Stargazing U.S. Solar Eclipse of Aug. 21, 2017

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The U.S. solar eclipse on August 21, 2017, presents a rare opportunity for viewers across the country, with the path of totality spanning from coast to coast. Many participants are planning to travel to optimal viewing locations, particularly in states like Kentucky and Illinois, to ensure clear skies. Essential equipment for viewing includes eclipse glasses, cameras with telephoto lenses, and possibly telescopes, although some participants express concerns about traffic congestion and weather unpredictability. Past experiences with eclipses highlight the importance of mobility to avoid cloud cover and maximize viewing chances. Overall, the excitement surrounding this event emphasizes its significance for both seasoned eclipse watchers and newcomers alike.
  • #391
Borg said:
My wife had to stay behind in northern VA but she had glasses with her. I didn't expect her to get any decent pictures but she is pretty resourceful. Who needs solar filters when you have just the right amount of water for a filter?
I agree. Great pic. I was unable to acquire any glasses (for a reasonable price). I was fooling around trying to get the pinhole viewer, and then it started to get darker. I looked up and saw something nearly similar, through the clouds. It was beautiful, but I knew I should not stare at that, even through clouds. By the time I got my camera ready, it was completely behind the cloud. A friend took several shots with a nice camera. I haven't heard if any turned out worth sharing, though.
 
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  • #392
Stavros Kiri said:
What was that "vehicle" passing in front of the competing Sun and Moon? Did anyone get that guy's license plates number?

I did! "ISS 2017" ...

Note: This is a real video, originally broadcasted in NASA's live streaming. (I saw it while playing)

Here is an alternative video, with the proper description this time.
It happened in Banner Wyoming !
 
  • #393
Welder's helmet worked very well but it was hot inside it. I sunburn in just a few minutes so it saved me from that. Two #10's made the sun plenty dark .
Welding lenses are not particularly flat , rather wavy like 19th century windowpanes. Photographs through them come out just awful. But without magnification they give a good image to the eye.
For an instant right at beginning of totality i saw what i believe had to be that orange flare on right hand side of the sun. Of course to naked eye it was tiny.Enjoyed meeting Mr & Mrs @anorlunda . Great afternoon, found eclipse chasers to be a friendly lot. Had nice chats with folks from as far as Texas and Ontario right there in Land Between the Lakes park. Next time i think i too will camp - the traffic afterward was dreadful.

Fair Anne and I got ready in such a rush we forgot the camera. This being our first eclipse, i now know that i want a solar filter and camera attachment for a small telescope. Picked up a Meade ETX70 at a yard sale a week or so ago , have yet to get familiar with it. Seems about the right flavor...old jim
 
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  • #394
jtbell said:
As the sunlight dwindled near totality, shadows became sharper.
We were on the edge of the track, so no totality here, but my wife said the same thing about the shadows... she said "it got a lot cooler", too.
 
  • #395
scottdave said:
In Houston it was about 67% eclipsed. My attempt at a pinhole viewer made a tiny projection of the eclipse. I remembered seeing about using a telescope to project the image. I happened to have some 10x50 binoculars, and was able to make a larger projection.

View attachment 209548
Same here. My pinhole camera was a waste of time. It worked but the image was tiny and dim. My host mounted a pair of binoculars on a tripod and got excellent results like yours.
 
  • #396
anorlunda said:
I think the diamond ring is what is shown in image 2 of post #137. I think the fire storms are what my neighbor caught in this shot below. I love the colors, but I can't decide if they are pink or orange. I also don't know which side is up in this image. I also feel sorry for my neighbor, he concentrated so much getting these max zoomed images that he never saw the corona.
several nice prominences in that pic your neighbour took ... he can be well pleased with the result

@Borg caught the diamond ring effect very well on post #367Dave
 
  • #397
Dr Transport said:
During totality, from my friends GoPro...
I haven't gotten a copy of the video yet but there was a GoPro running at my site also. From what I've seen on that and the posts here, they are great for set-and-forget event capture. I may have to invest in one before the next eclipse. :oldsmile:
 
  • #400
[edit] Maybe youtube works better...



[/edit]

0:00 king sized white bed sheet [no shadow bands :oldgrumpy:]
0:52 things got dark really fast
0:56 first "Woo!"
0:57 first "Woo Hoo!"
1:03 first "Wow"
1:10 peak of screams
1:17 switched from sheet to eclipse
1:29 "attempt" at spectral experiment
1:39 end of spectral experiment. lens fell off. suppressed swearing.
1:44 young voice from the crowd; "there are the coyotes" [see below]
1:55 first sight of Regulus
2:26 stopped fiddling with camera. sat back, and watched.
3:12 end of totality
3:13 lost Regulus
3:27 started capturing partial via "lens interaction(?)"
3:43 looking at it now, it looks like it was kind of cloudy
3:45 2nd attempt at spectral imaging
3:50 my camera was obviously quite confused
3:54 my; "I'm going to fiddle with things, in case my camera gets confused" idea clicked in
4:08 realized I might be destroying my camera
4:14 evidence that Oregonians do not like crowded spaces
4:43 evidence that I had a spare camera going
4:51 last chance at "shadow bands". Poop!
5:16 pan to "serious" people
5:21 zoom to "serious" people being inundated with people interested in science
5:53 Om let's out a sigh, thinking to himself; "Thank god, I didn't die". I'm sure his is blood pressure was off the charts, as blood was squirting from a few mosquito bite sites, before, during, and after the event.
​

