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Plans for the Great American Eclispe, Aug 21, 2017


jburns

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3 hours ago, StormyClearweather said:

Words really don't do it justice. And the way the clouds just disappeared as totality grew closer was pretty spectacular too. :thumbsup:

Bingo.  I was getting nervous at the CU but it was as you said and other mets predicted.  The clouds subsided and literally just fell apart as totality approached. 

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2 hours ago, flair_2000 said:

Thanks franklin NCwx.  I have been camped out in Sapphire since Thursday.  Saw the clouds pop out of nowhere this morning and they kept building in.  Saw your post and the wife and I hightailed it to Franklin and got there with about 5 minutes to spare prior to totality, with the cloud bank just behind us.  Got to experience that moment and I'll never forget it.  On the way back, it was raining from Highlands all the way to Sapphire, and foggy to boot.  Thanks again!!!!

Awesome!  Glad you got to see it. The darkness was really cool.

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It's been said but that was the most amazing thing I've ever seen. Had one cloud towards the start of the partial phases then they just fell apart. My thermometer dropped from 93.5 to 81.9 in Clarkesville, GA and it felt every bit of it. Just an amazing experience.

Sent from my SM-G930R7 using Tapatalk

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METAR KGSP 211753Z VRB03KT 9SM CLR 32/20 A3020 RMK AO2 SLP211 T03170200 10328 20239 58009

METAR KGSP 211853Z 16004KT 8SM CLR 28/22 A3017 RMK AO2 SLP204 T02830217

METAR KGSP 211953Z 16005KT 9SM CLR 32/20 A3016 RMK AO2 SLP199 T03220200

They had a 6F temp drop at least according to the hourly obs.

 

 

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Laurens County Airport Clinton SC

Around 50 of us had it all to ourselves at the park off the back side of the runway

One of the most awesome visual experiences you will ever witness in your life

EyvL59n.jpg

Did anyone else see the NASA High Altitude Research jet race across the sky with the contrail just moments before totality?

BpIkzeA.jpg

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Headed toward Clemson this morning via the Foothills Parkway; zero problems with traffic.  Ended up stopping at a non-crowded boat ramp and picnic area at the Keowee River.  Wife and I enjoyed an awesome view of the eclipse from the shores of the lake.  The frogs and ducks started sounding off during totality and very pleasant drop in temperature; truly spectacular; will never forget it.

IMG_2261.JPG

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I just got back from an amazing trip to Saint Matthews, SC.  Thanks for the hospitality Michelle. The eclipse was everything it was hyped to be and more. Others have described the solar effects very well so I will talk a bit about the other things that were happening. We all actually saw the snake bands or shadow bands moving across the ground just before totality. Avdave got a video of them that I hope he will upload at some point.

It was perfectly clear above us but around the horizon were clouds of various shades and type. As totality began the clouds lit up with various pinks and yellows along the horizon all around us. It really was a 360º sunrise.  Throughout the two and a half minutes of totality, the clouds shimmered and glowed. Venus appeared and glowed brightly as it often does in the evening sky.  

The difference between 99% and totality is mind-blowing. It was an interesting event up to the point of totality and then, in an instant, it became the most amazing natural occurrence I have ever seen. I'm so glad I went and urge anyone who can when the next one occurs in 2024 to make the trip.  You will not regret it. If I'm still above ground, I'll meet you there.

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Just now, jburns said:

I just got back from an amazing trip to Saint Matthews, SC.  Thanks for the hospitality Michelle. The eclipse was everything it was hyped to be and more. Others have described the solar effects very well so I will talk a bit about the other things that were happening. We all actually saw the snake bands or shadow bands moving across the ground just before totality. Avdave got a video of them that I hope he will upload at some point.

I was perfectly clear above us but around the horizon were clouds of various shades and type. As totality began the clouds lit up with various pinks and yellows along the horizon all around us. It really was a 360º sunrise.  Throughout the two and a half minutes of totality, the clouds shimmered and glowed. Venus appeared and glowed brightly as it often does in the evening sky.  

The difference between 99% and totality is mind-blowing. It was an interesting event up to the point of totality and then, in an instant, it became the most amazing natural occurrence I have ever seen. I'm so glad I went and urge anyone who can when the next one occurs in 2024 to make the trip.  You will not regret it. If I'm still above ground, I'll meet you there.

Glad you guys didn't have to deal with clouds!  I'm psyched for 2024, it's a short drive for me!

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I ended up on Pawley's Island, SC and, as many have already described, it was an incredible experience on so many levels. Seeing the first bit of moon covering the sun around 1:20 pm. Feeling the temperature drop. Witnessing the sun's corona during totality. Watching the lighting slowly dim -- from a normal summer beach day, to an eerie lighting that could only be described as unnatural (as if on a Hollywood movie set), to a sky that appeared to be late twilight with a faint sunset in all directions. Enjoying the moment with a festive crowd, everyone taking it all in.

The below two pics come closest to capturing what it was like near totality (my gf took these and I am so glad she did, because I was too busy geeking out)

eclipse1.jpg.73f244bc887c216ffc135deb28d6012b.jpg

eclipse2.thumb.jpeg.4f576219e814bf4049cfe763aed8ffea.jpeg

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9 hours ago, calculus1 said:

That may just be the most spectacular thing I have ever seen.

