One year from today: The Great American Eclipse

[Chris]

Mark your calendar, One year from today: The Great American Eclipse:

[Peter1469]

cool stuff!

[waltky]

Yea...

... it's s'posed to go right through Hopkinsville...

... dat's in Kentucky.

[MisterVeritis]

Yea...

... it's s'posed to go right through Hopkinsville...

... dat's in Kentucky.

...probably above...

[Chris]

Yea...

... it's s'posed to go right through Hopkinsville...

... dat's in Kentucky.

Let's all of us, the entire forum, go to Waltky's house for it!!!

I hear Granny'll buy the beer.

[Don]

0.7 magnitude for me. That's pretty dark.

[waltky]

It'll make the chickens go to sleep when it gets dark...

Total solar eclipse 2017: What is it and what will happen?
August 16, 2017 - You've probably heard by now to watch out for a total solar eclipse in the United States on Aug. 21. But do you know exactly what it is and what will happen when it occurs? Here's what you need to know:

What is a total solar eclipse?

To truly understand a total solar eclipse, you must be familiar with the different types of eclipses. An eclipse is when one astronomical body, such as a moon or planet, moves into the shadow of another astronomical body. There are two types of eclipses on Earth: a lunar eclipse and a solar eclipse. A lunar eclipse occurs when Earth moves between the sun and the moon, with its shadow blocking the sunlight that causes the moon to shine. This can only occur when the moon is full, according to NASA. A solar eclipse occurs when the moon moves between the sun and Earth, blocking the sunlight and casting a shadow onto Earth. There are four main types of solar eclipses: partial, annular, total and hybrid, according to NASA.

A total solar eclipse is when the moon moves between the sun and Earth, lasting for up to about three hours from beginning to end. Total solar eclipses occur once every 12 to 18 months while partial solar eclipses, when the moon blocks only part of the sun, occur more frequently, though visibility varies, according to NASA. You must be in the path of totality to witness a total solar eclipse. The path of totality for the Aug. 21 eclipse is a 70-mile-wide ribbon that will arc across the continental United States from west to east. This stretches from Lincoln Beach, Oregon, at 9:05 a.m. PDT to Charleston, South Carolina, at 2:48 p.m. EDT. From there, the moon's shadow leaves the country at 4:09 EDT.

What happens during a total solar eclipse?

During a total solar eclipse, the lunar shadow will darken the sky and temperatures will drop while bright stars and planets will appear at a time that is normally broad daylight. Retired NASA astrophysicist and photographer Fred Espenak said the experience usually lasts for just a couple minutes, but it's truly out of this world. "It is unlike any other experience you've ever had," Espenak, popularly known as Mr. Eclipse, told ABC News. "It's a visceral experience; you feel it. The hair on your arms, on the back of your neck, stand up. You get goosebumps. "You have to be there," he added.

Espenak said the rare and striking astronomical event can last as long as seven minutes. For the Aug. 21 eclipse, NASA anticipates the longest period when the moon obscures the sun's entire surface from any given location along its path will last about two minutes and 40 seconds. Some animals may react strangely to the celestial phenomenon. Rick Schwartz, an animal behavior expert with the San Diego Zoo, said there have been observations of animals going to sleep during total solar eclipses. "The animals take the visual cues of the light dimming, and the temperature cues," Schwartz told ABC News. "You hear the increase of bird calls and insects that you usually associate with nightfall," he added. "Farmers have said that the cows lay down on the field or the chickens go back into the coop."

https://www.yahoo.com/gma/total-sola...opstories.html

[Common Sense]

I'm headed to Wyoming this weekend and hope to see it on my way.

[waltky]

Uncle Ferd got a welder's helmet to wear for the eclipse...

Citizen Scientists Gear Up for Eclipse
August 17, 2017 - The August 21 solar eclipse, the first to travel coast to coast in the United States in nearly a century, has inspired dozens of citizen science projects involving solar physics, atmosphere and biology. "Millions of people ... can walk out on their porch in their slippers and collect world-class data," said Matthew Penn, an astronomer with the National Solar Observatory in Tucson, Arizona.

Penn is coordinating a citizen science effort to photograph the sun's volatile outer atmosphere, known as the corona. The corona's pearly light is typically obscured by the bright glare of the sun, but during a total eclipse, scientists can get a clear view of the outer crown, a mysterious region that triggers solar flares and other storms that can disrupt satellites, power grids and other systems on Earth. The view does not last long. Because the moon is moving at more than 2,000 mph (3,200 kph), it blocks the sun for only a couple of minutes, not long enough to detect key changes in the corona.


93-minute show


The eclipse will cast the moon's 70-mile-wide shadow, called the "path of totality," across the United States over 93 minutes, temporarily bringing darkness to daytime skies. Penn's project, called The Citizen Continental-America Telescopic Eclipse Experiment, or Citizen CATE, involves a network of volunteers who will be stationed along the path of the eclipse with identical telescopes to take digital photos of the corona. The pictures will later be spliced together into a 93-minute movie. Citizen CATE participants require special equipment and training, but dozens of other projects are open to anyone in the path of totality with a camera or cellphone.

An 8-foot camera-carrying balloon rises into the sky during a test launch at the University of Hartford in West Hartford, Conn., Aug. 9, 2017. A team from the University of Bridgeport and the University of Hartford conducted the test as part a project that will send cameras into the stratosphere to photograph this month's solar eclipse.

Google and the University of California-Berkley are teaming up for Eclipse Megamovie 2017, a crowdsourced compilation of eclipse imagery. For a project called Life Responds, the California Academy of Sciences wants field reports about how animals and plant life react during the eclipse. Using an app called iNaturalist, amateur scientists will log their observations and get help identifying flora and fauna. "We want to collect exactly what all these animals are doing as it gets dark -- what do we see, what do we hear," said University of Missouri astronomer Angela Speck. A number of zoos, wildlife preserves and 20 national parks are in the path of the eclipse.


