July 22nd 2009 total solar eclipse!!!

bigjed

dmukho

i plan to visit Gaya or Patna from kolkata on 21st.as NASA says the highest sun-count is at Patna. can i join a group if there's any?

Auri

Great to see quite a few people interested in watching the eclipse. It's all about the weather! I found this excellent weather radar map with amazing detail of the local area/region. And here is another map where you can view the trend over the last 24-48 hours giving you an idea of the movement of the clouds.

I would recommend using it to chose your city (e.g. Varanasi / Patna / Allahabad etc.) and then being ready to drive in whichever direction there is a chance of getting a patch of clear sky!

From the Google Map of the city/area, I'd say staying somewhere near the southern side (see Marker A) would allow maximum flexibility in terms of driving in any compass direction!

Having been fortunate enough to witness 3 total solar eclipses in 3 continents, I am hoping that the above strategy will work (and by the grace of the weather Gods of course!).

Yes, it would be great to watch it from along the river / historic ghats, but sometimes a few miles can make all the difference in terms of actually experiencing the wonder of totality (inc. the sublime solar corona).

I am also arriving on the 21st. It will be fun to meet up and enjoy it together - feel free to send me a message. If you have any recommendations for lodging/transportation, let me know. Thanks.

[And don't forget to wish for clear skies! ]

MonkeyBoy4u

For those of you who are worried about the monsoon clouds playing spoilsport for the mega eclipse event; There is a special Jet Lite flight taking off from Delhi airport which will follow the eclipse till around 8 AM.

Since the plane will be flying at altitudes of 40 K and above, no worry of clouds !!!


More details here Eclipse


Cheers !!

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machadinha

Wow. People are really going all-out on this, no?

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MonkeyBoy4u

yep they sure are. I came to know a little late about this flight.. otherwise I would have definitely booked my self a sun side seat.

One thing which surprises me is that despite all the excitment no one is talking about viewing the eclipse safely .

Nick-H

Apparently it is going to be 65% down here in Chennai, which is a pretty big chunk of sun to be covered.

On the safety aspect, I don't think I would have any faith in anything that was sold "for the purpose" as being actually suitable.

PrashanthV

Hi People, ..just a small doubt which couldnt be clarified elsewhere...since the whole eclipse is happening during early morning in India, isnt it safe to watch it completely with naked eye?? or atleast thru a handycam?? cos rising sun is anyway safe to be seen thru naked eye!!

Nick-H

I don't think it is ever safe to look directly at the sun, but I hope someone does answer that point.

Khandoma

Hi all,

Security advice, as requested.

First let me scare you good.
DO NOT watch the eclipse with the naked eye.
Your sunglasses are absolutely no good here, as they do not stop the proper UV rays.
EVEN WORSE is to watch it through the visor of a camera / handycam. Or the lens of a telescpope, if not coupled with an helioscope. The lens focuses the ray into your eye.

Please note that people can actually lose an eye or both. It only takes a few seconds for a sun ray to hit the macula - the central part of the retina, responsible for 80% of eyesight - and burn it through. And it's painless so you won't realize it when it happens. Hate to be dramatic here, but speaking from research (see below).

Old eclipse eyeshades are NOT giving you any protection anymore. They are single-use. Plus, even if unused, they have a "use before" date that must be respected.

Now, what can you do ?

1. You are rich and living in a big city.
Acquire a small sheet of Mylar, a sort of metallic fabric made by Du Pont de Nemours. This is what the special eclipse eyeglasses are made of. Very, very hard to find and expensive. But if you do, make sure to cover both your eyes and eyelids.
Mylar filters are on sale at some photo / astronomy shops. Make sure they aren't torn or folded when you buy them.

2. You are not
Use the shoebox trick : See the second graphic on this page
http://lepithec.chez.com/eclipse/danger.htm
I know it looks cheap, and watching a projected image when you actually are sitting inside the totality path is frustrating. But would you rather turn blind ?

If the eclipse was in Europe I would go to the local observatory and request a pair of eclipse shades. Or buy a Space magazine that would more than likely have it packaged in a special Eclipse issue. No idea how good that advice can be in India - not much I assume.

Absolutely avoid :
- piling several pairs of sunshades on top of one another
- watch an eclipse through argentic film, film filters, CDs, DVDs, X-ray shots, candy paper...
(Yes, people actually do that)

Please, friends, be very careful !

(Where I speak from : Worked for 1 year with the French Association of Astronomers (AFA), the national org., publishing the reference magazine here (Ciel & Espace, www.cieletespace.fr). I did for them the multimedia coverage of the '99 eclipse. Honestly, until then, I didn't take the security advice too seriously. But I had to spend time with doctors and sun specialists and saw pictures of burnt eyes and boy, did that scare me.)

Take care, and enjoy !

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Nick-H

That's pretty much what I thought.

If I bought anything in India, it would have to come from a reputable and well-informed dealer. I would not touch anything bought on the street or from any other business. There are too many people out to make a buck without giving a toss for the consequences. Seiously; fake fire extinguishers, anyone?

PrashanthV

Hi Nick, but am talking about Sunrise...havent u ever seen sunrise and/or sunset with naked eye???
Shouldnt the same logic apply now?? now that the eclipse starts at 5:30 and ends before 6:30 which is relatively milder period of sun shine.....

Khandoma

Prashanth : I'm sorry to burst your bubble. But sunrise / sunset does not matter. Watching a sunset / sunrise with the naked eye is OK only if you do not look straight into the sun. Which you will do in case of an eclipse. You may not believe this, but you will get your eyes damaged if you look straight at the sun, at whichever hour of the day.

The LOGIC here is that a sunray contains (sorry, wrong words) UVs that will burn your eye, no matter at what angle / hour. The fact that you, from this planet, cannot see how strong it is, matters little.

Please take care of yourself !

PrashanthV

Hey Khandoma,

Thanks a lot for the response...and no bursting bubble and all, chill, it was just a little doubt that i had ...one more doubt...how about photography?? people do capture sunrise / sunset without the aid of any filters...can we do the same now?? because its happening early in the morning??

Nick-H

I'm not a 'sunrise' person , but I have watched it, and videoed it, but in UK, not in the tropics.

I am going to take Khandoma's advice on this one, though. --- and I probably will get up early on 22nd!

Camera... Hmmm... focusing the sun's rays on something with a lens tends to result in that thing catching fire. A fact that I used to enjoy in my youth. As I say, I have videoed sunrise ("so that I wouldn't have to get up to see it again," as I quipped at the time). There may be some risk to the camera, but I can't think that there would be any risk to they eye from looking at an LCD camera screen angled away from the sun.