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Total Solar Eclipse
The Grey Mouser writes: "Just got word that a live video feed from the first total solar eclipse of the 21st century will be broadcast over the web tomorrow.
The transmission will be available from 11.35 to 13.35, 21 June UTC (that's EDT+4). A great way to start the work day. Check
out www.live-eclipse.org for more details, and the video stream tomorrow. Looks
like Real, Quicktime, and WMP formats are available. Here's hoping for clear skies over Madagascar and Zimbabwe!" The summer solstice is today, so there's about 15 hours of daylight to enjoy (in my latitude anyway) - turn off the computer, go outside, get a tan.
I know these words... They appear to be English... Yet when strung together like that their meaning eludes me...
The problem is not that the sun is more damaging during an eclipse- it's that it is damaging by the same ammount, only there's less light that would cause you to turn away. You can comfortably stare into an eclipse for hours, but it will cause the same damage that staring into the sun would cause. Staring into the sun for hours is just a lot more uncomfortable.
Of course there's no scientific basis for the solstice...
Solstice n. 2. POINT ON THE ECLIPTIC either of the two points on the ecliptic when the sun reachest its northernmost or southernmost point relative to the celestial equator.
That's only celestial mechanics...no science at all...
-- need more time?
No, they won't.
And you don't necessarily lose your sight just by looking. It's just really bad for your eyes.
Also, these kinds of things are part of ancient lore, they have happened to all civilisations for a long long time. I'm sure people will probably just stay indoors.
If you missed the Live coverage You can view it here http://www.exploratorium.edu/eclipse/
There is no
The summer solstice is today, so there's about 15 hours of daylight to enjoy (in my latitude anyway) - turn off the computer, go outside, get a tan.
Ok, just in case anyone doesn't realize this, today the sun's light is it's most direct (in the northern hemisphere, above the tropic of cancer), which means that it is easier to get a severe sunburn than at any other time of the year.
I highly recommend that everyone consider putting some light sunscreen on even if you're only going to be in the sun briefly. Coppertone now makes a very nice oil-free sunscreen in SPFs 15 and 30 (and 45, but we all know that there's no such thing as SPF 45, right) which I recommend if you're going into work in short sleeves.
If you're specifically sunbathing today, be very careful, and limit your exposure to a fraction of what you would, say, in mid-July.
Be safe, and enjoy!
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Aaron Sherman (ajs@ajs.com)
Are you kidding? That's what we have wireless laptops for! :-)
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I couldn't get anything out of the link above but the BBC have a page of information about the eclipse, along with a link to a live webcam. Broadcast starts at 13:30 BST (in about 5 minutes time at time of posting)
Saw the last one visible from the UK from an old DC-3 over Alderney. Spooky stuff..
The eclipse was just starting when this got posted. The site is heavily slashdotted, but the BBC and other news sites already linked to the feed. If you can get through, there are some cool shots of the whole sky in a fish-eye lens, and telescope shots of sunspots.
News for nerds, after the fact
the AC
Hemos is like...sci-fi fans;he thinks technology is cool, but he hasn't bothered to understand the science it's based on
Folks, heed my warning: stay away! This is not pretty.
Right now, there's a couple of asian women singing bad Jazz. They have a synth and a vocalist (and someone in the background running sound). To say the least, this is not what I was hoping to see when I clicked on the feed.
I thought you might like to be warned!
--
Key to financial independence: Spend less than you earn. Save and invest the difference. Do it for a long time.
However good the video you're watching is, this is better:
http://www.exploratorium.edu/eclipse
Peace out.
- Adam
And spend some time in the traffic jams before and after viewing it. Bonus points for being back home when the stock exchange opens. Then spend the rest on the afternoon on the phone with your broker pleading him to finally give you your shares... And the next day brag to your friends that you not only had located the only cloudless spot in a 50 mile radius but also made $25.000...
Hopefully, this close Mars does not have the same effect on the Linux shares as the moon, when it is unusually close to the earth.
