Miscellaneous Monday - Total Solar Eclipse (of the Heart)

[Andy Gladstone]

In the United States we are being treated to a celestial wonder tomorrow. A total solar eclipse will occur across a swath of North America. There has already been a mass-migration of tourists to spots along the path where the umbra will be most present. Hotels in the oddest of locations have been booked for months in anticipation of this celestial event. 

Where I am located, we'll only experience the penumbra, but the event has not lost it's novelty on us. Our children's schools have purchased special glasses and science will come alive for them as they get to view the movement of the moon across the sun. 

But in my best @Kristján Geir Mathiesen's voice, DID YOU KNOW that there are many different cultures that view eclipses differently? I've linked a few articles below for us to become more informed about the different interpretations and traditions related to eclipses.

Exploratorium

Encyclopedia Britannica

Almanac

For me, every time I hear the word eclipse, the words of Bonnie Tyler's 1983 hit song "Total Eclipse of the Heart" ringing in my ears. I had it on a mix tape I gave my then girlfriend, now wife in 1995 when we started dating with the Nikki French Dance Remix on it. It became our anthem.

(Turn around)
Every now and then
I know you'll never be the boy
You always wanted to be
(Turn around)
But every now and then
I know you'll always be the only boy
Who wanted me the way that I am
(Turn around)
Every now and then
I know there's no one in the universe
As magical and wondrous as you

Have you ever seen an eclipse, lunar or solar? If so, please let us know about the experience in the comments. If not, let us know what you associate eclipses with.   

[John Funk]

I say one a couple of years ago while in Nashville, Tennessee. Unfortunately it was very cloudy that day so I couldn't see the eclipse directly (but was prepared with my eclipse watching "glasses"  :-)  

However, was able to see the full effects. It was quite eerie. Street lights turned on, crickets started chirping, etc. It was really like it was night for a few minutes. People get hung up on all kinds of things with eclipses - I definitely would not travel very far to see one - but at the same time it was really cool to experience. 

[Andy Gladstone]

It's looking like we'll have clear skies here today. I'll be on my bike for part of it, so looking forward to see how the world changes outdoors rather than being just locked in my office for all of it.

[ABR]

@Andy Gladstone I've tried to follow all possible eclipses since the day our teacher explained it to us in lower secondary! I find them an excellent metaphor for life and its transient beauty! The eclipses are one of the most beautiful natural phenomena!

[Andy Gladstone]

I'll try to get a picture to share with you @ABR! 

[Sandra Axelsdottir]

I remember one in Iceland a few years ago (March 2015). All students were given special glasses to view the eclipse. It was pretty exciting as the media hyped it all up ... however, I can't remember if we actually saw it or not due to clouds 😅

[Andy Gladstone]

My kids will be watching with these glasses too. I have a bit of anxiety today though. If plane manufacturers are cutting corners on QA, I hope that the glasses manufacturers don't!

[Humashankar VJ]

I freshly remember the total solar eclipse on August 21, 2017, at around 2 PM. It was a fantastic experience as the sky darkened to the point where it felt like nightfall for a few minutes. This eclipse was particularly significant as it was the first visible one in the U.S. in nearly years, and the first to be visible across the entire country in 99 years!"

[Andy Gladstone]

My area was not able to view that eclipse. It was overcast that day. Looking pretty clear today, hoping to experience something amazing!

[Rebekka Heilmann _viadee_]

The word "Eclipse" fills me with fear. I started out my career as Developer. My team back then used a 10 year old version of the Eclipse IDE. It couldn't be updated as the program couldn't be compiled in newer versions. Everytime you switched the Git branch (or I think it was still SVN back then), you basically had to reinstall/re-configure the whole IDE as it crashed and didn't load the dependencies right.

I spent more time fixing "Eclipse" than I did working on my programming skills. Mabye that's why I don't (Pro) Code anymore ;) 

As for the celestrial event.. never seen one and not super intrigued by it.

[Lacy Saute]

Excited for the eclipse today! I saw one in 2017. Everyone was outside, watching it together. It was really cool and a fun time. Also, a friend shared that a disco ball can be used to view the eclipse and it seems like there should be an eclipse disco today. 🪩🕺

[Jimmy Seddon]

I remember in elementary school a few years back we made pin hole cameras to watch the solar eclipse.

Unfortunately, today is very cloudy here so we might not be able to see the full effects of the eclipse.

[John Funk]

"I remember in elementary school a few years back"  - thinking that's been more than a few years back @Jimmy Seddon   :-)

[Katherine Jones]

I've never viewed a solar eclipse, however, I was treated to a lunar eclipse about 15 years ago at a baseball game in Arlington.  I can't remember who the Rangers were playing that night but they did win. We were sitting up high in the stands and had a wonderful view of the entire event.  It was pretty awesome 

[Andy Gladstone]

@Jimmy Seddon your comment inspired me to construct (7) of these for my employees to share. The new customer welcome kit boxes were perfect for it, and that paper clip that I turned into a CD/DVD opener tool years ago came in handy to poke the hole!

[Alex G]

how envious I am of being able to see the eclipse! I wish it could be seen from where I live, I don't remember seeing any :(

[Brittany Joiner]

I think i have seen something eclipse like, but i don't remember what it was 😂 I just remember it being all the hype when I was living in Kentucky several years ago. 

To be honest, i associate my lack of science knowledge with it 😂 Clealry i need to learn more because I don't quite get into all the hype. But I am in the 80-90% visibility path, so maybe I'll see something today? Or not, because im not supposed to look directly at it haha

[Kristján Geir Mathiesen]

Great topic, @Andy Gladstone ! There have been quite a few eclipses here in Utah lately but I don't think I've gone to see any of them :( I often seem to hear about them after the fact, which is a minor problem...

[Barbara Szczesniak]

I remember seeing a total lunar eclipse over my house in upstate New York when I was a kid in the 70s. It was cool, and you didn't need to worry about being blinded. 🌝

Nothing here in Florida today; we are not in the path.

[Shawn Doyle - ReleaseTEAM]

In 2017 the eclipse went almost directly over Denver, was exciting to be in near totality.

[Summer.Hogan]

Great conversation @Andy Gladstone! The 2017 eclipse was very visible from Arizona so I was able to experience that. I have also experienced numerous other solar eclipses and a couple of lunar ones too. They are always fun!  

[Amanda Barber]

We traveled to St. Louis in 2017 for the last eclipse with our kiddos. Sadly, we woke up to a cloudy day. Thankfully, we were able to pivot and make the drive northeast and catch the eclipse in beautiful, clear skies!

For yesterday's eclipse, we traveled to Indianapolis. We loved the city and are so glad we took a trip there! The best part is that our kids are old enough to remember this time!

[Josh Shepherd]

In elementary school, making pizza box pin-hole cameras. 

[Leslie Barrett]

I bought some glasses to view the eclipse a few years ago and they've worked great each time. We had not quite 70% of the eclipse visible in Arizona yesterday. Next, I want to get the right filter so that I can photograph the next one.