Eclipse fix tips

@KDemo And do not look directly at the eclipse if you don’t want to sear your retinas. When I was a kid there was something close to a full one. We watched it reflected in the farm’s pond and passed around a bunch of slides bundled together to look at it directly. Pretty neat.

@KDemo That’s why I’m using software to do the photography. I just need to keep the camera pointed and the sun and remove and replace the filter when it tells me to.

Which feels a bit like cheating, but it’s the best alternative.

But you should look directly at it during totality, if in the shadow of the moon. The sun will be completely blocked, and you won’t be able to see the corona through the filter.

@heartny I just clicked on the map and it appeared on the map (mac and safari)

@heartny Zoom the map to find your location, then just click there. I just checked - it works for me.

@heartny - I haven’t tried it on mobile, though. Don’t know if that might make a difference?

@KDemo I checked from my desktop. Is “Obscuration” the percentage I should be looking at? If so, it’s a crappy 69.339%.

@heartny - That’s it.
I’ve chosen to call it “eclipsity”.

@KDemo Where I live apparently we should call it “crapcity”

@heartny

@KDemo I bought the eclipse postage stamps, which is probably the best shot I have at seeing a total eclipse.

@heartny - Eh, probably gonna be cloudy anyway.
(Just to make you feel better).

@heartny bought those as well, they’re fun!

@heartny mine is even lower than that

@heartny 70% is still over two-thirds of the sun blocked by the moon.

@daveinwarsh - Sweeet. How long ago did you make reservations?

@KDemo 3 or 4 months ago. Eastern Oregon.
If I stay home, it’s about 93% I think.

@peaceetc - Want company? I could bring some eclipse wine -

@KDemo Ha, I like that. If my landlord (I rent a basement) didn’t have the driveway rented out and a party planned for a bunch of people I’ve never met, I’d invite you over.

@peaceetc - Thanks. Pretty sure the roads will be jammed anyway. I just had the idea to check Amtrak schedule, but nothing gets there early enough.
You should have an awesome experience, enjoy!

@Trillian
Better book soon then.

@f00l On one hand, $300 nearly gets me to Belize for a long-overdue beach vacation. On the other hand, FOMO.

@Trillian

Yeah I might do a “stupid day” for this. Undecided.

@f00l - If you have a chance to read about it, it sounds totally (!) worth it.

@f00l If you go and it rains, at least you know who to blame.

@Trillian
Rain not impossible, but rather unlikely, where I might aim at.

@Trillian We dont have Southwest, but Redmond (RDM) might be a destination you can try…

@f00l Obscuration : 99.325% at the house, 99.714% at the office, and 100% at my father-in-law’s house / farm, which is where we are planning to be, outside of Lawson, MO.

@Pavlov

I am officially envious now.

@KDemo
The Marine Layer sounds like bad internet porn.

@KDemo You’d think the desert part of Oregon would be more popular, what with fewer trees and clouds and stuff.

@craigthom Then you have to deal with “you can’t get there from here”

@craigthom - I was reading this story on Oregon viewing sites. It includes this passage:

Strong climbers will be able to see an amazing sight from the top of Mt Jefferson at 10,479’ elevation. Not only will you see totality, but also the stupendous light show of the Moon’s shadow racing across the landscape. From this vantage, you will see distant places to the west darken before totality reaches you and after your two minutes of totality, you’ll be able to see the landscape to the east turning dark.

Seems like they’re predicting traffic congestion everywhere, though.

@KDemo That sounds like a great space.

I just don’t know what to expect for traffic. I’m going to be in a rural area, but it’s halfway between the longest duration spot and the totally maximally eclipse spot. So maybe the roads will be clogged. Maybe I should allow several extra hours to get there.

@KDemo mt jefferson is now off limits. Besides, that is beyond “strong climbers.” Thats a full fledged mountaineering, multi-day, will kill you if make a mistake mountain.

@craigthom where is your starting point? Are you going offroad? Make sure to have a real gps, or really detailed offline maps on your phone, as cell service out this way is predicted to be overwhelmed. We go offroading quite often. Some areas have signs, most dont.

@dickie541 I know someone who lives in the area in Kentucky.

