Eclipse

[Carborendum]

So, my family is going to see the eclipse this coming Monday.  We're just a few hours away from the path of Totality.  We're planning on heading out right near @Ironhold's stomping grounds.

We have no idea what the popularity will be.  But if it is the nearest spot for me, you can bet that most of the eclipse chasers (out of 4 million people in Houston) will want to go to the same location. 

Texas is fortunate since the duration of the total eclipse will be longer with a decrease in latitude.  We'll get nearly four minutes of the total eclipse.

With the roads clogged, we may have difficulty returning.  I hope we don't run out of gas.  Or we'll be the only idiots driving out in the middle of nowhere looking at an event for just a few minutes only to returrn home with a memory.  We can't really take pictures... can we?

But memories will be what makes and breaks this family.

[mikbone]

Hope you have clear skies.

Make sure you are in totality.  Close does not get it!

Bring binoculars - not a telescope.

Get to your viewing site early and don’t plan on going home till the following day.    

Have a viewing plan. Look for the corona & solar prominences, look for the stars and planets.  Big open spaces are better than in the city.  It’s great to watch the animal reactions.  Notice the temperature changing.

Looking directly at the sun for a second wont blind you permanently.  But it will totally ruin your eyesight for a couple minutes (the duration of totality).

Bring water and snacks / food.  Full tank of gas.  Toilet paper, baby wipes, shovel just in case.  Suntan lotion etc.

#14 Welding glass is the best to look at the sun prior to totality.

 

[Ironhold]

1 hour ago, Carborendum said:

So, my family is going to see the eclipse this coming Monday.  We're just a few hours away from the path of Totality.  We're planning on heading out right near @Ironhold's stomping grounds.

We have no idea what the popularity will be.  But if it is the nearest spot for me, you can bet that most of the eclipse chasers (out of 4 million people in Houston) will want to go to the same location. 

Texas is fortunate since the duration of the total eclipse will be longer with a decrease in latitude.  We'll get nearly four minutes of the total eclipse.

With the roads clogged, we may have difficulty returning.  I hope we don't run out of gas.  Or we'll be the only idiots driving out in the middle of nowhere looking at an event for just a few minutes only to returrn home with a memory.  We can't really take pictures... can we?

But memories will be what makes and breaks this family.

We're now at the point that some of the local churches and businesses are renting out space in their parking lots because all of the hotels - even the kinds of hotels where you rent rooms by the hour - filled up months ago. 

Supplies are running low in stores, and to add insult to injury the Copperas Cove area (Cove, Hood, Killeen, et cetra) is under water restriction due to a broken water service line; the line was fixed a few hours ago but the restriction hasn't been lifted yet. 

If you *are* coming up, get up here ASAP. Tomorrow or Friday will be your best bet provided that your reservation covers this period, otherwise you'll be stuck in traffic. 

I know that this weekend is also Conference, so this would allow you to watch Conference in the stake center in Killeen provided that the lot isn't full. 

[mikbone]

When I was in Oregon the Local LDS church had the parking lot chained off -  And the Bishop had missionaries on guard duty.  We were not invited.

Perhaps the Bishop had read the 10 virgin parable recently…

[Carborendum]

1 hour ago, Ironhold said:

We're now at the point that some of the local churches and businesses are renting out space in their parking lots because all of the hotels - even the kinds of hotels where you rent rooms by the hour - filled up months ago. 

Supplies are running low in stores, and to add insult to injury the Copperas Cove area (Cove, Hood, Killeen, et cetra) is under water restriction due to a broken water service line; the line was fixed a few hours ago but the restriction hasn't been lifted yet. 

If you *are* coming up, get up here ASAP. Tomorrow or Friday will be your best bet provided that your reservation covers this period, otherwise you'll be stuck in traffic. 

I know that this weekend is also Conference, so this would allow you to watch Conference in the stake center in Killeen provided that the lot isn't full. 

