We aren't sure yet, but we are likely the only place in the galaxy that has the perfect total eclipses. If humanity ever manages to unite and take to the stars, there's a strong argument to be made for our flag to just be a black field with a solar corona. We may even have to worry about too much extra-terrestrial eclipse tourism.
We aren’t sure yet, but we are likely the only place in the galaxy that has the perfect total eclipses.
I'm frankly dubious about this - tons of extrasolar planets will have moons, and those moons will occlude their stars. what in any way makes earth special? citation requested.
If there's another planet in our solar system where you can almost get an earth-like "perfect" solar eclipse, I find it highly unlikely that there isn't a single other planet in our entire galaxy where one might also see a "perfect" solar eclipse.
It's also massively over hyped imo. I did the last one and the coolest part was the shadows, but the actual darkness was super underwhelming. Hearing everyone say it was like some spiritual experience makes me roll my eyes a bit. It got dark for a bit. It does that shit every day smh.
People aren't amazed because it gets dark for a bit. People are amazed because it reminds us that the sun and the moon are real 3d objects incredibly far away, not just images in the sky. I can understand how it is a spiritual experience for a lot of people.
Yeah, after seeing a total eclipse, all those partial eclipses seem like nothing. I'm not sure I'll even bother watching a partial or annular eclipse again.
Glad you were able to see it without cloud cover. I ended up changing my destination this morning due to cloud forecast.
I saw the 2017 one and I’m curious what you mean by worth it? Like, worth the effort to go outside and look up? I personally wouldn’t go out of my way to see it again. It was cool but not, $1000 dollar for a campsite cool.
I saw the 2017, and spent well over $3k to travel with my family to see it again today. Granted it was more so I could show it to THEM, but I wanted to see it again too.
It cost us a hotel room at a marginally inflated rate (less than $200). Eclipses aren’t a secret so you can plan/buy ahead, you don’t get caught up in the price gouging. We packed food and drinks in a cooler to save $.
I’m not sure what you mean by going “outside and looking up” other than maybe trying to be dismissive. If you live in the path of totality, going outside and looking up (with appropriate eye protection) is a serious piece of luck, a luxury, and paying “1000 for a campsite” isn’t a problem. If you don’t live in the path of totality then you don’t get to see it - and seeing totality is what’s “worth it”, not just the moon partially blocking the sun.
Eclipses might be a dime-a-dozen, but Halley's Comet doesn't mess around. My grandad saw it twice. I hope to, too. It comes once every 75 years. The last time was 1986. The next is 2061. If you were born today, you'd have to live to be 112 years-old to see it a second time.
The Total Eclipse in Europe will cross southern Spain on the evening of 12th August, 2026. Next total eclipse in Europe will rarely be the following year, 2027, in the southern Spain. Next after will only happen in 2061, over Russia and Kazajstan
And I'm gonna remember this April American one being hyped and I'm half a world away from seeing it.
Maybe a location thing. The current eclipse passes through NY today, the next one touching NY won’t be until 2079. Texas 2045. So it’s all over the place time-wise between eclipses and location.
Or to make a giant disc that can be positioned in an orbit that totally eclipses the sun and/or our hearts regularly so that when we're old we can bitch at kids about how total eclipses used to be rare and special but now everyone takes them for granted because NASA wasted a bunch of money making them mundane and that's what happened to our retirement funds and is why grandparents live in boxes and look forward to the relative comfort of the final box.
Total solar eclipses in any given area only happen about once in 300 years I think? (I'm too lazy to go look up the exact math). So unless you are willing to travel the 150 year number isn't that wrong.
But the darkest shadow called the umbra only falls in a very tiny place, slightly bigger than a few Districts and that shadow moves in a line and those places experience total solar eclipse.
So next year there may be another solar eclipse but New York will not experience a total solar eclipse for a long time.
Also two-thirds of the earth is water so most of the time the umbra falls on the sea.
Got lucky here as the clouds melted away enabling a good look from about 30% onward. Reinforced for me the fact that even though we are not even a microscopic part of the cosmic whole this event, also not a microscopic part of the infinity of the universe, is still a very moving and impressive thing
Even with cloud cover, seeing it at home was something special. I know what it's supposed to look and sound like at that hour. It wasn't the same as night - I could still see sunlight on the horizon all around me. I could sense that the wildlife was confused by it - all the birds just flew to the tops of the trees and were trying to make sense of what was happening. The bugs went quiet, and we were all whispering for no apparent reason - it just felt appropriate. The slow descent into darkness was unsettling, especially under cloud cover - it felt like we were under the gaze of a passing giant we could not see. I was surprised by how relieved I felt when the light started to return. It wasn't what I was expecting but the strangeness of it didn't disappoint, and I don't think seeing it away from home would have been quite the same.
It's hard to say because all of the figures come from different places, and the news articles always like to say the longer figures to gather more attention.
ex: There won't be another eclipse over Ohio for ___ years vs There won't be another eclipse over the continental U.S. for ___ years vs There won't be another eclipse anywhere in the world for ___ years
Hey, you can't tell people in the past that! They might figure out the moon gets destroyed later. You want the time authority to vaporize you or something?
I am a Time Authority. Not a Lord, mind you. Those worthies get to tool around those fancy teleboxes doing all kinds of adventurous, dare i say, romatic escapades. We mere Authorities merely monitor and report. Vaporization is above my pay grade
There was a great episode of NOVA on pbs last night talking indepth about eclipses and their frequency. The gist wad that they have known how to predict them to within 4 minutes and they occur about every 7 years