Weather > Observations
2017 Solar Eclipse
xairbusdriver:
I figured the "Observations" area would be the obvious place for this observation. Hope those of you in the path have clear skies on the 21st! If you don't have the safety glasses by now, you probably will have to settle for seeing only the "Totality" part of this event. On the other hand, watching the people watching the rest of the event can be very entertaining, also!
Please don't even try watching this without proper eye protection!
Look for "ISO 12312-2" (sometimes written as ISO 12312-2:2015) printed on any device used to view the Sun. However, be aware that there are also scammers that are printing this on fake glasses!!
Here's the best interactive map I've come across to let you see where you might want to be. The map starts on the coast of Oregon, scroll down to see how and where the Moon's shadow will be:
https://www.washingtonpost.com
If you've never seen a total solar eclipse (like me), you might get an inkling of why they can be addicting by watching this vid.eclipseguy.com
Please don't even try watching this without proper eye protection!
Look for "ISO 12312-2" (sometimes written as ISO 12312-2:2015) printed on any device used to view the Sun. However, be aware that there are also scammers that are printing this on fake glasses!!
elagache:
Dear X-Air and WeatherCat fans of astronomy,
--- Quote from: xairbusdriver on August 13, 2017, 11:22:58 PM ---Hope those of you in the path have clear skies on the 21st!
--- End quote ---
I decided I wasn't going to do anything about the eclipse, but Sky and Telescope magazine has been buzzing about this event literally for years and telescope vendors have been pushing solar instruments for months. Anyone who wanted to see the event really should have gotten prepared by now. I suppose you can still get safety glasses, but if you haven't prepared by now, you'll need to be a quick study to make anything of the event and do it safely.
Cheers, Edouard
elagache:
Dear X-Air and WeatherCat observers of nature,
For most of us in the USofA, we'll be experiencing a very substantial partial solar eclipse. It should get very dark for many of us and that should be taken seriously. For example driving will be more like at the end of the day instead of in the morning. The eclipse will also have an effect on animals. All these things we can observe without actually being in the path of totality.
One thing we can all do without too much fuss is monitor our webcam. We should see the temperatures decrease as the eclipse progresses. Since WeatherCat includes that information on the webcam, it is there for all to see.
It might be fun to upload our daily webcam movie to your favorite web video service and post a link here on the WeatherCat forum. It should be interesting to see how the eclipse effects the weather in different parts of the country.
Cheers, Edouard [cheers1]
xairbusdriver:
The effect of the "totality shadow" will be one of the objectives of a team send aloft a very high altitude balloon off the left coast next Monday. While they will certainly be way above any clouds, they will not be observing the eclipse directly. Instead, their instruments, including cameras, will be watching for the effects of the shadow on many weather factors such as air temp, cloud formation changes, etc. I think the team is from several universities around the country, but the University of Oregon is the main/lead group.
I've noticed there are many "NASA" icons on some 'eclipse' maps which I think means they will have video cameras feeding their network. I would not be surprised if some of those would be live. I think most cable/satellite services have a NASA TV channel.
I'm not sure there will be much change in the daylight for those over 178.64 miles from the extreme edges 'totality' track (generally about 70 miles wide). I could easily be of by a factor of 2, of course. Found this, but can't vouch for it's scientific accuracy, it's one of those "Coverage you can count on" TV stations! cmu:-)
--- Quote ---...Even at 99% blocked, the sun is still 10,000 times brighter than it would be in totality. Beatty says that if you were walking around New York City on August 21 and were unaware that the eclipse was happening, you may not even notice. "At around 80%, or around 200 miles from the path of totality, you will begin to notice something is going on."
--- End quote ---
elagache:
Dear X-Air and WeatherCat eclipse observers,
--- Quote from: xairbusdriver on August 14, 2017, 11:56:56 PM ---Found this, but can't vouch for it's scientific accuracy, it's one of those "Coverage you can count on" TV stations! cmu:-)
--- Quote ---...Even at 99% blocked, the sun is still 10,000 times brighter than it would be in totality. Beatty says that if you were walking around New York City on August 21 and were unaware that the eclipse was happening, you may not even notice. "At around 80%, or around 200 miles from the path of totality, you will begin to notice something is going on."
--- End quote ---
--- End quote ---
That isn't accurate. In 1979, there was an eclipse that crossed the southern end Baja Mexico. I thought of trying to drive there with my trusty wagon, but thought better of it! From Northern California one could see that things were significantly dimmer than normal. My house is at about 80% of totality. It should be easily visible on the WeatherCat webcam images.
Cheers, Edouard
P.S. Assuming we aren't fogged in at the time.
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