The Great American Solar Eclipse of August 21, 2017: an Open Discussion of Viewing Options, 1 hour prior to AOC Social at Cinco

Unless you've been living under a rock you've heard about the upcoming "Great American Solar Eclipse" of Monday, Aug 21st 2017.  It's a "once-in-a-lifetime" celestial event that virtually everyone in the "lower 48" will have the opportunity of experiencing - at least "partially," - by simply walking outdoors and noticing the temporary darkness caused by the the moon as it sweeps across and gradually obscures the bright disc of the midday sun.  All of the partial and total eclipse phases will occur in the US between 12:05 PM and 4:10 PM EDT (Eastern Daylight Time). 

ECLIPSE PATH across the "LOWER 48":  The path of totality that surrounds the longest-duration "center line" of this eclipse will be about 70 miles wide.  The east-moving shadow of the moon will enter the US from the Pacific Ocean and include a successive swath across the heartlands of Oregon, Idaho, Wyoming, Nebraska, Missouri, Tennessee and finally South Carolina, before exiting the USA into the Atlantic. The totality path will also include small portions of a few other states including KY, NC and GA.

THE ECLIPSE in GA:  Unfortunately for Atlantans the eclipse will not quite reach 100% Totality here in metro Atlanta, but weather permitting, it will be viewable as a Total eclipse in the NE corner of our state.  The "center line of max totality" will pass through Rabun County near Clayton, GA. Totality will occur between about 2:35 and 2:38 PM along that 12-mile-long swath in NE GA, and also in the nearby NC and SC mountains & foothills (within about that same 3-minute period).

This will be the first TOTAL eclipse visible from anywhere in Georgia since March 7, 1970, when the narrow path of totality passed through the SE portion of the state near Savannah and St. Simons Island.  That one 47 years ago was enjoyed in Atlanta and throughout most of the eastern US as a "PARTIAL" eclipse from wide-ranging viewing locations outside its totality path, as this one will also be - see more below.  On May 30th, 1984 there was also a very memorable "annular" eclipse that we enjoyed viewing here in Atlanta, with a thin ring of sunlight visible around the moon for a few seconds at max eclipse.

DON'T MISS the PARTIAL PHASES!  Although the max length of TOTALITY of this eclipse will be only about 2-1/2 minutes as viewed from any single location along its "center line" the "partial phases" (when a varying size "chunk of the sun is missing" before and after totality) are also amazing and will last up to about 90 minutes each, even at locations outside the totality path.  Weather permitting, viewers throughout the entire "lower 48" will get to see AT LEAST 55% of the sun's disk area obscured at max eclipse.  (97% of the sun obscured here in Atlanta! - and more than 85% throughout GA.)  As the moon's shadow "nips away" at the midday sun, weird things begin to happen:  Splotches of sunlight under trees become crescent-shaped and wild birds may "go to roost" in the trees assuming that night is arriving.

SPECIAL REASONS to "GO TOTAL!"  We astronomy buffs consider it well worth the effort to travel a few extra miles or hours for the opportunity to view a solar eclipse from near the center line of its totality path.  During the few minutes of totality amazing "special effects" appear, including "Baily's Beads," the "Diamond Ring Effect," and the brilliant "Solar Corona."  Also the bright planet Venus may appear in the sky near the sun.  Such phenomena aren't visible at all in places where the eclipse is "partial," even if a tiny crescent of the sun's disk remains unobscured by the disk of the new moon (as in the above eclipse photo).

AOC VIEWING STRATEGIES:  During the few months prior to August 21st we'll firm up several alternate viewing locations near the eclipse "center line" - then during the week or two prior to the eclipse we'll keep a very close eye on the weather.  If cloudiness or rain is expected at any of our considered locations we should be prepared to drive up to 2 or 3 hours further to an alternate spot in TN, NC or SC that is likely to have better sky clarity.