We don't live that far away.  We're just day-tripping it. We have no reservations.  We're planning on coming home later in the evening.  The total eclipse will be over by 1:40 or so.  Give it two or three hours to get people going and traffic to wane.  We'll be home by 10:00pm easy.

We'll have a bunch of munchables for food.  Boys won't have problems with bathrooms.  But we'll have three or four females with us.  It's more difficult for them.

And, yes, we will have buckets and shovels with plenty of water and an ice chest.  So, the worst thing that can happen is that we're going to view it on the side of a road between Killeen and Temple, instead of a parking lot or anywhere more convenient. Copperas Cove is about as dead center in the path of totality as you can get.  But if it is as tight as things seem to be, we might only get to Temple.

Our main concern is gasoline.  We are going to stop at College Station for a fill up.  Then we should have enough to get back to College Station on a single tank with plenty to spare for traffic jams.

[JohnsonJones]

13 hours ago, Ironhold said:

We're now at the point that some of the local churches and businesses are renting out space in their parking lots because all of the hotels - even the kinds of hotels where you rent rooms by the hour - filled up months ago. 

Supplies are running low in stores, and to add insult to injury the Copperas Cove area (Cove, Hood, Killeen, et cetra) is under water restriction due to a broken water service line; the line was fixed a few hours ago but the restriction hasn't been lifted yet. 

If you *are* coming up, get up here ASAP. Tomorrow or Friday will be your best bet provided that your reservation covers this period, otherwise you'll be stuck in traffic. 

I know that this weekend is also Conference, so this would allow you to watch Conference in the stake center in Killeen provided that the lot isn't full. 

Thanks.  I am heading out that way Tomorrow.  I am driving to Killeen with two of my sons.  We should be hitting Louisiana and that area on Saturday and hopefully Houston and the rest of the way after that.  Hopefully we don't run out of gas either, but we are hoping on staying in hotels along the way (have hotels already reserved in Killeen at least, as long as we make it).

If we do make it, seeing conference in the Stake Center could be nice. 

[NeuroTypical]

Pix or it didn't happen! 

 

My buddy in Seattle made it to the last one - he made it a big family camping trip somewhere in the mountains.  Got there 3 days early into a secluded meadow.  The day before, the population grew 10x and they named it "solar town".  The day of, the population grew 50x.  He also stayed another day or two and watched folks leave. 

 

Remember, the moon is a jealous deity.  Her sister the sun casts quite a long shadow, which falls dark upon the heart of the lesser moon.  Eon after eon the sisters have reigned, with the sun getting all the attention and praise.  When the moon has finally had enough, she might just stick herself in the way, blotting out the sun.  Perhaps this time she'll stay there, until she gains the adoration she believes should be shared equally with her sister.

 

Now the hour has come at last, the soft and fading light
Has crossed the west horizon and has bidden us goodnight
And what a lovely night it is to walk a moonlit field
To see the softer shades that are by starlight now revealed

So why is it that now when all is quiet and at rest
When candles glow and all the world is at its very best
The children of the earth should hide and lock themselves away
To shun the moon and wait instead for Sister's sunny day?

Am I so wrong to wish that they would see things like I do?
And am I so wrong to think that they might love me too?
Why shouldn't they adore me? Is it not within my right?
I'll not be overshadowed! Mine is not the lesser light!
I've waited long enough now for them all to come around
And though the Sun may plead and threaten, the Moon will stand her ground!

It comes to this at last I will no longer yield the sky.  If they can't love but one goddess alone...
See the moon is rising, she has come to claim the heavens for her own!

And all will know the wonder of my dark bejeweled sky,
When all the world is wrapped in an eternal lullaby.

So say goodnight to this, the final setting of the sun.
Tomorrow dawns in darkness!  The Nighttime has begun!  [evil laughter]

 

You get bonus points if you time your singing to shout "Begun!" at the exact second of totality.

Again, pix, or it didn't happen! 