I’ve got a gps module for the computer, which Eclipse Orchestrator will read and use for time and position. It’s within a few meters outside.

I’ll just be using the phone for incidental photos. The real camera still be run by a laptop. I just have to move it every now and then to keep the sun in view.

@craigthom
Crossing my fingers for clear weather.

@phendrick i’d actually pay a few bucks more and go with one of the companies recommended on NASA’s website:

https://eclipse2017.nasa.gov/safety

@phendrick It’s also worth considering cards instead of glasses. Most people aren’t going to be looking at the sun long during the whole three hours or whatever, and you can see nothing with the glasses on.

A card you can just hold up when you are looking at the sun.

No glasses are needed during totality, and, in fact, you’d see nothing, since the glasses are too dark.

@mgpmn - So the birds will stop singing, the stars will come out, and you will remember the experience forever.
Or so they say.

@cranky1950 - I’m so jealous.

@cranky1950 - But I’m really happy for you. Really.

@cranky1950 Most perfect folding rockers

@cranky1950 Sauce?

@mflassy who are you?

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@ACraigL We’re going to drive to Anderson

@ACraigL only one for the hole fam?

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@cranky1950 Whole family, wife daughter and her ankle biters.

@Yoda_Daenerys Set of 4. Ima bigspender.

@Yoda_Daenerys But if you’re on the other side of the Atlantic, you’re not going to see much.

http://xjubier.free.fr/en/site_pages/solar_eclipses/TSE_2017_GoogleMapFull.html

@blaineg huh?

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@Yoda_Daenerys Check the map, some parts of western Europe might see 1% occlusion.

@Pavlov- Thanks!
It goes by Zip Code, so it’s not quite as accurate as the one in the op, but it’s much easier to use and it shows what your local percentage of eclipsity will look like.

5/5 stars

@KDemo cool - glad you like it, I thought it was interesting (and accurate). I liked the “You need to drive XX amount of miles to experience totality” (paraphrasing). Mine said 12 miles. Should have been 11, as shown by a different, accurate map.

@Pavlov - You have it made in the shade!

Hope people report back on the experience.

@cinoclav - Grrrr. Sucks!

I’m feeling like it really can’t be missed, but even the tiny town of Madras in central Oregon (pop. 6,700) is expecting over 100,000 people. Can’t see a way to make it happen.

Any chance you can find a way? I mean, if you’re “sick”, they can’t really object, right?

@KDemo They can’t truly object, she would have to come in and call out of her other job. But, we have a good working relationship and I wouldn’t want to do that to her or possibly screw over my patients.

Oh yeah, Patients.
You’re a good man, @cinoclav.

@KDemo
/giphy aww shucks

@KDemo Thanks for thinking of our eyes! Might be better than my welding goggles or a camera obscura.

@mehcuda67 - You’re very welcome!
That linked article also discusses welding filters.

Some welding filters are also safe to use to view the sun: those of shade 12, 13 or 14, AAS representatives said.
However, they cautioned that most welding filters are lighter than that and that the sun can even be too bright in a shade 12 filter, while shade 14 tends to make the sun too dark.

@moonhat - Isn’t the air awful? I can’t believe how thick the smoke is even down here in the South Sound area.
You’d think Canadian smoke would be less offensive.

@jrwofuga - You don’t have far to go to make up that last 0.482%. Try, if you can. It will make all the difference.

@KDemo totally dependent upon work. If I can, I will for certain.

@cranky1950 - People Are Renting Really Fucking Weird Places To See The Total Solar Eclipse.

@KDemo It just happens that where it comes across this part of the country the population density is extremely low, and there’s a lot of “you can’t get there from here places.”

@KDemo You have to remember that for some anything that’s worth doing is worth over doing.

@cranky1950 - Anything to get that eclipse fix.

@dickie541 - You are among the most privileged!

It’s killing me that I can’t find a way to be there from a < 3 hr drive away.

The Schwinn is so smart!

I’d love to hear about your experience, if you’re up for it afterward.

@KDemo eh, we are calling it the apocaclipse here in Redmond. I wouldn’t say we are priveleged. But I will def report back!

