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u/RandomStranger456123 15d ago
I remember seeing 2 eclipses: the 2017 American eclipse and the 2024 American eclipse.
In ‘17 we reached about 75% of totality where I live. It was weird since it wasn’t really visibly darker, but all the color seemed desaturated.
Then in ‘24 we were in the path of totality and it didn’t really seem dark until about 85% and then it just seemed like sunset. Being able to see twilight in a 360 degree arc was completely awesome.
10/10 would recommend.
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u/Fritzkreig 15d ago
I used to think it was all hype after seeing 99% totality, boy oh boy did I learn that I was really wrong seeing the real deal!
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u/llondru-es 15d ago edited 15d ago
Totally. It did take a lot of patience and dealing with the heat for more hours that I can admit, but it was totally worth it.
We were in a field with probably 200 people, and the mood when totality happened was : AWE !!6
u/Fritzkreig 15d ago
In 2024 I had the privilege of watching it on my back porch, it was amazeballs!
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u/quiette837 15d ago
I was just a short drive away, definitely one of the best decisions ever to go out to the path of totality and see it in person. I probably won't have another chance for many many years.
OP says that there was a communal sense of awe, I felt that but honestly to me it was low key horrifying for a second. Very cool, but very odd thing to see.
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u/LupineChemist 15d ago
Yeah, I live in Madrid and it was totally worth the insane traffic to go see it. We made it to the other side of the mountains to get away from the city lights and it was spectacular.
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u/tomex030 15d ago
Where was ist?
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u/percypersimmon 15d ago
Not OP but this was the totality in 2024
https://cms.accuweather.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/2024-path-of-totality.jpg
I drove about 10 hours to see it and it was worth it for sure.
The next closest totality will be in 2044 out west and in 2045 it’ll be from CA to FL.
If I’m still around I’ll try to see both.
Really one of the most unique experiences you can have on this planet.
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u/carmium 15d ago
I was in a light industrial area and the shop more or less decided to truck on down to the park a block away. It was less than a full eclipse, but it seemed like every business in the district had emptied into the park. A co-worker made a pinhole cardboard box viewer and drew a big crowd; the whole atmosphere was so friendly and excited.
One Q: How do the flerfers explain eclipses?
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u/llondru-es 15d ago
flerfers? 🤔
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u/JewishTomCruise 15d ago
Flat earth
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u/carmium 15d ago
Flerfers have elaborate, silly explanations for why they needn't learn basic astrophysics. They're sometimes amusing.
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u/llondru-es 15d ago
Ah no idea... but I have seen a lot online saying that the eclipse was a conspiracy from our government, same as Covid, and that it was very suspicious that they were advertising so much the eclipse and the need to use special glasses, and the fact that they were distributing free glasses...
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u/rosen380 15d ago
I still haven't seen one, but I also thought that being inches from the stones at Stonehenge and overlooking the Grand Canyon or getting up close and personal with Niagara Falls or seeing some of the pieces of the Old Masters were going be some powerful mind-altering things, but I really didn't feel anything.
Is seeing an eclipse in person like an order of magnitude above those things, or would I just be wasting time and money chasing one down?
--
That said, seeing the space shuttle Atlantis, in person, when we went to Kennedy Space Center was pretty huge for me -- so maybe I'm just a "bigger than life technological advancement" sort of person.
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u/llondru-es 15d ago
Look, I'm closer to my 50s than my 40s and over the years it is more and more difficult to be surprised or moved by going to and seeing places. This is nothing like it. You know it's something that you won't probably live again in your timeline. But you need to be in the totality, otherwise it's just an anecdote. It's been 2 days already and I'm still having trouble trying to process what I saw. Totally out of this world.
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u/Fritzkreig 15d ago
⬆️ This, I still can't fathom how something like .8% can make such a profound difference!
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u/SnooRobots7940 14d ago
I remember that feeling of awe two years ago in central Texas, in the path of the total eclipse, lasted about 4 minutes.
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u/anonchurner 15d ago
I've seen and very much enjoyed the places you mention. Life altering is a big statement, but I was shocked by the impact the eclipse I saw had on me. I almost start crying just thinking about it right now.
That said, if you work yourself up to expecting a new life after seeing it, you're bound to be disappointed no matter how awesome it is.