EclipseMob


Another app-driven science project is called EclipseMob, organized by George Mason University in Virginia and the University of Massachusetts in Boston. It aims to collect information about radio waves passing through Earth's ionosphere, the electrically charged outer layer of the atmosphere. When sunlight is blocked during an eclipse, the ionosphere is suddenly transformed. Using home-built radio receivers and smartphones, participants will pick up radio waves transmitted by EclipseMob in Colorado and California and record how the signals change.

Amateur astronomer Mike Conley practices with the telescope he will use to document the Aug. 21 total solar eclipse, at his home in Salem, Ore., Aug. 3, 2017. Conley is part of a project led by the National Solar Observatory to have dozens of citizen scientists posted across the U.S. photograph the celestial event in an effort to create a live movie of its path that will help scientists learn more about the sun's corona.

Other apps will record temperature changes and monitor clouds. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the American Astronomical Society and the American Association for the Advancement of Science have lists of citizen science projects on their websites. "This is an opportunity to draw people from across the country into being fans of science," said astronomer Speck, co-chair of the American Astronomical Society's National Total Solar Eclipse Task Force. "The change in light is so fast and what you get to see is so amazing that even people who chase eclipses and have seen dozens of them will still be wowed by this," Speck said. "It's not just visual, it's an all-over experience."


https://www.voanews.com/a/citizen-sc...e/3990715.html

See also:


Catch Solar Eclipse Online or on TV
August 16, 2017 — Ronald Dantowitz has been looking forward to Monday's solar eclipse for nearly 40 years.

An astronomer who specializes in solar imaging, he's been photographing eclipses for more than three decades, and will be using 14 cameras to capture the August 21 event. The cameras have solar filters to capture the eclipse in its partial phases, along with custom modifications that can photograph the corona and light wavelengths that are invisible to the human eye, allowing scientists to view and study the sun's temperature and composition in a way only possible during a total eclipse, he said. Dantowitz, who is based at Dexter Southfield School in Brookline, Massachusetts, is lending his expertise to NOVA's Eclipse Over America, airing at 9 p.m. EDT Monday on PBS. That hourlong special, which will incorporate his images, is among extensive coverage planned on TV and online of the first solar eclipse to cross the United States in 99 years.


Still, witnessing totality — when the sun is completely obscured by the moon — is best done with the naked eye, not a camera, Dantowitz said, adding that the total eclipse is safe to view without special lenses. (NASA warns that, except for the totality period, looking directly at the sun is unsafe; the only safe way to look directly at an uneclipsed or partly eclipsed sun is through special solar filters, or "eclipse glasses.") "Enjoying totality by eye is more rewarding," he said. "There is much to see: stars during the daytime, the million-degree solar corona, and seeing the sun blacked out during the daytime. "I have been waiting almost 40 years for this eclipse, and although I will be operating 14 cameras during totality, I will certainly take a moment to gaze at the eclipse the same way people have done for thousands of years: with wonder."

Solar eclipse sunglasses are pictured in Los Angeles

For those not in the 14 states in the eclipse's "path of totality," here's a look at some of the viewing opportunities online and on TV:


— Eclipse of the Century: In partnership with Volvo, CNN plans two hours of livestreaming, 360-degree coverage accessible in virtual reality through Oculus and other VR headsets beginning at 1 p.m. EDT. Accompanying television coverage will include reporting from Oregon, Missouri, Tennessee and South Carolina.


— Eclipse Over America: The PBS science series NOVA is planning a quick turnaround on its eclipse documentary premiering Monday. Senior executive producer Paula S. Apsell said Eclipse Over America, which delves into why eclipses occur and what scientists can learn from them, will incorporate images of the event from across the country shot earlier that day with Dantowitz's high-tech cameras.


— Great American Eclipse: The Science Channel will broadcast its live coverage from Madras, Oregon, from noon to 4 p.m. EDT, with commentary from educators and astronomers from the Lowell Observatory.


— The Great American Eclipse: David Muir will anchor ABC's two hours of live coverage, with correspondents reporting from viewing parties across the country. NBC also plans live coverage, with Lester Holt hosting special reports at 1 and 2 p.m. EDT featuring correspondents reporting from Oregon, Illinois, Wyoming and South Carolina. Shepard Smith will break into typical broadcasting on Fox News Channel from noon to 4 p.m. EDT to update viewers on the eclipse and introduce footage from NASA and observatories around the country.


— Solar Eclipse: Through the Eyes of NASA: NASA will offer hours of coverage online and on NASA Television beginning at noon Eastern. It plans livestreaming of the eclipse beginning at 1 p.m. EDT with images from satellites, research aircraft, high-altitude balloons and specially modified telescopes.


— The Total Solar Eclipse: The Weather Channel is kicking off its live coverage at 6 a.m. EDT and continuing throughout the day with dispatches from seven locations along the "path of totality."


https://www.voanews.com/a/catch-sola...n/3988693.html

[resister]

Uncle Ferd got a welder's helmet to wear for the eclipse...

Citizen Scientists Gear Up for Eclipse
August 17, 2017 - The August 21 solar eclipse, the first to travel coast to coast in the United States in nearly a century, has inspired dozens of citizen science projects involving solar physics, atmosphere and biology. "Millions of people ... can walk out on their porch in their slippers and collect world-class data," said Matthew Penn, an astronomer with the National Solar Observatory in Tucson, Arizona.



See also:


Catch Solar Eclipse Online or on TV
August 16, 2017 — Ronald Dantowitz has been looking forward to Monday's solar eclipse for nearly 40 years.

Me too! As a welder, I keeps me one handy dandy!