Solar Eclipse in the USA: Where and When to Watch Him

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21 August 2017 on the territory of the United States will occur "Great American Eclipse" - a solar eclipse, in which the moon completely covers the sun for a few minutes. This is the first such phenomenon in 99 years, which can be observed in the country.

The eclipse will partially take place across the country, but the small town of Hopkinsville in Kentucky is more fortunate than the others: it is located near the point where the total eclipse will last longer than in other places. Because of this, the city long before August became the epicenter of a historical event and is preparing to receive several tens of thousands of observers, believers and experienced eclipse hunters.

Book ten years before arrival

In 2007, Cheryl Cook received an email from a person gathering in Hopkinsville. Cook worked as a director of the agency for interaction with tourists, so she often sorted out messages from potential guests, which usually were few. The letter writer did not just want to come to Hopkinsville: he asked if he could pre-book a seat for a trip that would take place in 10 years.

The tourist explained to the surprised employee that in August 2017 of the year in the USA one can see a total solar eclipse, and Hopkinsville will become a “heart” for those who want from all over the world. The traveler was interested in what the city had already done in order to prepare for the arrival of thousands of people. But Cook did not have an answer, because she never had to “work for so many years ahead.”

After receiving the letter, she began to google. It turned out that a provincial town in Kentucky is located in the middle of the path of the eclipse and just 17 kilometers from the "point of greatest eclipse", where the Earth, the Sun and the Moon form almost a straight line. There it will last 2 minutes 40 seconds - the longest segment in the United States. This is a rare chance: the probability of being born at such a point is almost zero.

Photo visithopkinsville.com

Prior to this, the city was known except for the export of bowling balls. And since 2007, his government and locals have begun to do everything so that Hopkinsville remains in the memory of people around the world as a special place to see the first total solar eclipse in the USA in 99 years.

Cook looked at how they met an eclipse in China, and realized that the city would have to deal with tens of thousands of people. For a city with a population of 33, thousands of people are a huge flow of tourists, who need hotels, food and some kind of entertainment. At the same time, eclipse lovers began to arrive in Hopkinville much earlier than August 2017.

The city immediately began to attract enthusiasts. Scott Bane, a professor of astronomy at a local college, admitted that he moved to Kentucky only to prepare in advance for the study of the phenomenon. Others followed.

Event for the whole country

Solar eclipses are not uncommon. According to NASA, more 21 eclipses should occur in the 200 century, including almost full 70 eclipses. In most cases, they can be observed while in the ocean, and not on land.

More rarely, residents of the United States become witnesses of total solar eclipses. The last of these was in 1979, but it affected only a small area on the northwest coast. However, the phenomenon in August will pass through all of America: a partial eclipse will be seen in 48 states, a full eclipse will be seen in 14. The rest of the country will notice it only briefly, so the event was called the "Great American Eclipse."

During a total eclipse, the sky becomes darker and colder. According to former astrophysicist Fred Espenack, who has seen 27 eclipses on all continents, this phenomenon needs to be experienced.

The eclipse will begin in Oregon at 10: 15 Pacific time, and will end at 11: 49 in South Carolina. And in one and a half hours, the phenomenon can become the most “viewed” in history: in the American Astronomical Society it was stated that about 12 million people live on the main path of the eclipse. Another 90 of millions of Americans live at a distance of 320 kilometers from the place where you can see the total eclipse.

The rest of North America will see the phenomenon only partially, because the width of the shadow from the moon is approximately 114 kilometers. Only people inside this shadow will see the “real” phenomenon. According to astronomers, to observe the incomplete phase simply does not make sense.

Because of this, some comers are planning to be closer to the eclipse path in August 2017. In the US, there have already been such cases: in 1991, so many people wanted to see a total eclipse in Mexico, that the authorities had to partially close the border at the time of the occurrence. This time, these people can just visit the neighboring city.

Photo tjournal.ru

According to forecasts, one of the most popular places for enthusiasts will be Carbondale in Illinois. In a city with a population of 26, thousands of people expect up to 60 thousands of people. In addition, for Carbondale, this phenomenon will only be a test: the total solar eclipse 2024 of the year passes through it, which will also affect the United States.

In Pineville (a population of nine thousand people) plan to meet from 25 to 50 thousands of observers. For them, they will hold a special four-day festival in one of the parks in Oregon, although the eclipse there will last at most two minutes. True, experts fear that small towns simply will not be able to withstand such a rush: for example, there is only one toilet in the Oregon park.

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Hobby on the verge of madness

The greatest number of travelers waiting in Hopkinsville. According to estimates of city authorities, more than 100 thousand people should visit the town. Since 2007, residents have been working to accept everyone.

More than 500 thousand dollars was spent on the preparation for the event.

The city in Kentucky quickly became a center not only for ordinary observers, but also for experienced “eclipse hunters”. James McClin first saw a lunar eclipse in 12 years. He asked his parents to take a seat into the yard to watch him, but the neighbors took the boy for the squatter and called the police. A child told a visiting officer about eclipses for a long time: both of them watched the phenomenon later.

In the meantime, McClin "hooked on such things." He made the hunt for eclipses a major hobby, abandoning ordinary life. For years 20, McClin has no permanent home and work: he travels the world trying to see every eclipse. During this time, he managed to live on an island near Alaska, study archeology in Germany, find himself on the Spitsbergen archipelago and mingle with the Indonesian sultan.

According to the traveler, hunting for eclipses is a very expensive hobby. Often he had to choose between passion and normal life, but each time he chose to chase an astronomical phenomenon. And there are hundreds of people like him around the world.

James McClin. Photo tjournal.ru

Enthusiasts get to different places. In 2010, an eclipse could be seen on Easter Island, one of the most remote places in the world. But together with local residents, more than four thousand "hunters" observed the phenomenon. In 2015, a total solar eclipse passed by the Faroe Islands, where only 800 people could accommodate hotels. However, more than 11 thousands of observers arrived there.

The governments of some countries do not take seriously the “hunters”, which is why problems periodically arise. In 2012, the Australian state of Queensland became the best point to observe the solar eclipse. Travelers warned representatives of the mayor's office in advance so that they would prepare for a big rush, but they would not be listened to. As a result, instead of the planned 30 of thousands of tourists, twice as many tourists came to Australia, and the organization of the meeting of the eclipse turned into a failure.

McClean, who earns extra money in between his travels by a photographer, noted that many people judge eclipses by “bad photos.” In his opinion, those who saw the pictures think that they know about the phenomenon itself. However, it is very different from the image of a “black hole in the sky surrounded by a solar halo.”

The sight of the disappearing star causes primal fear. And it is for these emotions that the hunters chase after eclipses.

"Hunters" do not deny that their passion is partly insane. McClin recalled the incident during a solar eclipse in China, which he observed in 2009 year. When the darkest segment of the phenomenon was over, he saw an American in the crowd who was on the phone. He shouted: “Mom, remember that documentary about crazy eclipse seekers? I am now one of them! ”

"The great American eclipse" and waiting for religious figures. According to them, the phenomenon can be a “god sign” or evidence of the soon end of the world. Gary Ray, the author of one of the religious publications, said that eclipses are "one of the biblical signs of the return of Christ." He explained that the seven-year period between the two eclipses will be "years of hardship for unbelievers."

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