Eclipse Adventures

Tom
Tom
Aug 22, 2017 · 4 min read

Monday, August 21st 2017, my friend Ardis and I drove north from Florida to South Carolina to witness a total solar eclipse. The eclipse was to take place a bit after 2:30, depending on location. Spooked by forecasts of apocalyptic traffic, we left at 7:00 AM even though it is only a few hours drive to South Carolina.



Traffic was moderately heavier than usual, but hardly as bad as predicted. Given that an eclipse can be viewed from virtually any location over a wide geographic area, this made some sense. There was a 30% chance of rain in Charleston during the critical time window, but Columbia was only a half-hour further drive. We decided to head toward Columbia. This would prove to be a momentous decision.



We arrived in Columbia just before lunch time. It’s a lovely city, full of hills, historic southern architecture, and - most importantly - lots of parks for convenient eclipse viewing. We settled on Finlay Park for our base. We stopped in at a Carolina Alehouse to grab lunch. By the time we emerged, the eclipse had already begun.



Not that you would know if you weren’t looking for it. The sun in the sky beat down seemingly as bright and hot as ever. Of course we’ve all been well-warned not to look directly at the sun during the eclipse, but I’m not sure I could have even if I’d wanted to. The sun remained a painfully bright orb of light beating down on us. The brain rebelled at any attempts to even look near it.

Thanks to the heat and the high humidity, Google told us that the weather 'felt like' it was close to 100 degrees (F). The only indication that something untoward was going on with the sun was if you viewed it through special eclipse-viewing glasses. These showed that a small, spherical bite had been taken out of one side of the sun.



My very resourceful next door neighbor had procured me some eclipse glasses at the last minute, for which I ame eternally grateful. Watching the early progress of the eclipse would have otherwise been impossible (it turns out that cell phone cameras see only a bright blur when pointed at the sun, eclipse or no).



The effects of the eclipse only became really noticeable after about 2 PM. The light wasn’t noticiably dimmer, but the day had become markedly cooler. Earlier, standing in the sun had been unpleasant, but it was now hardly warmer than it was in the shade. After another 10 or 15 minutes had passed, the sunlight had become visibly more muted, as though light clouds were passing over the sun. There was no cloud, though - only the moon. By this time, using the eclipse glasses, we could see that the sun had been reduced to a mere crescent.



It is actually quite amazing how much of the sun can be obscured without noticeably reducing the light or temperature here on earth. It was a reminder of just how huge and powerful our local star really is.



Once the sun had been reduced to a mere semi-circular sliver, it began to get dim and cool. Dragonflies started to swarm through the air of the park. No doubt they were confused by this unexpected early onset of evening.



And then - totality.



As the moon slid into place over the sun, our daylit world was plunged into twilight. Street lamps switched on. The stars came out.



It is probably impossible to convey in words the sheer spooky wrongness of a total solar eclipse. It was nighttime during the day — almost. Even though it was dark where we stood, the clouds on the horizon were still well-lit. Above us, though, where the sun should have stood was now a thin ring of light easily viewable with the naked eye. It looked as though a black hole had swallowed up the sun.



It genuinely felt as if we were witnessing a bizarre supernatural event. I think that humans instinctively find the vanishing of the sun to be unnerving. It took little imagination to picture how over-awed primitive cultures must have felt when they witnessed similar phenomena in ancient history. Doomsaying prophecies and mythologies featuring sun deities and their evil persecuters would suddenly seem perfectly logical.



It was an incredible moment. I don’t think the experience can be conveyed by pictures or even video. The drive north to see the eclipse in all its totality had been completely worth it.



Almost before we knew it, that moment was over. The sun began to emerge on the other side. It was amazing how quickly the light level began to return to normal. We began to trek back to the car before the heat followed suit.



Poor Charleston, meanwhile, had been covered in rainy clouds during the eclipse. If we had driven there we would have missed it.



The drive home took twice as long as the drive up. Apparently there are lots of ways to get to an eclipse - but in South Carolina, there is really only one way home, and that’s I-95. We didn’t get back to Jacksonville until nearly 10 PM.



Total solar eclipses are relatively rare. In North America, the next one will be in 2024. Let me say that if there is any way you can see it, you absolutely should.

)
Tom

Tom

80’s baby.

Welcome to a place where words matter. On Medium, smart voices and original ideas take center stage - with no ads in sight. Watch
Follow all the topics you care about, and we’ll deliver the best stories for you to your homepage and inbox. Explore
Get unlimited access to the best stories on Medium — and support writers while you’re at it. Just $5/month. Upgrade