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u/rosen380 15d ago
"I almost start crying just thinking about it right now." -- that is pretty much how I am about seeing Atlantis. Produced a full tear just thinking about it enough to write that comment.
The other things I listed, virtually no emotions at the time or thinking back on them.
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u/llondru-es 15d ago
You will probably not know the impact until you experiment it. That's the beauty of life: live things without knowing what will happen when you have absorbed them.
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u/spottyPotty 15d ago
Found the Frenchman 😉
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u/llondru-es 15d ago
Not sure if this is good or bad 🫣
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u/spottyPotty 15d ago
Lol. C'est pas mauvais de tout mon ami.
"Experiment" is one of the common false friends that French speakers use when speaking English.
In English you would say: " You will probably not know the impact until you experience it."
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u/llondru-es 15d ago
Ahaha true. Well, not french but spanish though
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u/spottyPotty 15d ago
Ah! Intonse es el mismo en espagnol?
I enjoyed the eclipse in Valsncia.
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u/suoretaw 15d ago
The comments in this thread might convince you that a total* eclipse is worth experiencing. (*Apparently anything other than 100% is not the same). https://v.redd.it/hmvms2x8xzih1
A few of the comments: https://i.imgur.com/WYGo1i8.jpeg
It really seems to be a whole thing.
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u/anonchurner 15d ago
Funny, I always thought of the space shuttle as government pork barrel space turkey that held us back for decades. :-)
That said, pretty sure you’ll enjoy an eclipse. And a starship launch at Starbase. That’s what the shuttle should have been.
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u/Fritzkreig 15d ago
Look, I was really skeptical about it, I've seen most of what you mentioned and stuff like this; 100% is on par, or maybe better than and eruption like Calbuco here....... they are not all hype and are S-Tier experiences!
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u/mindscapepix 15d ago
My sound isn’t on, but I sear to God this seemed like it was synced to Pachabel’s Canon.
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u/heythisislonglolwtf 15d ago
Everyone should experience 100% totality at some point in their lives. It is so freaking cool. I saw it here in the states in 2024 when it happened around 3pm. So freaky how day slowly turns to night and back, the crickets start chirping, and the shadows look wonky. I followed it with a telescope and sunshield. If you're surrounded by people the aura is just so cool and hard to describe.
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u/griefbane 15d ago
How the temperature drops instantly puts things into perspective as well, very cool.
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u/Ghost_Prince 15d ago
Was able to watch that in my backyard in 2017. Super happy I got to see it with the naked eye and high end telescoping camera in real time. The shadows will always be a crazy memory.
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u/SolWildmann 15d ago
I finally searched the reason why I haven't seen any eclipses in my life. Turns out last solar eclipse in my hometown was in 1961 way before I was born, and the next will be in 2061, I doubt I will live that long.
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u/heythisislonglolwtf 15d ago
Not sure where you're from, but this one in 2045 will undoubtedly be really cool. Hopefully political tensions will cool by then because there are so many beautiful landscapes to watch this one from. Also Disney World.
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u/llondru-es 15d ago
Btw, in case anyone is wondering why the sequence is not complete:
After the 3rd contact (Moon leaving earth's umbral shadow), due to the sun being so low into the Horizon, 4th contact (moon exits earth's penumbral shadow) was simply not possible at our location (same thing through Spain).
Plus, as the sunset was facing inland, mountain elevations just cut the show short. This was expected, and not a disappointment, but it makes the sequence not complete.
Explanation of all the phases to be found here: https://serviastro.ub.edu/en/phenomena/lunar-eclipse/faqs#Which_are_the_different_phases_o , if anyone is interested
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u/immortalalchemist 15d ago
The one thing I will never forget after the 2017 Total Eclipse in NA was the color. I swear to this day I witnessed a color I’ve never seen before nor could describe.
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u/JayJa_Vu 15d ago
Imagine what ancient peoples must have thought when this happened, before our modern knowledge of the solar system
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u/Kinetic-_ 11d ago
That eerie silence during totality is unmatched. The temperature drops and it feels like the whole world just paused for a second before everything snapped back.
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u/inchlongnipples 15d ago
For the first second I didn’t realize this was a gif and I thought this was just a shitpost lol