U.S. Solar Eclipses - Oct. 14, 2023 (Annular) & Apr. 08, 2024 (Total)

[russ_watters]

If you have any incandescent bulbs left, you can also use them to see the filament - giving them a dry run as it were.

Yesterday I used a pair to show my nephew an LED flashlight chip.

 

[JT Smith]

We were going to go see it in 2017 but ultimately had to admit that it would have been a crazy amount of effort to hopefully experience that minute or three of transcendence. So we skipped it. Maybe if we'd planned for it a year or two in advance but we didn't. Not going this year either. Maybe we will take acid and listen to Dark Side of the Moon instead.

Hope you guys have a good time.

 

[DaveC426913]

So yeah. Canada is a population of 38 million; Ontario is home to 15 million of them, and GTA a third of that.

The eclipse is going to miss (but still be within driving distance of) the single largest commuity in the country - most of them with "Fear Of Missing Out" Disease - and limit itself to the very tippy tippy tip of Ontario - the Niagara Peninsula, which is a dead-end on three sides with only one major route in and out.

Niagara Falls is expecting an influx of visitors the likes of which it has never seen in its history as a world-recognized tourist destination.

This is a time-sensitive event that lasts less than three minutes. There is no arriving late or "waiting till the crowds die down".

And the entire peninsula is serviced by a single six lane skyway bridge. A bridge that is already a known bottleneck during any rush hour.

 

[Vanadium 50]

The more sensible option may be to go northeast, not southeast. Try and get close to Prince Edward County. It's probably too late to sign up for a booze cruise on the lake, but that would be another option.

 

[Borg]

It appears that you can still get a hotel on the Canadian side of Niagra Falls. Gee, I wonder why the prices are so high.

 

[DaveC426913]

I made a thing!

A camera obscura.

OK, the handles and hatch may be overkill but the enhancements started with the spotter, which I found very useful.

The contrpation is difficult to align easily with the sun while looking in the box. I had no way to know which way to twist it to get the sun lined up on the screen. There was no feedback; it was dead right or dead wrong (just like a scope):

Now it's easy to use the spotter to align the shadow before looking in the viewer:

 

[Stavros Kiri]

I made a thing!

A camera obscura.

View attachment 342083

OK, the handles and hatch may be overkill but the enhancements started with the spotter, which I found very useful.

The contrpation is difficult to align easily with the sun while looking in the box. I had no way to know which way to twist it to get the sun lined up on the screen. There was no feedback; it was dead right or dead wrong (just like a scope):

View attachment 342089


Now it's easy to use the spotter to align the shadow before looking in the viewer:

View attachment 342088


View attachment 342087

Way to go! ...

 

[russ_watters]

If I do the trip, I'll probably stay in my home town in Ohio, which is near the edge of the totality zone, but only an hour's drive from the lake, someplace like Ashtabula or Conneaut or Geneva-on-the-Lake.

FYI, I'll be at Geneva-on-the-Lake, so if you're looking for a viewing party I can provide one to return the favor from 2017.

Open to all from PF for that matter.

...weather dependent of course.

 

[jtbell]

Geneva-on-the-Lake

The Jersey Shore of northeast Ohio!

When I was a little kid, I always looked forward to going there when we were at our cottage a few miles down the road.

We'll be at my alma mater on eclipse day, but we're arriving in the area on Friday, and will probably drive up to the lake on Saturday or Sunday. How long are you all going to be there?

 

[russ_watters]

The Jersey Shore of northeast Ohio!

When I was a little kid, I always looked forward to going there when we were at our cottage a few miles down the road.

We'll be at my alma mater on eclipse day, but we're arriving in the area on Friday, and will probably drive up to the lake on Saturday or Sunday. How long are you all going to be there?

We're arriving on Saturday night and going to the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame on Sunday.

I'm bringing the crew that was with me in 2017, which was on an upgraded annual shore trip that started out on the Jersey shore.

 

[DaveC426913]

 

[Stavros Kiri]

Check out also during the Eclipse, the "Eclipse Comet":
The Spiral Comet, Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks, is interesting as it approaches the sun for a close encounter in April. Even amateurs have observed and monitored the comet since early on, when it appeared again [after 71.3 years] this year (becoming visible in early March etc.), noticing its spiral core and green color. E.g. (amateur photo):

​

​ Above: The spiral core of Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks photographed by Jan Erik Vallestad of Sunnfjord, Norway

The comet is approaching the sun for a rare appearance during this April's total solar eclipse. Cryovolcanic comet 12P/Pons-Brooks is expected to be at least faintly visible inside the Moon's shadow with a more dramatic display possible if one of its ice geysers erupts at the right moment.

