North America Experiences Total Solar Eclipse
The first total solar eclipse to happen in North America in seven years made landfall in Mexico on Monday. A rare total solar eclipse plunged the Pacific coast of Mexico into complete darkness at 11:07 am (1807 GMT).
The Mexican beachside resort town of Mazatlan was the first major viewing spot along the “path of totality” in North America.
Thousands of people gathered along the coastal promenade, setting themselves up in deck chairs with solar-safe eyewear as an orchestra played the “Star Wars” movie theme. The crowds burst into cheers and applause and the eclipse reached totality.
Observers along the direct path of the eclipse were being treated to the rare spectacle of the moon appearing as a dark orb creeping in front of the sun, briefly blocking out all but a brilliant halo of light, or corona, around, the sun’s outer edge.
The period of totality, lasting up to 4 1/2 minutes depending the observer’s location, was ushered in by a number of other eerie eclipse effects. A partial eclipse, in which the moon obscures only a portion of the sun, was unfolding across most of the continental United States.
At up to 4 minutes and 28 seconds, the total eclipse of 2024 surpasses the duration of the one that traversed the United States from coast to coast in 2017. That one clocked in at up to 2 minutes and 42 seconds.
According to NASA, total eclipses can last anywhere from 10 seconds to about 7-1/2 minutes.
Experts urge the use of protective solar glasses to prevent eye damage that would otherwise occur from starting directly at the sun. ‘‘Only during the few minutes of totality can the sun can be safely viewed without such eyewear,’’ they said.
Also Read: North America, US, Mexico To Witness Solar Eclipse Monday
Overcast skies are among an eclipse-chaser’s worst fears. The U.S. National Weather Service’s forecast as of Monday morning was for “a rapid untimely increase of clouds” in Southern Texas; less worrying “high thin clouds” for a swathe from Arkansas to the Midwest; and the clearest skies in northern New England.
It will take about 80 minutes from the moment the moon first begins to cover the sun to the moment of totality, then another 80 minutes to complete the process in reverse.
Eclipse veterans have described the 15 minutes before totality as foreboding, with shadows becoming oddly crisp and sunshine assuming an eerie quality. In the seconds before totality, a phenomenon called “shadow bands” may appear – shimmering shadows on the ground, like those seen on the bottom of a swimming pool.
Some stars will also appear in midday sky as dusk abruptly descends, sending temperatures dipping. Birds and other wildlife, reacting to the sudden darkness, often fall silent and still.
The last remaining bit of brilliant sunlight before totality creates a “diamond ring effect” in which a single bright spot appears along the lunar edge even as the sun’s corona leaves a ring of light around the moon.
Reuters