Then why did the powers that be make such a fuss about the issue during the 1999 eclipse in Europe? Why did they produce tons of funny-looking eclipse-goggles and spend millions in sensibilization campaigns, if there was no danger?
The way I heard it is that the natural blink reflex of the eye is triggered by overall luminosity, whereas damage comes from luminosity concentrated on one point. Partially obscured sun means less visible surface of it, and hence less overall luminosity. The protecting blink reflex is not triggered, the iris stays wide open, but the small parts of the sun that stay visible still have the same luminosity per surface. No problem during totality though.
Black, like the eclipsed Sun. But beware of the red influence of Mars....
During one of the previous eclipses, Red Hat shares rose by over 1500% in just a couple of days. Buy buy buy!
Just did... now my face is red and swollen, I can barely make a facial expression and my nose is covered with a sticky yellow fluid.
Back to the nerd cave I say! If there ever comes a next time I must remember sun screen.
In order to get the full experience, you also have to hook your computer to the the dimmer switch for the lights in the room.
--Ty
We are having a 70% eclipse here in South Africa,
and my friends and I are planning a party!
Any good ideas for movies?
I have these already:
Mermaids,
Last temptation of Christ,
Little Shop of Horrors (A clear winner?)
hehe...
It's everyone's favourite editor, Michael, who posted the story, not CmdrTaco. Maybe he's more of a hippy than the rest of them. Or maybe he's just picking safe topics that'll stop people criticising him like he's a Katz substitute. Didn't work though - soooo many posts warning that sunbathing today is pretty dangerous, and folk such as yourself picking on his beliefs. Poor guy; you're gonna give him a persecution complex : )
And waddaya mean "there is no more scientific justification for a Solstice than there is for the Easter Bunny or Santa Claus or Atlantis"? Who's been bringing me all the chocolate eggs, presents, and, um, fish?
- Mars is really close to the Earth.
- It's a solar eclipse.
- It's the summer solstice.
I guess today's our best chance to find out if those druids were onto something : )Wait, suddenly I have a thirst for human blood....
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I like to watch.
Virtually every CRT monitor sold nowadays is certified for radiation levels far lower than was common before the scare.
The illegal we do immediately. The unconstitutional takes a little longer.
--Henry Kissinger
If the moon is at apogee during the solar eclipse, you get a rare event called an annular eclipse. During this event, the moon is apparently smaller than the sun, so even during the pinnacle of the event, you will still see the photosphere of the sun as a ring around the moon.
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Please consider making an automatic monthly recurring donation to the EFF
What, apart from the bit about the time between sunrise and sunset being longer than any other day of the year?
There's no justification for Wednesdays, Thanksgiving or Christmas, but solstices and equinoxes are a physics thang.
TomV
New Agey? Did you bother to pay attention to the topic? It's an eclipse, stupid! Something every solar scientist creams his jeans to experience (since about 70% of eclipses can only be seen from the ocean, making it rather difficult to set up a stationary observatory). If you're just a beginner, check http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/ltc/soho/index2.html. If you know what I'm talking about, you already know where to look.
The fact that it's solstice time also means something scientific: a more direct picture. We'uns about as close as we gonna gets, and what better time to study the corona (or start working on your skin cancer)?
The solstice is also about the only time of year Finns ever talk to each other. W-A-Y up north in Finland, there's a party goin' on (has been for a couple weeks) and will keep going on because at 2a.m., it's still light out. And at 4a.m. And 5a.m. Big fun for another few weeks. It's weird.
I'll respond (read: feed the trolls), but your post ain't worth wasting mod points on.
woof.
Flaming Taco around here is getting to be like flaming Micro$oft: Almost everyone's doing it, those who don't are chastised, and no one pays attention to the point of the matter!
The Sys Admin has a very weird idea about locking down the network
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This
Work? turn off the computer?, go outside?, get a tan?
:)
A geek craves not these things
HelpGeeks - don't bother visiting, it's not worth it! Really!
NO. If the shadow of the Earth is on the moon that is called a ECLIPSE as well.
