(I posted this yesterday on 'Laramie's LAN...working hard to spread the Gospel of star/sun-gazing!)
 |
| The Sun Rises in Eclipse: Nov 2013 (Photo by Lucilla Epps) |
Hello
Shipmates!
By now I’m certain that all of you
have heard of the Total Solar Eclipse, happening back in
the
‘States on Monday. If your families
back home are within the band of Totality (which runs
across the country from Oregon to S. Carolina)
then they are in for a treat; a total eclipse
of the Sun is one of natures’ most
amazing spectacles. Even the partial eclipse, viewed
from
rest of the USA, is an
impressive sight and worth taking the trouble to
view.
That said, please pass this warning
to your loved ones: DO NOT LOOK DIRECTLY AT THE
SUN AT ANY TIME. PERMANENT EYE
DAMAGE CAN RESULT FROM EVEN A FEW
SECONDS EXPOSURE. SAFETY IS
PARAMOUNT.
So, how can they enjoy the eclipse
if they cannot LOOK at it?
My strongest recommendation is for
the folks back home to avail themselves of the public
observing sessions being run by
museums, planetaria, observatories and astronomy clubs in
all major cities and towns. These
organizations will be using telescopes and other viewing
tools equipped with
professionally-made filters to allow SAFE close-up views of the Sun’s
disk,
sunspots and prominences (solar
weather) and of course the Moon as it blocks-out the
Sun.
A quick search on Google, say
“eclipse (name of city)” should bring up several
options.
Again…DO NOT LOOK DIRECTLY AT THE
SUN AT ANY TIME. PERMANENT EYE DAMAGE
CAN RESULT FROM EVEN A FEW SECONDS
EXPOSURE. SAFETY IS PARAMOUNT.
There are also several ways to
safely view the Sun without driving or dealing with crowds.
Making a pinhole projector viewer is
a simple and fun crafts project for the kids and when the
eclipse happens they will be able to
view the progress of the Moon’s disk as it blocks out
the
Sun. You can project the image of
the Sun/Moon duo with a colander or cheese-grater! Check out
these links for more “grate”
ideas.
So, what will WE see, here on our
floating observatory? LARAMIE will be in the
eastern Atlantic
and right on the edge of eclipse
coverage; the event itself won’t begin until just a few
minutes
before sunset on Monday. We won’t
observe Totality (unless you count the Total Eclipse of
the
Sun by the EARTH!) but, weather
permitting, we SHOULD be able to see a Partial Eclipse
begin-
Ing as sunset approaches. Here’s
how…
Redundantly…DO NOT LOOK DIRECTLY AT
THE SUN AT ANY TIME. PERMANENT EYE DAMAGE
CAN RESULT FROM EVEN A FEW SECONDS
EXPOSURE. SAFETY IS PARAMOUNT.
I’ll be in my usual observing
location on the bridge, with solar filter-equipped binoculars and
several
pairs of eclipse shades, starting an
hour before sunset. Given the intended speed of our transit it
will
probably be too windy to watch from
on-deck; if so we have permission to utilize the
port-side
of the bridge itself as an observing
site. If you decide to come up, be careful to avoid distracting
the
watchstanders. I’d recommend you
bring a camera with some zoom capability; as the Sun
approaches
the horizon haze and mist can act as
an excellent filter for some literal last-minute
photography!
Oh, and last but not least: DO NOT
LOOK DIRECTLY AT THE SUN AT ANY TIME. PERMANENT
EYE DAMAGE CAN RESULT FROM EVEN A
FEW SECONDS EXPOSURE. SAFETY IS PARAMOUNT.
Just
sayin’.
I hope that this information will
help your families enjoy the eclipse, and that you’ll take the
opportunity
to glimpse this historic event for
yourself!
Questions or concerns? I’m always
happy to talk about my favorite subject!
V/R,
Thomas L. Epps
Operations Chief
Operations Chief
USNS Laramie (T-AO 203)
No comments:
Post a Comment