@readnj - No matter where you are you need good filters. No scam, unless they’re not effective.

Link back up to the post that tells how to check:
https://meh.com/forum/topics/eclipse-fix-tips#59829ba6b603b705b85b6af7

@daveinwarsh gonna go down 97? Or 395? Where are you starting? Eastern washington, or sound area? Def use a real gps or get good offline maps on your phone. On last nights local news, they had a spot about cell service…at&t is putting up two temporary towers…one in Prineville, the other near Mitchell. Other towers will be overwhelmed. Bring lots of water. And food. Ice will not be available. Be prepared to rough it for a few days…and have fun! Are you a ham, by chance?

@daveinwarsh - Are you my husband?
I have the same goals as your wife.

Thing is, I keep finding out about auroras happening here in WA after the fact. It’s been driving me crazy.
I miss them even when I follow the solar flares and aurora prediction sites.

You’re farther north on a farm where I assume there are fewer lights. You might be able to see them from home if you’re lucky.

Taken from Anacortes last May

@KDemo I’ve seen a ‘glimmer’ of Northern Lights here on the Kitsap Peninsula. She wants the whole show.

@dickie541 Staying overnite in Gresham, OR, then very early drive down 26 to “as far as we can get”.
I have a nice ham set, Kenwood circa 1970’s that needs set-up. I have no license. Figured I’d use it during the zombie attack…

@daveinwarsh oh yeah, going right into the beast of the belly. Def get a full tank of gas before heading over Mt. Hood. Also, might think about maintaining a south track and going back through Sisters and picking up I-5 in Salem.

@dickie541 We’ll see. I’m making lots of ice to bring, have my handheld CB radio & lots of other stuff. I even bought the correct eclipse glasses! whew… I’ll gas up whenever I get a chance. I’ll try to record a movie of it on my good camera.

@KDemo - So one of the eclipse fix addicts in this story wears an eye patch leading up to the big moment, so one of his eyes is acclimated to the dark.

The more you know . . .

A reflective eyepatch complete with matching teeth!

@KDemo The paper here said it might coincide with a hurricane. Hopefully not.

@sammydog01

@f00l - Well, the sky will still get dark if it is cloudy. Small comfort.

@f00l - Or, it might be extra cool?

@KDemo

Right now forecasting partly cloudy to sunny, high around 98 F. Good watching weather I should think.

Which is just fine for around here in late August.

@f00l - Oh, and give us back our weather!
Seattle broke all-time record for consecutive days without rain, and 10-20 degrees hotter than usual.

@KDemo

Yeah. Rain makes a huge diff in summer temperatures. As does ground cover, water table depth, oceanic winds, etc.

Your all are all in a drought aren’t you?

They are horrible.

The last really bad one here was I think in 2011. It basically didn’t rain from Nov to Oct. That was one of the summers with the record number of days over 100. There was another such summer in I think 1980. Again, big drought.

High fire hazards. The price of hay was like 5x the normal, there’s no grass in the fields, ranchers can’t feed their livestock and have to sell. Farmers basically don’t bring in crops. In the cities you get water shortages and rolling blackouts. You could walk across normality full dry lakebeds. Huge numbers of trees died. The elderly and vulnerable were at risk.

And it was just monstrously hot all the time, even at 4am.

And the plants, animals, businesses, socially supports, work patterns, and social habits, pastels if protection and care are not adapted to that weather here as those are in Phoenix.

It’s not just unpleasantly hot. It’s very bleak and expensive and dangerous, and people and animals and crops and trees die.

@f00l - I’m from CA, really know the awful consequences of drought. And there’s nothing you can do, you feel just so helpless.

On the other hand, haven’t heard rumblings of drought here this year. Before this record breaking dry spell, we had record breaking rain totals.

This is interesting - never heard of pole fires before, but there are warnings now that rain is in the forecast again.
Apparently dust and dirt collects on power poles, then a little rain can conduct electricity setting the dust on fire? What new hell is this?

@KDemo

I had not known of those. Wow.

@KDemo

I call bullshit. First off, dust and dirt are most likely sandy, clay type stuff, even if wet, wont propagate electrical path…what about when the pole itself gets wet?