[Ironhold]

OK. The pipe is fixed and the stricter water restrictions are over with, but things are still tight and could get tighter. 

Main thing right now is that my two brothers left us hanging on whether or not they'd be coming up, and yet mom is making us ready the house in case they do. 

[Ironhold]

20 hours ago, Carborendum said:

We don't live that far away.  We're just day-tripping it. We have no reservations.  We're planning on coming home later in the evening.  The total eclipse will be over by 1:40 or so.  Give it two or three hours to get people going and traffic to wane.  We'll be home by 10:00pm easy.

We'll have a bunch of munchables for food.  Boys won't have problems with bathrooms.  But we'll have three or four females with us.  It's more difficult for them.

And, yes, we will have buckets and shovels with plenty of water and an ice chest.  So, the worst thing that can happen is that we're going to view it on the side of a road between Killeen and Temple, instead of a parking lot or anywhere more convenient. Copperas Cove is about as dead center in the path of totality as you can get.  But if it is as tight as things seem to be, we might only get to Temple.

Our main concern is gasoline.  We are going to stop at College Station for a fill up.  Then we should have enough to get back to College Station on a single tank with plenty to spare for traffic jams.

The "Central Texas Expressway" is the name for the service road that runs alongside US Highway 190 / I-14 as it goes from Killeen to Belton. There are a number of convenience stores and retail areas where you can pull into the parking lot, such as the Market Heights shopping center in Harker Heights, Texas. 

The main anchors for Market Heights are a Target, a Cinemark, a Barnes & Noble, and a Dick's Sporting Goods. There are also several places to eat while up there, including a Cracker Barrel. 

Note that while the bathrooms at Target are often in disrepair, you should be good in the other places if they have them. 

[mikbone]

Any updates?

[Vort]

Yes, indeed! It's wet and cloudy in Seattle.

[LDSGator]

4 minutes ago, Vort said:

Yes, indeed! It's wet and cloudy in Seattle.

From what I’ve heard, Seattle makes Gotham City look sunny. 

[NeuroTypical]

1 hour ago, mikbone said:

Any updates?

My hand looks weird.  

[NeuroTypical]

Also, folks in Florida be like:

[Traveler]

The wife and I went to visit our daughter and family in Indianapolis to experience the eclipse.  The last bit of it may still be going on but the totality is over.  It has been worth the trip.  My iPhone camera did not work well at all.  As long as just one point of the sun was exposed the amount of light was amazing and is most likely why iPhone camera will not work.  Totality is a little creepy.

I am impressed that in the search for extraterrestrial life there has not been another planet located with a moon large enough and in the right place  so that anyone can experience an eclipse anywhere except on this earth.   So I got to experience something quite rare in this universe.

 

The Traveler

[Traveler]

Thouth I would add - during the totality there was a red dot at the bottome of the eclipse.  I do not know what it was but I am assuming that it was a solar flair.

 

The Traveler

[Carborendum]

On 4/4/2024 at 12:45 PM, Ironhold said:

Market Heights shopping center in Harker Heights, Texas. 

18 hours ago, mikbone said:

Any updates?

14 hours ago, Traveler said:

there was a red dot at the bottome of the eclipse. 

• Travel there was not too bad.  Google rerouted us a couple of times to shorten our travel.  Instead of the predicted 2:30h trip, it was about 2:50.
• We stopped by the Target for a pit stop. 
  • The bathrooms were fine.
  • The parking lot was normal -- nowhere near full.  It was about what you'd expect on a Monday morning.
  • We went to a city park just south of the freeway from there.  The parking lot was nearly full.  But we managed to park two cars.  Plenty of room to layout and get a table.
• I got several shots at different stages.  And I got the perfect video of the totality.  I'll post when I'm at an appropriate interface.
  • The cloud cover was actually the perfect level for photography.
  • I happened to switch to video just as the last crescent was showing.  Then the totality.
• The red dot was, indeed a solar flare or sunspot.  There was a professional eclipse chaser at the park about 40 ft from our table. 
  • My 12 y.o. liked his scope setup and got curious. They traded contact info and now, this man ("Lloyd") is going to be a distance mentor for my son on the subject of astronomy.
• The trip home was horrendous.  We thought we'd miss rush hour.  But there were major accidents on every route home.  That delayed us long enough that we hit rush hour.  Then that slowed us down to get us home in 4 hours.  But that was soon enough to get my visiting BIL to the airport, just in the nick of time.