"THE LIGHTHOUSE" on LAKE KEOWEE will be our preferred target viewing destination for the AOC trip that I (Charlie) will lead, assuming that the weather cooperates.  I consider this to be an "Explorer" event because of our goal of "exploring" the midafternoon sky during the various phases of the eclipse and experiencing its amazing special effects, including those on the earth around us. This beautiful lakefront restaurant and events facility is one of the closest center-line viewing spots to Atlanta, and offers excellent food & refreshments, shady adjoining hiking trails, plus boating & swimming options.  An easy 2-hour drive from Atlanta, it's in the SC Blue Ridge foothills a few miles off I-85 and just north of Lake Hartwell.  Here's the link to my AOC "Eclipse Expedition" article: https://www.atlantaoutdoorclub.com/event/details.asp?eventid=10991

OTHER AOC ECLIPSE VIEWING OPTIONS:   In addition to this event, at least two others are being offered for our members:   Joyce Taaffe and Carol Unger have posted a "D5-difficulty-level" event for hiking the Arkaquah Trail to the summit of GA's highest mountain, Brasstown Bald, where weather permitting, they'll get to see the eclipse in about a 2-minute Total phase as well as both long Partial phases.   Here's the link to their article: http://www.atlantaoutdoorclub.com/events/details.asp?eventid=13224
  Another fine AOC excursion for viewing the Total and Partial phases while hiking has been planned and posted by Mark Reffett.  His main "target venue" (weather permitting) is Whiteside Mountain in the lovely Highlands, NC vicinity. Here's the link to Mark's AOC article: https://www.atlantaoutdoorclub.com/event/details.asp?eventid=13967

SPECIAL FILTERS & APPARATUS for SAFELY VIEWING the ECLIPSE:  It's absolutely safe to view a TOTAL eclipse with the naked eye during its few minutes of totality, but it's necessary to use special safety gear for staring at the sun during the partial phases;  i.e, the same eye-safety guidelines as for viewing the sun on any normal day.  I (Charlie) have several items of viewing gear that I'll bring to share during my event, including solar-filtered sunglasses, solar-filtered binoculars and a filtered telescope.  It is also likely that some of my friends in the Atlanta Astronomy Club will join us and they can provide some fine solar telescopes and other special eclipse gear to share.

A FEW EXCELLENT ECLIPSE LINKS:  
The following Wikipedia article includes 4 "Gallery" video clips that show how the moon's shadow and its dark central "dot of totality" sweeps eastward across the US obscuring the sun. The "rightmost" of the 4 videos is my favorite.  Click it for an inspiring 1-minute-long animated NASA-produced overview of the eclipse: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_eclipse_of_August_21,_2017   

The following webpage features an amazing easy-to-use interactive map of the eclipse path across the US that lets you zoom in & out (in "road map or satellite view") and click to determine the exact time the various partial and/or total phases begin and end at any location in the US.  Subtract 16:00 to get Eastern Daylight "PM" times from the "Universal Times" that are given -"17:00, 18:00...etc."  For example, by zooming and clicking on Atlanta a table pops up that shows that the partial eclipse phases begin here at 17:05 UT and end at 20:01 UT.  Subtracting 16:00 from each UT time results in 1:05 PM EDT (when Atlantans can first notice a "missing chunk" of the sun ) and 4:01 PM EDT (when the entire disk of the sun is again visible in Atlanta).  Click here for that fine interactive Map: http://xjubier.free.fr/en/site_pages/solar_eclipses/TSE_2017_GoogleMapFull.html

Here's a fine "all-round" 2017 "National Eclipse" webpage. It contains lots of interesting facts & graphics about this and other eclipses - also features good-quality but inexpensive viewing gear you can order such as "sunoculars." http://nationaleclipse.com/

"The Lighthouse" is a fine restaurant & bar and special events center on the waterfront of Lake Keowee in SC's scenic "upcountry." Siituated directly on the "center line" of the Aug 21st eclipse it should be an ideal viewing spot, weather permitting.  With a panorama of the "yawning Blue Ridge" the palatial restaurant features an upstairs private dining room that I've already tentatively reserved for lunch on Aug 21st.  It also boasts a lakefront "cabana bar" with its own seafood delights and specialty drinks - also shady hiking trails and boating/swimming opportunities!  Here's their website  http://www.lighthousekeowee.com/ 

CINCO MEXICAN CANTINA near CUMBERLAND MALL in NW ATLANTA
Address:  2851 Akers Mill Rd, Atlanta, GA, ~1/2 mile east of Cumberland Mall.
Lat/Lon Coordinates to enter as optional GPS destination address: 33.8831,-84.4616
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