Remembering the August 2017 Total Solar Eclipse

One year ago on 21-Aug-2017, there was a Total Solar Eclipse that was viewable from the area where I live. It was wonderful being in the center of the path of totality! Since I was not yet on the Steem blockchain until September, I am taking this opportunity to reminisce about the event here and to share my photos.

Prior to this eclipse, the only other solar eclipse I've been able to see was the Annular Solar Eclipse of 30-May-1984, which also passed through this area. I was living an hour away at the time, but came down with friends to see it. An "annular" eclipse happens when the Moon is slightly further away from Earth than during a "total" eclipse, thereby appears smaller, doesn't completely cover the sun, and leaves an annulus (Latin for "ring") of the Sun's disk visible all around the disc of the Moon.

A couple of weeks prior to last year's total eclipse, I decided to channel my excitement into a digital artwork. First, I created a layer of deep, indigo blue with my PaintShopPro™ software. Then, I created a triangular section of a lighter color and mirrored it around, multiple times, to simulate the "rays" of the Sun which a child draws. Next, I took a photograph of one of my quartz crystal balls and superimposed it over the rays, then darkened it to represent the Moon. Lastly, I added the border and the mark "AUG 2017" in the lower-left corner.

^{• DIGITAL ARTWORK BY ME •}

I was fortunate to live in the path of totality at the time of the eclipse. I walked across the road from the house — quite literally! — and watched the eclipse in a small field with a couple of neighbor ladies and one of their friends. We were approximately 14.5 miles (23 km) from the centerline. Had we traveled that 14-15 miles to be right on the line, it would only have given us an additional 10 seconds of totality, so I didn't think it was worth the trouble.

^{• IMAGE FROM ECLIPSEWISE.COM, ENHANCED BY ME •}

So, we gathered in the field which I shared previously that was covered in dandelion flowers, only it had been recently mowed before the day of the eclipse arrived.

I have a small telescope which is about the size of a backpack and very portable. It is an Astroscan for anyone who is curious. Since I didn't have a protective solar filter for this telescope, I decided to project the image of the eclipsed sun onto a white tile. Here was my setup, including the yard cart I used to haul my equipment across the street, and my red camp chair with coffee travel mug... gotta have coffee!

There was a strange, eerie twilight-effect during mid-eclipse, but it never got dark-enough for street lights to activate. I was unable to capture the true view of the landscape because my cellphone's camera kept correcting for the low light! Arrrgh! LOL! But we were clearly able to see the planet Venus to the right of the sun! I never managed to spot Mars, Mercury, or Jupiter, even knowing about where they should be.

The very best photo I made, which I snapped as close to mid-eclipse as possible, was the one at lower-left. The dark circle is the moon, covering the sun. The bright patch around the moon is not the disk of the Sun, but the solar "corona," which is only visible during an eclipse and is akin to the "atmostphere" (as such as it is) around the sun.

^{• PHOTOS BY ME •}

After I packed-up and went back across the street to my own house, I noticed the shadows and sunlight underneath a tree, showing a bunch of partially-eclipsed "suns" on the ground. In the photo below is my pair of ISO 12312-12 rated eclipse glasses manufactured by American Paper Optics®, one of the approved makers of safe eclipse-viewing glasses.

One of the neighbor ladies is so creative. In honor of the eclipse, she brought a bottle of sparkling grape juice so we could "toast" the event, and a Moon Pie snack for each of us! 😁

^{• PHOTO BY ME •}