My wife had told me that the few minutes of totality would be like nighttime.  Not really.  It was like late twilight. But it was dark enough that the park's automatic lamps turned on.

I often wonder why there is a difference between seeing photos or video vs actually being there in person.  The actual event as a memory frozen in time is no different to me.  But the overall experience is different.  When we were there we had to deal with the clouds on again - off again behavior.  We were afraid that the 3 to 4 minutes of totality would be denied us.  But there was a happy medium that was better than we expected just as the totality occurred.  That slight layer of clouds made it perfect.  Then there were the interactions we had because "an event" was happening.  We simply wouldn't interact that way if it was just a photo or video.

Edited April 9 by Carborendum

[MrShorty]

Just got home this morning from my own eclipse trip to central Tx (hill country). Clouds cleared at just the right moment to capture this shot with my telescope.

 

I arrived a few days early, and left a few days later, so I never had to fight any traffic.

[Carborendum]

Pictures

[Carborendum]

 

 

[JohnsonJones]

I went, no idea how to load pictures onto the forum.  @MrShorty has a far better picture than anything I got, and @Carborendumhas great pictures as well. 

We delayed going back to Florida until the next day...that was a mistake.  We were just in time for storms to hit Texas and then Louisiana.  

Great Eclipse though.  We ate at the Cracker Barrel in Killeen. 

It was cloudy but still clear enough to see through the clouds to see the eclipse.  Perfect for it, actually, as it meant that my camera could actually catch the eclipse as it happened.  Then it cleared up right as the eclipse happened.  My phone camera only catches it as a bright spot since we had a clear sky for that part, so my camera could not do it justice. 

We laughed afterwards as then the clouds disappeared and then that afternoon the sky was blue and clear.  Took a picture of the surroundings during totality, but the picture makes it look much lighter than it actually was. 

Probably only full Eclipse I'll get to witness in my life, but it was worth the trip. 

[JohnsonJones]

Something else that I thought of when driving out to Texas, but which isn't about the eclipse itself. 

When I was younger Westerns were quite a big deal.  I realized as I entered Texas that there were a lot of lies in those Westerns.  They all look like Eastern California more than Texas, at least the part we were driving through.

It should be no surprise, seeing that East Texas is basically bordering a swamp state, nevertheless, it never really struck me before.  East Texas is extremely green and humid.  It looks nothing like the dry forest and areas of California.  Yet, in so many Westerns of my youth that's exactly what they tried to portray. 

[Ironhold]

1 hour ago, JohnsonJones said:

Something else that I thought of when driving out to Texas, but which isn't about the eclipse itself. 

When I was younger Westerns were quite a big deal.  I realized as I entered Texas that there were a lot of lies in those Westerns.  They all look like Eastern California more than Texas, at least the part we were driving through.

It should be no surprise, seeing that East Texas is basically bordering a swamp state, nevertheless, it never really struck me before.  East Texas is extremely green and humid.  It looks nothing like the dry forest and areas of California.  Yet, in so many Westerns of my youth that's exactly what they tried to portray. 

You have to go out to the western part of the state to get to the desert areas. 

Everything east of I-35 is going to be a mix of grass, trees, and marshes. Not only is that part of the state near the coast, it's also near a great many bodies of water. 

Once you start heading west of I-35, things slowly start drying out. By the time you get to the time zone boundary, it's going to be sand.