By Barry Pyne
Hello once again fellow astrophiles! A very special event is about to happen, and I figured it’s my duty to get out there and yell it from the mountaintops. But just to be sure you hear me, I thought I’d write about it here too. Just remember though, if you’re ever riding by a mountain soon and you hear somebody yelling, that’s probably me.
The event I’m talking about is the Great American Eclipse of 2024, which occurs on Monday, Apr. 8. Folks, let me tell you, you DO NOT want to miss this one! This is the LAST total solar eclipse that will cross America for over 20 years. So, if you’re over 50 like myself, this just might be your last chance to see one of the greatest spectacles in the universe. Now, you might say, “Hold on there just a second, Mr. Pyne, aren’t you exaggerating just a little bit? In the UNIVERSE? Really?”
Well, I’m here to tell you, heck no! I ain’t exaggerating one little bit! You see, when the sun covers the Moon in a total solar eclipse, it covers it almost EXACTLY! And that can only happen because of a very, very weird coincidence that we humans are the lucky beneficiaries of. Now, it just so happens that the diameter of the sun is 400 times the diameter of the Moon, but the sun is also 400 times further away. This extremely unlikely occurrence means that the sun and the Moon appear exactly the same size in the skies of Earth!
Also, the moon is an appreciable fraction of the size of the Earth, to the point where some astronomers think these two bodies should actually be considered a double planet system. In other words, having a moon that’s so big compared to its planet is thought to be a very rare thing indeed. And when you add this bizarre fact to the apparent size coincidence I mentioned above, astronomers reach the conclusion that it’s very unlikely that aliens anywhere in the entire galaxy have a chance to see a total stellar eclipse, where their star exactly covers their moon in their strange, otherworldly skies. In fact, this might be the case for aliens anywhere in the entire universe! And it’s the fact that the sun covers the Moon exactly that makes our eclipses so special, because this allows you to see the sun’s atmosphere, called the corona. You get to see the strange silvery filaments stretching out from the sun’s surface, which are normally washed away in the harsh light. And you might also get to see some prominences – huge bands of plasma, many times larger than Earth, arching over the sun’s surface. In fact, the sun is currently heading towards its maximum of sunspot activity, which means seeing prominences is much more likely.
So, you see, you owe it to all lifekind, everywhere in the universe, to go see this thing. Don’t be the person sitting there watching TV while what is possibly the greatest show in the cosmos is happening just a few hundred miles away. Think about it, all those envious alien astronomers have no hope of getting here, but here you are already. Also, if you’ve seen a partial solar eclipse but never a total solar eclipse and you figure, “Eh, what’s the difference?” you couldn’t be more wrong. Trust me, there is NO SIMILARITY between a total solar eclipse and a partial solar eclipse! They are indescribably different.
I think seeing a total solar eclipse should be on everyone’s bucket list. I saw the last one to cross America in 2017, when I was down in Madisonville, Tennessee. Let me tell you folks, it’s a sight to behold! When you stand there and watch as that last sliver of the sun’s orb disappears, as day gives way to night and the stars appear in the firmament, it gives you a really weird, creepy feeling. Your mind rebels against the very idea of the sun suddenly going out in broad daylight. And, as a bonus, this time around totality will last almost twice as long as it did in 2017.
Well folks, I’ve done my best to try and get you out of the easy chair and on the road, to witness what’s likely to be the grandest spectacle you’ll ever see. The closest places to Lewisburg where you can see the total eclipse are Ohio and Indiana. If you do decide to go, be sure to buy some eclipse glasses before you leave, so you can view the sun safely. Also, my advice is, if you have to take time off work to see it, then take the time off. You only live once, right? And this just might be your last chance to see one. Ever. The next total eclipse that passes over the country occurs on August 12, 2045. Will you still be here? I don’t know about you, but I’m not taking my chances.