​

​ Above: Venus, Jupiter and possibly Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks will be visible during this April's total solar eclipse

It's a Halley type comet, with core diameter about 30Km and period 71.3 years. It's expected having its closest approach to the Sun on April 21st. At some stages, even ~ naked eye observations may probably be (or have been) possible during these nights, depending on the conditions (or at least using small telescope or binoculars ...).

 

[Stavros Kiri]

The Spiral Comet [cf. previous post above] (or 'Devil Comet') is Now a NAKED-EYE OBJECT: Amateur astronomers are reporting naked-eye sightings of "devil comet" 12P/Pons-Brooks in the evening sky. The 4th magnitude comet is brightening as it approaches the sun for a close encounter later this month. It will be an easy target for night-sky cameras this week, and maybe even during the total solar eclipse on April 8th.

​

​ Above: Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks photographed on April 2nd by Austran astrophotographer Michael Jaeger

Now it's about a 3rd size magnitude object (perhaps between 3 and 4 ...). The nickname "Devil Comet" was given because after a previous eruption of its volcano's (reminder: it's a cryovolcanic comet ...) it's shape changed reminding devil's head etc. ...

 

[russ_watters]

I'll be livestreaming the view through my larger telescope via facebook live. Here's the link:
https://fb.me/e/209iObXeI

 

[jtbell]

Projected cloud cover maps from OpenSnow

One day before day the eclipse, chances are looking good for those of us in NE Ohio: Russ, Andy, me...

I'm keeping my fingers crossed. Today my wife and I drove around the region, including along Lake Erie from Conneaut to Geneva-on-the-Lake. Gorgeous sunshine, chilly in the morning.

 

[Borg]

Good luck everyone. May you all have clear skies!

 

[russ_watters]

We were considering relocating to Cleveland. Only an hour away but last night was showing it to be clearing sooner. But it was trending in the right direction and now shows clearing around noon here. So we're staying at Geneva-on-the-Lake, OH.

 

[nsaspook]

https://people.com/total-solar-eclipse-means-free-food-at-chilis-cracker-barrel-burger-king-8624781

The Rare Total Solar Eclipse Means Free Food at Chili’s, Cracker Barrel and More​

 

[russ_watters]

Ready to go and the sky is mostly clear!

 

[jtbell]

We got here a bit early so we can eat lunch. The crowd is starting to gather. Sunny but with light clouds rolling in from the west.

 

[Borg]

I'll be livestreaming the view through my larger telescope via facebook live. Here's the link:
https://fb.me/e/209iObXeI

Watching. Looks awesome.

 

[jtbell]

About 35 minutes to totality. Thin clouds have moved in, making the sky various shades of milky blue or bluish milk. The partial phases show up fine through eclipse glasses.

 

[Borg]

Watching. Looks awesome.

Looks like the live stream ended after 22 minutes.

 

[Borg]

@russ_waters I do see your live stream now.

 

[russ_watters]

Looks like the live stream ended after 22 minutes.

A connectivity issue stopped the stream, sorry. I did restart, but it can't be restarted with the same stream, so they were separate links. Only a few people were able to get back on. I can't even see it on my own page right now, but will post a new link if it comes back. I did get some really good photos though. There was even a naked-eye visible solar flare.

 

[Borg]

A connectivity issue stopped the stream, sorry. I did restart, but it can't be restarted with the same stream, so they were separate links. Only a few people were able to get back on. I can't even see it on my own page right now, but will post a new link if it comes back. I did get some really good photos though. There was even a naked-eye visible solar flare.

I did see it when it came back and even saw you posting that you weren't sure if the stream was running.

 

[Andy Resnick]

Hot off the press, so to speak:

This image is downscaled about 2:1- really excited that I have some good shots!

 

[russ_watters]

Animation of coming out of totality reversed to look like going in:

 

[nsaspook]

 

[rbelli1]

Unfortunately I had some clouds so I didn't get any clear pictures of totality.

I did get a good picture of the lake I was watching from

And I saw a fox!

BoB

ETA: Lake Bonaparte NY.