@dickie541 - Seemed weird to me, too.
Took a bit to remember, but I found my source. Cliff Mass is an atmospheric science professor at UW. This is from his blog:

2. Pole fires and power outages. According to a retired City Light employee I have worked with, the dust and muck deposited on wooden power poles can become conductive with a little rain, causing short-circuits, fires, and power outages. The long period without rain this summer makes us particularly vulnerable.

But I don’t know how to dust the power poles.

A really long swiffer?

@KDemo

A Pole-ba?

(Imagine this, sideways)

@f00l - Ooooooo - it’s possible? They do make a window washing model.

Is that dog wearing a sweater vest? Poor puppy.

@dickie541 - Oh, man. That’s a huge deal!
Thanks for sharing, this could really make a difference for some people.

If only the path was actually wider, would have literally been a gift from heaven.

Sigh.

@KDemo
ya, after looking at the map you linked at the top, we’re 0.8 miles from the edge. I am hoping thats enough…

Further details.

@KDemo Seems like we’re driving into the belly of the hell-beast.
It’s been nice knowing you all. Farewell.

Sheriff Scott Berry recently released the following statement about the eclipse, caused by, in his words, “celestial forces no one understands will blot out the sun. It is very likely this is the end of life on this planet as we know it.”
“As your sheriff, I expect each of you to begin panicking today. There is no need to wait til Sunday night to buy bread and milk. The shelves will be empty already as vast hoards descend on grocery stores. If you wait, the only thing left will be potted meat and knock off brand cereal with such names as ‘RaisinO’s’ and ‘CheeriBran."

@daveinwarsh - CheeriBran. The worst!

@djslack I’m bringing two extra pairs that I plan to give away to a couple of people with their heads in a box. I bought our ‘Made in USA’ certified glasses in April.
Also, now they are saying the west side of Oregon should be clear for the eclipse, except right at the coast. Clear Blue Skies! Madras area may be hampered by smoke from nearby fires.

@djslack The mobs are getting frenzied here. The science museum is having an eclipse party and is giving glasses away to the first 500 people. So far 5000 have responded as coming on Facebook. They sold out two thousand pair in two days last week at the museum shop- there was a line Friday when they opened. I feel bad for the employees. I’m watching from my front yard.

@daveinwarsh That’s very nice of you. I’m hearing there may be storms in the St Louis area this weekend but dammit, we’re going anyway.

@sammydog01 it’s nuts here and we’re only like 78% IIRC. I think the Internet is a giant hype machine for the eclipse.

@djslack The local news is getting in on it here too. Oh, yeah, and you’ll go blind without those glasses. Even if you stay inside. For real.

Yup. I suspect there will be a lot of disappointed people if not in the region of totality.

@djslack - Hope King Hardware is dethroned and exiled.

@sammydog01 It’s true. Actually, everyone on the planet will be required to wear the eclipse glasses from now on. The sun will be so damn bright, it’ll shine right through the planet. Wearing a tin-foil hat may also help.

@sammydog01 - Good times.

@elimanningface - I’ll answer seriously. It will damage your eyes to look at the sun without reliable protection at any time.
During the eclipse that won’t change except for those in the region of totality during the short time the eclipse is total.

@KDemo thank you! Will I be okay with my everyday sunglasses?

@elimanningface
No. No ordinary sunglasses. Please do not so that.

Get a piece of paper. Ordinary printer paper or whatever.

Stick a hole with a pin the the middle. The smaller the hole, the better.

Hold the piece of paper a short distance off the ground.

You can watch the image of the eclipse on the ground. The smaller the hole, the sharper the image.

This is how I’ve watched my last few partials.

Or go stand under a group of frees where the leaves filter the light and only speckles and patches of sunlight get to the ground.

You will see lots and lots on tiny eclipses on the ground.

It’s quite beautiful.

You might try getting eclipse glasses at your local musems or libraries. Some local stores might’ve have them.

If you can see anything thru the glasses except the sun or a welding light or similar, the glasses will not protect your eyes.

If you are not using the eclipse glasses to look at the sun, they should appear to be like blackout glasses. That’s how dark they need to be.

