This page is a personal record of the webmasters for the total solar eclipse in the Northern America on Monday, 8 April 2024.
Memos found during the observations are written for the people who will watch a solar eclipse in somewhere and future me, hoping to watch another total eclipse in my life.
The contents are tentative as of 17 April 2024.
New information will be added.
Updated on 28 April 2024.
Japanese version of this article:
https://yoshi-g.com/total_solar_eclipse_jp
Contents
General information about the eclipse
The total eclipse began in the Pacific at 16:40 UTC on Monday, 8 April 2024. It was observed in Mexico, 12 States in the United States (Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, New York, Pennsylvania, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine), and Canada. It ended in the Northern Atlantic (45°N, 25°W, approximatelly) at 19:55 UTC.
The total solar eclipse map has been published by NASA on the following website.
The 2024 Total Solar Eclipse – Scientific Visualization Studio, NASA (July 10, 2023)
https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/5123/
28 April 2024 Accessed
Observation point
At Willard, Ohio
41.062589°N, 82.667426°W
The point is shown in Google Map below.
The original plan was watching the eclipse in Niagara Falls, but the weather forecast 24 hours aheds said it woule be cloudy. The observation point was finally decided by the forecast 12 hours before the total eclipse (NOAA weather service website and several global neumerical weather prediction model provided by Windy.com).
The time of the total eclipse at Willard was obtained from the NASA’s website below.
Eclipse Explorer – NASA
https://eclipse-explorer.smce.nasa.gov/
28 April 2024 Accessed
The prediction of the eclipse time (beggining, the period of total eclipse, and ending) was very accurate.
Observation tools
- Solar eclipse glasses
- Hand made pinhole observation box
- Found in an episode of ‘Curious George’ for the first time.
- Smartphone camera and other compact digital camera
- Tablet for recording a time lapse video
Photos and videos
Photos of the total eclipse were taken by a smartphone camera, with proper settings of ISO sensitivity and shatter speed, showing the moon had occulted the sun for approximately 3 minutes and 50 seconds. The solar corona was observed by the naked eye.
The webmaster was extremely excited during the total eclipse and 30 seconds before and after the period, in which it became evidently dark.
Total Eclipse 2024-04-08
A photo during the total eclipse with a proper camera setting.
Time lapse video
Frame interval: 1.2 sec
Speed: x36
Personal opinions
- Amazing, stunning, mysterious
- Beyond description is the best words for this experience.
- The period being apparently dark was the time of total eclipse (3 minutes 50 seconds) and 30 seconds before and after the total eclipse. Except that time, it had been brighter than the expectation though the moon had partially hiden the sun.
- It was clearly different from an annular eclipse, in which it does not become completely dark in the peak of the eclipse.
- It was astonishing that the solar corona, and perhaps prominences (sometimes a part of the corona became shiny temporarily) were observed by the naked eye.
- A film camera and a proper sun filter were required to shot prominences, which would make photos much more amazing.
Other photos
A photo after 15 minutes of the beginning of the eclipse, 14:12 EDT. The photo was taken through solar eclipse glasses.
A photo after 50 minutes of the beginning of the eclipse, before 25 minutes of the total eclipse, 14:47 EDT. The photo was taken through solar eclipse glasses.
A photo before 12 minutes of the total eclipse, 15:00 EDT. The sun looked like a crescent throught solar eclipse glasses, but it looked like an ordinary sun by naked eye, though it seemed that the sunbeam was a little bit weaker.
Just a several seconds before the beginning of the total eclipse, taken without solar eclipse glasses. The sunbeam looked glistening at this moment.
During the total eclipse, taken without solar eclipse glasses. The solar corona was more brighter than previous expectation, so the shade of the moon could not be found the photo above because of an unproper setting,
During the total eclipse. It was dark, but not a perfect darkness. The horizon looked like at dawn or sunset. Those lights came from the visinity of the umbra where the sunlight shone.
Contrast with the ordinary state in daytime at the same location.
A diamond ring just at the end of the total eclipse, 15:16 EDT.
Venus during the total eclipse
Venus was found near the sun, identified from the star chart (Star Walk) at the same time and location.
The star chart cited from Star Walk (old version).
The chart shows Mercury near the sun but it could not be observed: it was at the position of inferior conjunction (new moon). The other planets, Jupiter and Saturn, might be found if they were focused on.
Memos
- Frog began singing 30 minutes before the total eclipse, being calmed during the total eclipse.
- It became cold during the total eclipse.
- Some stars can be found during the total eclipse.
- A historical fact came up in the webmaster’s mind that Albert Einstein’s general relativity theory was proven by a photo taken during the total solar eclipse in 1919.
- A total eclipse is completely different from an annular eclipse.
- It does not become dark completely in an annular eclipse.
17 April 2024
Updated on 28 April 2024