Last Sunday, we got to watch an annular solar eclipse (aka ring of fire) just before sunset, around 6:30pm. Since we did not prepare any special solar lenses for ourselves or even our camera, we had to rely on our neighbor’s contraption to see the eclipse. At the other end of the tube is a pin-sized hole and this showed what was visible of the sun as the moon moved past it. I really appreciate that my neighbor also shared this image taken with their iPhone with me.
Even without looking at the sun itself, it was clear to see that something was going on out there. Instead of the warm glow that is usually cast as the sun goes down, a strange yellowish-gray light was seen all around. What was interesting was how all the shadows mimicked the eclipse. Take a look at the shadow of a tree near us and how it looked zoomed in. Weird, right?
It was really an amazing experience. My main regret was that I was in the house finishing dinner and missed the four minutes there was a complete ring of light. To see that I’ll have to rely on others’ photos or wait until 2071 when it’s most visible in my area again. Did you get to see the eclipse at all? Get any good shots? Have a viewing party?
8 comments
Too bad I missed it. Back in the day, I used to go to the nearby observatory to catch eclipses and other astronomical phenomena. They never cease to amaze me.
So true. There were some places to view it but I think preparing for it was not very high on our priority list. It was very neat to see though.
What an experience!! So neat.
Yes, it was! I’m so glad we could share the view with some of our more prepared neighbors 🙂
I would have been felt guilty too if I wasn’t able to see that ring of light. It looks amazing in the photo, what more when you get to see it personally.
Very true. Oh well, I’m just happy that I got to see what I did. The way it affected the light and the shadows was already special.
Your neighbor is very handy! How cool!
Totally. Well, when some 300 of them live in the same gated community we have pretty good chances of finding someone 😛
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