wow.
But the real data visualization was google maps on the way back. So many out of state plates! So much traffic! And we learned that you need to turn off the 'save gas' feature on google maps so it would give us a quicker route. And I had two cell phones navigating so I could forsee the traffic slowdowns. Avoided two 20+ minute red zones by getting shifted to some back highways -- which were still filled with lines of cars leaving the totality zone a hundred miles away.
A great day all around!
posted by Catblack at 8:53 PM on April 8 [1 favorite]
We had reservations in Sandusky and plane tickets from "nearby" airports, so we were committed regardless of the cloud cover. NYT doohicky was still saying 40-60% cloud cover just before, and maybe that was right, but they were such high, thin clouds, we could see perfectly through them.
What a show! We were at a family resort, lots of kids at their "eclipse party," and everyone started cheering when totality happened. It felt like a celebration of being human together on this space rock, and getting to see where we stand in the universe. Yay, the moon! Yay, the sun! Yay, us!
But I put "nearby" in scare quotes, because the Detroit airport was supposed to be about an hour and half away, but it took us about 5 hours to get there with the traffic. Can't tell whether the detours Google had us take around traffic were helpful or not, because there was a ton of traffic on the side roads too. Had to run for our flight, but we made it!
posted by OnceUponATime at 6:16 AM on April 9
What a show! We were at a family resort, lots of kids at their "eclipse party," and everyone started cheering when totality happened. It felt like a celebration of being human together on this space rock, and getting to see where we stand in the universe. Yay, the moon! Yay, the sun! Yay, us!
But I put "nearby" in scare quotes, because the Detroit airport was supposed to be about an hour and half away, but it took us about 5 hours to get there with the traffic. Can't tell whether the detours Google had us take around traffic were helpful or not, because there was a ton of traffic on the side roads too. Had to run for our flight, but we made it!
posted by OnceUponATime at 6:16 AM on April 9
No north American eclipses for a while, but you can donate eclipse glasses to schools and other groups in South America, Asia, and Africa, which have eclipses coming up sooner...
posted by OnceUponATime at 6:28 AM on April 9 [1 favorite]
posted by OnceUponATime at 6:28 AM on April 9 [1 favorite]
Watching this was a transcendent experience!
My family came to visit and I was fortunate to be able to host my parents directly on the back deck of my unit. There were indeed high clouds, but not enough to impact our viewing much. We could see planets, but no stars, during totality. I was too enthralled by the corona and the visible solar flare during totality to care much about that!
posted by meinvt at 1:11 PM on April 9 [1 favorite]
My family came to visit and I was fortunate to be able to host my parents directly on the back deck of my unit. There were indeed high clouds, but not enough to impact our viewing much. We could see planets, but no stars, during totality. I was too enthralled by the corona and the visible solar flare during totality to care much about that!
posted by meinvt at 1:11 PM on April 9 [1 favorite]
ReligionForBreakfast put up a video discussing a bunch of religions that have seen eclipses as having religious significance even when they know all the math and astronomy needed to predict when they'll happen:
Doom-Bringing Solar Eclipses in the World's Religions
posted by clawsoon at 4:20 AM on April 10
Doom-Bringing Solar Eclipses in the World's Religions
posted by clawsoon at 4:20 AM on April 10
« Older There's Trouble in River City. | Nashville Casualty and Life Newer »
Thanks for this tool, I think it will prove useful.
posted by The Manwich Horror at 12:38 PM on April 4 [2 favorites]