[below]
I do not recommend camping at the Mountain Creek Ranch, in Mitchell Oregon, unless you have an RV. The temperature last night was 28°F. Also, the coyotes start howling around midnight, and don't stop until about a half hour before dawn. I think there are about 50,000 that live on the ranch. So bring earplugs.

ps. I am officially, no longer a "city slicker", as, my tent now smells like cow poop.
[/below]
 
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  • #401
Here's my mashup timelapse video. 1002 pics taken from students, myself, and other visitors. 96.6% occulation



Special thanks to physics forums members for helping me figure out the solar filter
 
  • #402
NASA's live streaming was very good and thorough! We saw many totalities and diamond rings (etc.) ... along the path of totality, not just one. The last stop was Charleston, South Carolina (where I was planning to be, hadn't I changed plans), but it was under (thin) cloudiness (still kind of ok though). They also had other events, coverage from the jet, space station etc.

I recommend to everyone to watch those on a video.
 
  • #403
Like @OmCheeto, I was trying to get a video of shadow bands.
I saw them just prior to the eclipse and had a GoPro set-up to record it.
The GoPro did not catch the event as well as my personal eyeballs did, but you can kind of see it.
I noticed that the weak effect was more apparent if I scrubbed the video (made it go faster by hand) so I made a 2x and 4x version of the clip.
This is in the clip here:

My shadow is also in the video.
When I give the thumbs up I was seeing the shadow bands.

Looks even less convincing after going through youtube, but there it is.

A friend of mine saw and filmed stronger shadow bands at Newport (on the Oregon coast).
There appearance seems to have been quite variable.
 
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  • #404
Wow, great pictures and videos everyone! :smile:

My story: I traveled to the center of the path of totality. Shortly before totality, a big storm cloud rolled in directly above my location in northwestern Missouri. It rained for the entire duration of totality. :frown:

-----

On a separate note, for those interested in finding International Space Station (ISS) transits across the sun and the moon, a website like this can prove helpful: http://transit-finder.com/
 
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  • #405
collinsmark said:
...

On a separate note, for those interested in finding International Space Station (ISS) transits across the sun and the moon, a website like this can prove helpful: http://transit-finder.com/

Comparing that with the "NASA's Eyes" app, it's accurate to within a second.
Thank you!
 
  • #406
OmCheeto said:
Comparing that with the "NASA's Eyes" app, it's accurate to within a second.
Thank you!
Found this cool video there.



You don't want to blink.
 
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  • #407
I wonder how long it's going to take for everything that is just incredibly cool about this eclipse to filter out.



This one is good in Hi-Def at 1/4 speed.
I've watched it about 10 times now.
 
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  • #408
Here are some eclipse stamps my wife just got.
2017-08-30 17-06-02 -0700.jpg


They are temperature sensitive.
I put my thumb on some so you can see the moon!
 
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  • #409
The eclispe is gone, of course, but the sun is still there and ... interesting! And if we like the eclipse ... we, in principle, should like our sun too.
There is our last chance, currently, as we speak, to see four active sun spot group regions in the sun (AR 2672, 2673, 2674 & 2675).
https://www.physicsforums.com/threa...ce-weather-update-thread.923468/#post-5832304
The senior Region 2672 is about to depart. [Right now: Fri, 1 Sept, 2017 , 2:35pm US, EST (DST)]
See also live update:
https://www.spaceweatherlive.com/en/solar-activity/sunspot-regions
... if you catch it! (AR 2672, before departing, that is ... , etc.)
 
  • #410
I'm still working on my processing, but I took the liberty of editing the old post to replace the images with updates. The corona looks much smoother in these, though there is a bit less detail close-in.

russ_watters said:
Totality; Composite of six exposures, combined in Photomatix; 1/64", 1/32", 1/16", 1/4", 1/2", 1.6"
Orion ED80 (80x600mm), Canon EOS T3i:

View attachment 210207

With Earth'shine, 4sec (added in Photoshop):
View attachment 210208

https://www.facebook.com/russ.watters/posts/10154808060364249?pnref=story
 
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  • #411
BillTre said:
Here are some eclipse stamps my wife just got.
View attachment 210035

They are temperature sensitive.
I put my thumb on some so you can see the moon!
My wife and I got a set of those a while back. Just the other day we were discussing as to whether or not to use them as stamps, or save them as a complete set.
 
  • #412
Janus said:
My wife and I got a set of those a while back. Just the other day we were discussing as to whether or not to use them as stamps, or save them as a complete set.
My wife is having fun using them.
They are half gone.
 

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