Sky & Telescope - October 2023 - 4

SPECTRUM by Peter Tyson
Main Sequence
A SOLAR ECLIPSE TAKES VIEWERS on quite a ride. Whether it's
annular or total, an eclipse of the Sun offers arguably the most
exquisite progression of dramatic changes to celestial objects that
we can observe from Earth with the naked eye (with proper protection,
of course).
Have a look at Fred Espenak's striking composite of the 2005 annular eclipse
on page 34. If you start in the upper left and work your way visually left to right
and down each row to the lower right, you get a palpable sense of this exacting
succession. As you eyeball each stage, vague references pop into mind: a chipped
bowl, a bitten cracker, the Apple logo, a boomerang, and finally a golden wedding
ring before " reversing " back to the chipped bowl.
Whatever allusions pop into your mind, what stands out most prominently
for all of us in that series is the series itself. The same is true of Rick Fienberg's
arresting parade of images of the 2017 total eclipse on page 84. Given that
witnessing the full run of any eclipse lasts
several hours, taking in an entire eclipse at
a glance is eminently satisfying. For another
creative way to capture the whole chain of
events in a single image, see Tunç Tezel's
breathtaking composite of last April's hybrid
eclipse and his accompanying feature on
page 60. (See also Tezel's sublime cover shot.)
The splendid advance of an eclipse extends well beyond any one photographer's
location, of course. As the map on page 35 shows, the Moon's shadow
during this month's annular will race overland from Oregon right down
through Brazil. Could an eclipse possibly cover a greater extent of the Americas
than October 14th's annular will?
Another sequence that comes to mind is that of eclipses over the coming
decades. As Rick Fienberg notes in his Focal Point, solar eclipses aren't particularly
rare; they happen somewhere on the planet every year or two. But take
heed: After April's totality and October's annularity, the next solar eclipses to
cross a significant portion of the United States will not happen until 2045 and
2048, respectively.
So, if you're an eclipsophile based in the U.S., you won't want to miss these
two imminent shadowings. The previews by Fred Espenak and Jay Anderson on
page 34 of this issue (for the annular) and on page 26 of last April's issue (for
the total) will set you on your way.
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Stately procession: multiple stages
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Sky & Telescope - October 2023

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