MartinW 0 Posted February 26, 2015 Report Share Posted February 26, 2015 This is going to be quiet something, better than the last eclipse. Birmingham will be about 88% I believe, so great for me. The most spectacular eclipse of the Sun for 15 years will plunge Britain into twilight for two hours next month. In a rare astronomical alignment the Moon will pass directly between the Sun and the Earth, blocking out most of the light from around 8.40am on March 20. Northern Scotland will have the best view of the partial eclipse, where more than 98 per cent of the Sun will be covered. For London and the South East it will be around 85 per cent. Dr Edward Bloomer, an astronomer at the Royal Observatory Greenwich, said the eclipse would be spectacular because the Moon was closer to the Earth than it had been for 18 and a half years. “The Earth is orbiting around the Sun and sometimes is slightly closer and sometimes further away, and the Earth is also wobbling around on its axis,” he said. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/science/space/11434924/Solar-eclipse-will-plunge-Britain-into-morning-twilight.html Link to post Share on other sites
Frog on Toast 6 Posted February 26, 2015 Report Share Posted February 26, 2015 Yeah, it's going to be awesome! Surprised the media hasn't been hyping it up though, I remember them going on about the last one for months beforehand. Link to post Share on other sites
Christopher Low 63 Posted February 26, 2015 Report Share Posted February 26, 2015 That's because the 1999 August 11 solar eclipse was total over Cornwall and Devon. The difference between a total solar eclipse and a 91 per cent partial eclipse (which is what this one will be in my home town of Ulverston, Cumbria) is like the difference between night and day. Whilst the dimming will be appreciable with this eclipse, it will be nothing compared to a total eclipse. I was fortunate to be in the path of the Moon's shadow during the August 1999 eclipse (on the border between Cornwall and Devon), and the darkness during totality was spectacular! Unfortunately, I did not see the totally eclipsed Sun itself as there was too much cloud I am hoping to correct that in the USA on 2017 August 21 (which, interestingly enough, is in the same Saros series as the 1999 eclipse). EDIT: By the way, that photo of a total eclipse in the article is misleading. You will not see a sight like that with this eclipse unless you visit the Faeroe Islands or the Svalbard archipelago. There is an error in that article. It states that the last total eclipse visible prior to 1999 August 11 was in 1990, but it was actually 1998 February 26. Link to post Share on other sites
MartinW 0 Posted February 27, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 27, 2015 Yeah, it's going to be awesome! Surprised the media hasn't been hyping it up though, I remember them going on about the last one for months beforehand. I agree with you. Total eclipse or not, you would think the media would be a bit more interested. Probably because the media is more interested in the size of Nicki MInaj's bottom... come to think of it, so am I. Link to post Share on other sites
MartinW 0 Posted February 27, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 27, 2015 There is an error in that article. It states that the last total eclipse visible prior to 1999 August 11 was in 1990, but it was actually 1998 February 26. I believe they meant "visible over Europe". Which was 22nd July 1990. It was also the first total eclipse visible in the UK since 29th June 1927. Link to post Share on other sites
Christopher Low 63 Posted February 27, 2015 Report Share Posted February 27, 2015 Thanks for the clarification, Martin. I have studied total and annular solar eclipses for many years (particularly those visible from the UK), including simulating the central eclipse tracks on my PC. They are fascinating wonders of nature, and I long to see the "eye of God" (as one astronomer described it). I missed out in 1999, but I intend to correct that if I can in 2017. Link to post Share on other sites
MartinW 0 Posted February 27, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 27, 2015 I wonder what the odds are of the moon being the size and distance it is to completly obscure the sun? Very small I would imagine. Lucky we are. 1999 was quite spectacular here in the midlands, despite the fact it was partial. I felt quite emotional to be honest. Being able to see the suns corona is quite something. 1999 the birds fell silent, it became quite cold, and the nature of the light was very eerie. Link to post Share on other sites
Christopher Low 63 Posted February 27, 2015 Report Share Posted February 27, 2015 You never saw the Sun's corona in 1999 from the Midlands, Martin. That is only visible during a total solar eclipse. Even a 99% partial isn't good enough. Although I didn't get to see the totally eclipsed Sun, it was a very special experience to be immersed in the Moon's umbral shadow. The sky above me was dark, but it was light all around the horizon. Totality lasted 1m11s from my location close to the Devon/Cornwall border (The Moorland Links Hotel just north of Plymouth). The light is indeed very strange when the Sun gets to around two thirds eclipsed. The colour seems to slowly drain from the landscape, and I suspect this is because the light is fading more rapidly than your eyes can adjust at that stage. We will definitely notice this on March 20 this year Link to post Share on other sites
