Luke 21 SIGNS IN THE HEAVENS: What You Need to Know About the Total Solar Eclipse of 2017
In a few months, millions across
the country will experience an astronomical event that no American has
ever seen before. NBC4 meteorologist Anthony Yanez talks about what you
need to know about this year's total solar eclipse and what to (safely)
look out for:
I'm calling it
the "Social Media Solar Eclipse." Since the advent of Facebook, Twitter,
Instagram and Snapchat, the United States hasn't experienced an event
like this … the total eclipse of the sun.
On
Aug. 21 the moon's shadow will darken a path 35 to 71 miles wide from
Oregon to South Carolina, blocking out the light from the sun. If you
are in this path, it will be unlike anything you've ever seen. While
all of the United States will experience a partial eclipse, which is
cool, nothing is like a total eclipse of the sun.
My
vacation time got approved and I'll be traveling with my family to
Oregon to experience this incredible event as day turns to night. We'll
be near Salem, where the total eclipse begins at 10:17 a.m. PDT and
lasts for one minute and 54 seconds.
The last total eclipse of the sun over the United States was in 1979.
It covered the northwestern United States. I was in school in
Albuquerque, New Mexico and my teacher gave our class special glasses to
see, what was for us, a partial eclipse of the sun. I can remember the
image to this day. But to find a total solar eclipse that covers this
much real estate in the United States, you'd have to go back to 1918.
Some are calling the eclipse of 2017 the "Great American Eclipse"
because the path of totality sweeps only over the United States and no
other country. That has never happened before.
Twelve
million people live in the path of totality, covering 21 cities. Within
400 miles the number is 174 million — half the population of our
country. For 3 hours and 13 minutes the moon's shadow will travel the
U.S. at three times the speed of sound, 2,400 mph, before moving over
the Atlantic Ocean.
The most important thing to know that
day, no matter where in the U.S. you live, is to never look directly at
the sun. Dangerous UV light will cause severe retinal damage or
blindness. Sunglasses are not safe; you'll need special glasses to
filter out the harmful rays. The lenses are similar to a welder's
shield. One of the companies that sells these glasses is Rainbow Symphony
in Reseda, California. There are also filters for binoculars and
cameras. If you are in the path of totality you can take off your
glasses once the moon completely covers the sun because at that point
the moon is your filter.
Of
course the weather is extremely important this day. Clear skies provide
the best view, but a few clouds away from the sun will make for a cool
affect, too. The western half of the United States has the best weather
odds, but it's always important to follow the forecast. There will be
many people in the path of totality with overcast skies missing out on
this incredible event.
The total
eclipse begins in the United States along the Oregon coast at 10:16 a.m.
PDT. While a sight like this would be incredible along the coast, the
west coast has the highest odds for a cloudy morning. Again, if you are
near the beach watch the cloud cover forecast closely.
As
the moon crosses in front of the sun, the temperature will suddenly
drop causing the air to contract, pulling in gusty winds from all
directions. You may notice insects and animals acting strangely as
skies grow dark. Clouds darken, appearing like a storm is forming, and
the temperature drops noticeably. During totality look for these
incredible sights:
Baily's
Beads and Diamond Rings – As the last rays of the sunlight stream
toward the earth, you may see these on the outer ring of the sun.
Prominence
– This is when hot hydrogen gas rises from the sun's surface hundreds
of thousands of miles into space. These are best seen with binoculars.
But
the highlight will be the corona, and that only occurs during totality.
People who've seen the corona of the sun say words cannot describe how
breathtaking this experience is. You're seeing super-heated plasma at 2
million degrees, forming what can only be described as ghost flares
surrounding the sun.
If
you are outside the lines of the moon's umbra, the complete shadow, you
miss the twilight skies and the exquisite views of the sun's corona.
But you will get the penumbra, or partial shadow. It is 6,000 miles in
diameter and all of the United States will get a rather large partial
eclipse. From Los Angeles to Houston the moon will cover approximately
70 percent of the sun.
If you miss it, the next total solar eclipse over the United States is Monday, April 8, 2024, the shadow travels from Texas to Maine.
The
sun is 864,000 miles in diameter — that's 400 times larger than the
moon. But the moon is also 400 times closer to Earth and, as a result,
when their orbital planes intersect the new moon appears to completely
blot out the disk of the sun. The moon's shadow is the umbra. On
average the total eclipse of the sun from the same spot on the earth
happens once every 375 years.
