18 Nov 2017 Reflections on the Great American Total Eclipse
Story and photos
by Linda Henderson
Three years ago, I wrote my very first article for 501 LIFE. Since that time, my husband and I have traveled many miles in the 501. I have taken lots of pictures in the 501 and have learned many things about Central Arkansas, but every once in while we leave the 501 area.
That happened on Aug. 21 as we made a trip to Kuttawa, Ky., to photograph the Great American Total Eclipse of 2017. We chose Kuttawa because it was very close to the “blue line,” hotel availability and interstate access. The blue line denoted the area that was in 100 percent totality and had the longest duration of the moon covering the sun.
According to NASA, more than 300 million people viewed the Great American Eclipse of 2017. There were special campgrounds set up in Oregon for the very first view of the eclipse in the United States. There were viewing parties held across the American West and Midwest. More than 6,800 libraries across the USA distributed safety glasses and held special programs the day of the eclipse.
There were live coverage streaming events held on the many scientific websites. NASA and the Weather Channel had a viewing site in an area in Carbondale, Ill. There were special cruise ship excursions off the coast of South Carolina for the final view of the eclipse in the United States.
There had been predictions of traffic jams, hotel room prices tripling and complete overloads of small town infrastructures. We didn’t find any of those things in Kentucky but we did carry extra food, water and toilet paper just in case.
What we found were lots of friendly people with crazy eclipse T-shirts who wanted to experience 2 minutes and 39 seconds of total darkness. Yep, it was a big deal for 2 minutes to a maximum of 2 minutes and 40 seconds across the entire United States.
For two years, I was slightly obsessed with seeing and photographing this celestial event. I studied maps, looking for just the right spot. I watched lots of YouTube videos on how to photograph the eclipse. I searched the internet for tutorials on the equipment needed and techniques to get the best pictures of the sun’s stretched out corona.
I used smart phone application, The Photographer’s Ephemeris, to determine the compass setting and altitude of the sun and moon. I used a computer program called Stellarium to figure out how high the sun would be above the horizon and other terrestrial features that would be visible during totality.
I purchased a special solar filter for my camera to prevent the sun‘s dangerous rays from harming the camera’s sensor. One week prior to the eclipse, it was recalled. Fortunately, I did get a full refund on my purchase. Without the assurance that the purchased filter was safe for my camera, we had to come up with an alternative plan to protect the camera and lens. We had left over solar filter film from the last partial eclipse in 2012. According to NASA, that film was safe for both viewing and photographing the eclipse. So, my husband took a peanut can and cut out the metal bottom, filed down the metal edges and covered the edges and the inside of the can with black duct tape. Then we cut the center out of the can’s plastic lid. We stretched the solar film tightly over the opening of the can and put the plastic can lid back on. We taped the lid down tightly. The homemade filter worked great. It fit my camera lens and was very easy to remove seconds before totality. During totality it is safe to look at the eclipse as well as to photograph it without a filter.
I had a goal of capturing the event with my camera from the time the moon’s shadow concealed the first little sliver of the sun’s fiery sphere. I wanted a shot of Baily’s Beads, which are the sun’s red gases shining around the shadow of the moon.
Next on my shot list was the diamond ring, when there is only one flare of the sun’s light shining in a bright ring around the moon’s silhouette. The picture I most wanted was the sun’s corona stretching out with details and the bands of bursting sunlight. My final plan was to photograph the last stages of the sun’s orb returning back to its normal appearance.
The day of the events the sun was hot and high overhead. It started out slowly with the sun being nibbled away by the shadow of the moon. Gradually there was less and less of the sun until there was only a slender sliver of sunlight.
As totality drew nearer, the sky grew darker. The crowd around us got up from their lawn chairs and started looking upward. They began to anxiously chat about how the sky was changing. It was a few moments before totality and we became filled with an indescribable excitement. The temperature dramatically decreased as totality developed. As the eclipse got close, the landscape was enveloped by a strange, dim and eerie light with sharp silver shadows. Birds stopped singing and started to roost. Crickets and frogs started their nightly melodies. Everything at that point started to occur very quickly, with the sun finally flickering out and a dusky darkness occurring.
Planets and bright stars came into view. The 360 degrees of the horizon had a band of sunset colors – sherbet orange progressing to soft yellow with a thin band of pink leading up to deepening shades of dark denim blue sky. The sunlight then made its final thin narrow line with the bursting out of pinpoint dots of red light (Baily’s Beads) surrounding the covered sun.
As the final bit of sunlight was leaving the sky, there was a burst of light that had the appearance of a glowing, brilliant diamond ring. As the surrounding scenery plunged into sudden mid-day darkness, the crowds let out “oohs,” “aahs,” gasps, shouts and clapping.
The crowning event was seeing the beautiful corona with its pearly white light stretched out away from the eclipsed sun. Then, way too soon, the event started to march backward in the same order, progressing from darkness to light again. This is what we had driven many miles for and waited years to see. Experiencing totality completely exceeded my expectation.
Following the eclipse, I heard lots of comments from people who observed the event in Central Arkansas. Most said that they were disappointed in what they saw. Even though watching 96 percent of the sun disappearing beneath the moon’s shadow was a spectral sight, the real show was at the path of totality. When it comes to solar eclipses, even 99 percent is like the difference between day and night. Outside the path, the light does dim but there is nothing like seeing a 100 percent solar eclipse.
If you missed the event or were not able to enjoy it totally, don’t worry. There will be another Great American Eclipse in April 8, 2024. The good news is you will not have to travel out of the 501 area. Most of Central Arkansas will experience 100 percent totality. We even get to enjoy a longer total eclipse in some areas of the 501 with more than 4 minutes of total darkness.
A few people have asked me what I will do different for that next solar event. I’m sure I will still have a camera handy. I want to get pictures of the people enjoying seeing the moon’s shadow covering the sun. I want to take a little longer to see the eclipse and focus less on my camera. I hope my whole family is there with me to enjoy the event. You know, we are not promised another minute, hour, day or year, but I sure hope I get to say I have seen two total eclipses.
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