With the right glasses you can look straight at the sun.

@elimanningface You can try the pinhole trick with a pizza box I posted above or glance quickly at the sun like you would any other day. Just don’t stare. That is really bad.

@sammydog01 @f00l @kdemo thanks guys! I want to see the eclipse but only briefly. I was worried when hiking back while its occurring, what would happen if I look up in the sky accidentally. From what I am reading, it seems like going for a hike probably isn’t worth it.

@elimanningface [preface: I’m just a dope on the internet, not a real scientist] it is no worse than looking up in the sky any other day. The danger is that since the sun is partially blocked, you won’t look away as quickly as you would when the full sun is out, so you can burn your eyes that way.

So it’s best not to look directly at the partial eclipse without glasses. If you don’t have glasses you can use a box, a sheet of paper, your fingers, or trees to project the image on to something safe to look at. But it’s not a magical death ray.

@daveinwarsh - I heard there are some wildfires in Eastern Or. Really hope they’re not in your path.

@KDemo If the weather forecast is correct, we may stay on the West side. Staying at Gresham gives us that option. The West side has more roads to choose from (and more bathrooms…). We’ll see…
And, NO SALES TAX IN OREGON! (you have to pay cash, if your card is from another state, they charge tax I heard)

@daveinwarsh - Well, you are apparently an expert planner. It will be worth it, I’m sure.

Still jealous.

@daveinwarsh
Not true about taxing credit cards. Also, good luck on your Oregon visit.

Oops. I guess it depends on who you want to believe.

http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/eclipse-Oregon-traffic-driving-Madras-Symbiosis-11942253.php#photo-13859358

@KDemo

https://tripcheck.com/Pages/RCMap.asp

This is best. Dont worry about colors, check cameras.

@dickie541 - Thanks!
Here too:
http://www.oregonlive.com/roadreport/index.ssf/2008/12/i5cams.html

Still amazingly clear down the I-5 corridor.

@KDemo

We call the corridor “The Valley.” As in Willamette River Valley. I-5 can move a lot of people very efficiently. Now, 26, the road daveinwarsh is taking in the morning, is hell. One lane in, one lane out, while going up and over Mt Hood, and through a bunch of small towns.
The live traffic thing on tripcheck is a joke. I was looking at cameras that showed traffic at a stop (in a 55 zone), while the color was green. And vice-versa.

@dickie541 - So.
I set my alarm for 5 this morning to check traffic. Relatively clear, so I jumped on it. Stop and go for miles where 205 meets 5, but I made it!
Super happy that it worked out, and I made it back home by 2:00.
Brilliant!

#not jealous no more

How was your experience?

@KDemo We left Gresham by 4:30. After checking weather Sunday nite & Monday morning, we decided to dump the hwy 26 thing. It’s gonna be clear on the West side! Woo Hoo!
We went down hwy 99 the whole way, no traffic at all. By the time we got to Woodburn, we decided it’s close enough. Salem would be hell to get out of after the eclipse. The weather was perfect there (as you know).

Afterwards, we tried hwy 99 to leave, but it was jammed. Checking the traffic app, I-5 was showing red & black (almost stopped). We stayed on 99 & toughed it out.

@daveinwarsh - I had the same thoughts about Salem. You made nearly all the right moves. I noticed others leaving just after totality, so I left too, early enough to miss the worst of the traffic.

@ThomasF - Except in Tennessee, right?

@KDemo It reached peak duration near Carbondale, Illinois, and then started to shorten again (but not by much). The largest (closest) the moon got was just outside Hopkinsville, Kentucky. I was about halfway between the two, 2000 feet off the center line, and got 2:40 seconds.

The side to side difference was because the moon is a circle, so the edges of the shadow are shorter than the center. The difference along the path had something to do with the mechanics.

@craigthom - Right. I was also wondering why the eclipse moved west to east while the sun and moon move east to west.
I figured out the mechanics by imagining a flashlight (sun) shining down on an orb (moon). The flashlight moves faster than the orb, so you can visualize what happens to the shadow. It moves backward.

@cranky1950 - Pretty much like that in Oregon, too. People filtered in over several days, but everyone left at once.