Moon phases are that way because the sun is shining on that side of the object.
A eclipse of the sun ALWAYS occurs during a new moon, it is impossible otherwise.
BASIC PHYSICS AND COMMON SENSE
Also, its EXTREMELY SAD, that once again this Slashdot thread is completely polluted with STUPID (read NOT FUNNY) high rated posts. (Especially the OLD, RECYCLED once.) It's sad. Perhaps 'something funny' is the highest order reason a slashdot moderator can handle?
I got to see a very high quality clip of the event on the CNN. It brought tears to my eyes, but I don't expect it did that for you simps. But if you don't understand what is going on, you group an eclipse together with going to McDonalds and ordering a 10% beef hamburger.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2004_U.S._Election_c
And by changing the bgcolor value to #FFFFFF you have a live feed of a closeup of the sun.
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This message has been ROT-13 encrypted twice for higher security.
Some friends and me were discussing the event. The question "how do you know when a total solar eclipse is going to occur?" was raised. One of the girls, and she was not kidding, said "well, a total solar eclipse happens only if there is a full moon."
I am selling 5cm high plastic replicas of Everest if anyone is interested. Why take the risk of climbing the real thing, when you can get the experience from your home in comfort and safety?
Phil
Southern chilie has about 3 hours of daylight today, and north Norway has another couple of months :)
I remember the August 99 eclipse, very wierd, but you have to be there to appreciate it, in the space of a couple of minutes it goes from light to pitch black and back, the wildlife gets confused, and its very freaky. Goes windy and cold too.
Of course, British weather being what it is meant that we had about 3000 metres of cloud cover. Made it spookier in some ways.
Can't. Work won't let me.
*tugs on chains binding him to desk*
Dang, I really need to use the restroom too....
*eyes plant in corner of office*
LFS. Have you built your system today?
Heard on the radio on the drive in this morning, Mars is going to be the closest to earth it has been in some large number of years.
If it's clear tonight, an average telescope should be able to pick up the polar ice caps.
Of course, this is also the day that if you're standing on the north pole, the sun will rise, circle around you, and set in the same place. Weird day all over the place.
Yes, my girlfriend is a BitchX
<head>
<title>Total Solar Eclipse Live Feed</title>
</head>
<body bgcolor="#000000">
</body>
</html>
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Codeala - Just another mindless drone
> turn off the computer, go outside, get a tan.
What? You think I want to get cancer -- let alone fall behind the constant stream of exciting news and events from the world of science and technology??
I'm sorry, but I'm smarter than that! ;-)
--
"I'm not downloaded, I'm just loaded and down"
Yes, I'm still very bitter about missing my (probably) one and only full eclipse in 1979, as my luddite parents were CONVINCED that looking directly at an eclipse would burn your eyes out. The trick is to look away BEFORE the sun re-emerges, so that the sudden glare doesn't blind you!
Endless arguments over trivial contradictions in books written by ignorant savages to explain thunder in the dark.
We'uns about as close as we gonna gets
Nope, sorry. Actually, the Earth is furthest away from the sun right now. Solstice is when the Northern Hemisphere is most inclined towards the sun, giving maximum possible daylight. 11th Grade Astronomy is a wonderful thing.
"What are we going to do tonight, Bill?"
www.lucernesys.comHorizon: Calendar-based personal finance
Perfect. A streaming site showing a cool live event, and we have to make it suffer the /. effect so nobody gets to see it!
:)
You can accomplish anything you set your mind to. The impossible just takes a little longer.
How am I supposed to get any work done at work today? I've never seen a full eclipse so I guess there will be really bad problems with the server today, might have to take it down for awhile, hope no one minds. You people sure are making it tough on me. Oh well, I am Jack's complete lack of suprise.
See http://stardate.utexas.edu/resources/ssguide/sun.h tml
It is exciting to see a solar eclipse for 15 minutest, and then spend the balance of the time exploring a very interesting continent.
Too bad I couldn't go.