britfrog 180 Posted February 27, 2015 Report Share Posted February 27, 2015 we flew over to Amiens in 1999 to see the total eclipse, we took a whole load of things to enable us to see the actual eclipse, welding goggles. smoked glass. pin holes in card, you name it and we had it. we had arranged months ahead to have dinner at the restaurant under the tower so when we flew in with 7 other a/c we had a cheery wave form the owners, (they had intended to go on holiday that week until we booked 35 places) .I have never seen Amiens so busy there were army helicopters from Belgium, bizz jets from all around he world etc but it was cloudy!! and so we sat in the garden and 5 minutes before the eclipse the heavens cleared and we saw a perfect eclipse. what was so amazing was that the french government had handed out literally millions of pairs of cardboard glasses to the population so that they could witness the eclipse without blinding themselves , TOP JOB!! i cant see the uk govnment organising or even thinking of doing that! so after the eclipse we filed into the restaurant and sat down to a superb meal with the doors locked while all the toffee nosed gits in the biz jets fumed outside and had to make do with sandwiches from the supermarket Rock On! 4 hours later we flew back to blighty with a day to remember for the rest of our lives. As luck would have it eifey and I were looking at the pics yesterday, still a great memory! 2 Link to post Share on other sites
Christopher Low 63 Posted February 27, 2015 Report Share Posted February 27, 2015 You lucky sod, Nigel! By the way, everyone at the hotel that day was given a solar viewer to observe the eclipse. These are strips of darkened material about six inches long by two inches wide, and I still have two of them. They will be very useful three weeks from now Link to post Share on other sites
MartinW 0 Posted February 28, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 28, 2015 You never saw the Sun's corona in 1999 from the Midlands, Martin. That is only visible during a total solar eclipse. Even a 99% partial isn't good enough I must have been imagining things then. Mind you, that wouldn't be a first. Link to post Share on other sites
Captain Coffee 2,030 Posted March 2, 2015 Report Share Posted March 2, 2015 I have never seen a Total Eclipse so far, but have seen a wonderful Coronal Eclipse a few years back that conveniently crossed its path 50 miles north of me...the kind where a ring of sun is visible all the way around a visibly smaller diameter moon. It was pretty thrilling how all nature seemed to go still as totality set in...birds were all WTF Dude? Amazingly, I was on the Sacramento River, and there were people fishing from their boats who never even noticed or looked up...incredible. Link to post Share on other sites
Christopher Low 63 Posted March 3, 2015 Report Share Posted March 3, 2015 That could well have been the annular solar eclipse of 2012 May 20. I bet it was a spectacular sight 1 Link to post Share on other sites
wain 879 Posted March 3, 2015 Report Share Posted March 3, 2015 I remember seeing the one in '99 but didnt realise that it was that long ago, I was a van driver in Bristol at the time and was in Rolls Royce at Filton and remember all the staff out to see, dont recall how dark it was or how partial it was but it was an amazing sight.... Wayne Link to post Share on other sites
Christopher Low 63 Posted March 4, 2015 Report Share Posted March 4, 2015 It would probably have been around 96% partial from Bristol (if not more). Link to post Share on other sites
Christopher Low 63 Posted March 20, 2015 Report Share Posted March 20, 2015 So, did anyone see it? It was cloudy in Ulverston, but amazingly the cloud thinned several times at the exact location of the Sun and Moon! If I was a religious man, I would say that God was doing me a favour!! I first saw it at around 8:45 AM when the Moon had taken a small chunk out of the Sun. This was followed by 9:10 AM, 9:25 AM, and (crucially) 9:30 AM (the moment of maximum eclipse). The ambient light had noticeably dimmed by that point, and looking at the eclipse through cloud (as opposed to those special filters) was superb. I am really pleased that I got to see the moment of maximum eclipse. It was 91.4 percent partial from Ulverston (I had already calculated this two decades ago with special eclipse software on my PC) Link to post Share on other sites
hurricanemk1c 195 Posted March 20, 2015 Report Share Posted March 20, 2015 Didn't see it at all - full cloud cover with a bit of fog to top it off! Noticed it get darker and cooler though. Managed to get Jupiter and moons on Wednesday night though Link to post Share on other sites
Kevin Firth 114 Posted March 20, 2015 Report Share Posted March 20, 2015 Saw it on our doorstep with my daughter. Her comment was "daddy, the moon! hooray!" 1 Link to post Share on other sites
wain 879 Posted March 20, 2015 Report Share Posted March 20, 2015 just noticed it was slightly darker and 3 degrees cooler in about half hour, now its a nice sunny day and the clouds have gone, I was in Bath at the time... Wayne Link to post Share on other sites
Dean33 29 Posted March 20, 2015 Report Share Posted March 20, 2015 I was going to suggest we had an astronomy section in the forum but bearing in mind comments elsewhere that's probably not a good idea! (Joke). Dean totally cloudy in Blackpool no knowledge of an eclipse at all! Link to post Share on other sites
J G 927 Posted March 20, 2015 Report Share Posted March 20, 2015 Well we had a total eclipse from where I am. The sun, moon and everything was total eclipsed by cloud. 1 Link to post Share on other sites
mutley 4,498 Posted March 20, 2015 Report Share Posted March 20, 2015 Same here JG! If I had not known an eclipse was happening I would be non the wiser. They did get some great pictures from the Faroe Islands. Link to post Share on other sites
J G 927 Posted March 20, 2015 Report Share Posted March 20, 2015 The last time I saw an eclipse was when I was a school boy. Nobody told us about it, it just got darker at lunch break. Link to post Share on other sites
mutley 4,498 Posted March 20, 2015 Report Share Posted March 20, 2015 They were very guarded about things like that back in the 40's John, the truth can hurt Link to post Share on other sites
brett 2,315 Posted March 20, 2015 Report Share Posted March 20, 2015 I remember a total eclipse as a young boy too! It was quite a big thing with all the neighbors coming out to see it. We had prepped before hand with a hole in cardboard and dire warnings about looking directly at it. After a statement like that, how could you not!!! I ended up with an eclipse imprint in my retina. 1 Link to post Share on other sites
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