As you may not have guessed, while some people are all geeked up about solar eclipses, I couldn't possibly care less about them. Maybe if they caused all the moslems to go blind....
I don't think there's anything wrong with watching a solar eclipse. I don't travel for them but watch them when I can. I'm surprised that someone who regularly posts about amazing astronomical phenomena can be so blase about solar eclipses.
Cube, Isn't it wild that I don't care about the light going out for a few minutes. Incredibly boring to me, Like a big cloud passing over. Yaawwwwwwwwwwwwnn.
Ed, I did witness a partial in Arizona. We cut little holes in one side of a box and laid it hole side up. You could look into the box at the down side and see an image of the eclipse as it passed. You might try that for fun. The box trick was interesting.
BTW, a solar eclipse is how Einstein proved relativity. It was the only way an observer could prove that gravity bent light. They took pictures of the night time sky with star placement on a glass plate. They the took pictures of the same sky during the day with the eclipse. The stars had moved "closer" to the moon/sun on the photographic plates, proving that the suns gravity was bending the light from the stars. Without the moon blanking out the sunlight, you could never tell during the day what effect the sun was having.
Ed, I read about that ! Some dude had to go serious safari somewhere in the forest miles and miles from anything, setup the equipment and get the plates. Now that is interesting.
http://simonsingh.net/media/articles/maths-and-science/1919-eclipse-and-general-relativity/ General relativity was born in 1915 during the First World War, and as soon as the war ended the Astronomer Royal Sir Frank Dyson began preparing for the next total eclipse, which would occur on 29 May 1919, and which would be an opportunity to test Einstein’s theory. He had already recruited Arthur Eddington, Plumian Professor of Astronomy at Cambridge, to make the observations, a decision that was largely a consequence of Eddington’s pacifist beliefs. The son of devout Quakers, Eddington had nearly spent the war as a conscientious objector peeling potatoes in an army camp, but instead Dyson had arranged for a letter of deferment, which allowed him to carry on his astronomical research. However, in return, Eddington had to promise to make the trek to the island of Principe, off the coast of West Africa, one of the best locations for observing the 1919 eclipse. ....
I used to have a friend who chased to those all over the planet. I actually used software I had to help him plan where to watch from.
ReplyDeleteED, Your friend was wealthy? I'd have to be rich, extremely bored and or knew lovely women obsessed with eclipses to make such journeys.
DeleteLOL
DeleteSingle, UAW skilled trades, lived alone, frugal.
DeleteC-CS :-)
DeleteEd, UAW, So Rich then. :)
DeleteI don't think there's anything wrong with watching a solar eclipse. I don't travel for them but watch them when I can. I'm surprised that someone who regularly posts about amazing astronomical phenomena can be so blase about solar eclipses.
ReplyDeleteWe had one here once and everyone was sharing the two welding helmets I had.
DeleteCube, Isn't it wild that I don't care about the light going out for a few minutes. Incredibly boring to me, Like a big cloud passing over. Yaawwwwwwwwwwwwnn.
DeleteEd, I did witness a partial in Arizona. We cut little holes in one side of a box and laid it hole side up. You could look into the box at the down side and see an image of the eclipse as it passed. You might try that for fun. The box trick was interesting.
BTW, a solar eclipse is how Einstein proved relativity.
ReplyDeleteIt was the only way an observer could prove that gravity bent light.
They took pictures of the night time sky with star placement on a glass plate.
They the took pictures of the same sky during the day with the eclipse.
The stars had moved "closer" to the moon/sun on the photographic plates, proving that the suns gravity was bending the light from the stars.
Without the moon blanking out the sunlight, you could never tell during the day what effect the sun was having.
Ed, I read about that ! Some dude had to go serious safari somewhere in the forest miles and miles from anything, setup the equipment and get the plates. Now that is interesting.
Deletehttp://simonsingh.net/media/articles/maths-and-science/1919-eclipse-and-general-relativity/
DeleteGeneral relativity was born in 1915 during the First World War, and as soon as the war ended the Astronomer Royal Sir Frank Dyson began preparing for the next total eclipse, which would occur on 29 May 1919, and which would be an opportunity to test Einstein’s theory. He had already recruited Arthur Eddington, Plumian Professor of Astronomy at Cambridge, to make the observations, a decision that was largely a consequence of Eddington’s pacifist beliefs. The son of devout Quakers, Eddington had nearly spent the war as a conscientious objector peeling potatoes in an army camp, but instead Dyson had arranged for a letter of deferment, which allowed him to carry on his astronomical research. However, in return, Eddington had to promise to make the trek to the island of Principe, off the coast of West Africa, one of the best locations for observing the 1919 eclipse.
....
That's it Ed. Thanks.
Delete