Made a last minute move a few miles down the road to a large field to avoid cloud cover. Saw the 10 min before and 5 min after in perfectly clear sky with my family and prob another 200 people in that field. The diamond ring on the back side was beautiful! The temperature drop and darkness were incredible. I could see a sunset on opposite horizons. Wow!

God is an amazing Creator. The sun is 400x larger than the moon, and yet it is also 400x farther away to allow a perfect eclipse experience from a viewer on Earth. That does not happen by random chance.

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The moon is actually slowly moving away from the earth.  Thus it was easier to cover the sun in the past, and in the distant future, as the sun grows in size and the moon goes further out, total eclipses will become a thing of the past.  We are just in a very awesome time in space to be lucky enough to observe it in totality.  All very explainable :) my wife's an amateur photographer and was able to get a few good pics along with a diamond ring pic.  This is probably my favorite though

IMG_0348.PNG

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From Baton Rouge I flew to Atlanta and stayed with my sister in Buford.  The drive up I-85 at 5:45 am was a lot smoother than we anticipated.  We watched the eclipse in Simpsonville.  From a weather perspective, we had a very decent cu field that showed some slight towering giving some concern.  The eclipse began at 1:03.  By 1:30 the cu was definitely dissipating such as you would find with a setting sun.  By eclipse time there was hardly a cloud above us.  Did note a storm well to our north over the mountains as was expected.  Definite temperature drop.  By 4:00 as the eclipse ended the cu field began to grow again.  When we left around 5:00 we even had a light show develop to our west.  Very fortunate to have to travel so far and get a spectacular view.  While I have not watched TWC in years, the place where we stayed had it on.  I have to say TWC did a great job with their reports.  Some of the mets had tears in their eyes.  Unfortunate Cantore had a cloud obscure the eclipse during totality.  He said it was a buzz killer.  And the music at the local forecasts were all good rock songs about the sun.  Our phone took us back on the backroads of South Carolina and Georgia as I-85 was wall to wall and very slow.  

Now to plan the trip for April 8, 2024.  During the middle of tornado seasons and possible impacts from fronts.  

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9 hours ago, jburns said:

I just got back from an amazing trip to Saint Matthews, SC.  Thanks for the hospitality Michelle. The eclipse was everything it was hyped to be and more. Others have described the solar effects very well so I will talk a bit about the other things that were happening. We all actually saw the snake bands or shadow bands moving across the ground just before totality. Avdave got a video of them that I hope he will upload at some point.

It was perfectly clear above us but around the horizon were clouds of various shades and type. As totality began the clouds lit up with various pinks and yellows along the horizon all around us. It really was a 360º sunrise.  Throughout the two and a half minutes of totality, the clouds shimmered and glowed. Venus appeared and glowed brightly as it often does in the evening sky.  

The difference between 99% and totality is mind-blowing. It was an interesting event up to the point of totality and then, in an instant, it became the most amazing natural occurrence I have ever seen. I'm so glad I went and urge anyone who can when the next one occurs in 2024 to make the trip.  You will not regret it. If I'm still above ground, I'll meet you there.

It was great to meet your S.o. And everyone else! The totality was one of the best things I've experienced!!!! 

Btw, I pretty sure that the "glowing planes" I saw during the totality were the skydivers that had sparkler/streamers 

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With this being my first eclipse I wasn't completely sure how I'd feel.  I was certainly anxious once we were within 20 minutes of totality.  As the moon blocked out that final sliver of sun and you took your glasses off to see the corona glowing behind the moon was truly breathtaking.  We were lucky enough to have a clear view from our backyard in Forest Acres with friends and family and everyone let out a collective "Oh my GOD" as we took our glasses off.  It was unbelievable.  No other way to describe it.  

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WOW!! I think that is the only word I can come up with to describe the eclipse. It was awesome in St Matthews, SC. It was great to meet JBurns and Mrs JBurns too and Iso and his sig other. Thank you Chelle for hosting the get together. It was way beyond what I thought we would see.  Jaw dropping event. 100% versus 95% is literally night and day. Epic event for sure that I will never forget.

 

  I still have that scene in my head of it all starting. Dragon flies starting flying everywhere, butterflies, etc. The scene around the field was just amazing as we had some high Cu tops around us that lit up a fine glow. Otherwise we had a perfect sky in central SC. Finally the portals did something good for once LOL

Jburns, here is the video of the Snake Bands/Shadow bands as the eclipse started. Glad I got a small video if it happening. If it doesnt work, send me your email and I will email it to you and you can edit it around to make it work.  EDIT: I cant attach it as it is over the allowed 1.95MB allowed.  Any ideas?

 

 

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28 minutes ago, Avdave said:

WOW!! I think that is the only word I can come up with to describe the eclipse. It was awesome in St Matthews, SC. It was great to meet JBurns and Mrs JBurns too and Iso and his sig other. Thank you Chelle for hosting the get together. It was way beyond what I thought we would see.  Jaw dropping event. 100% versus 95% is literally night and day. Epic event for sure that I will never forget.

 

  I still have that scene in my head of it all starting. Dragon flies starting flying everywhere, butterflies, etc. The scene around the field was just amazing as we had some high Cu tops around us that lit up a fine glow. Otherwise we had a perfect sky in central SC. Finally the portals did something good for once LOL

Jburns, here is the video of the Snake Bands/Shadow bands as the eclipse started. Glad I got a small video if it happening. If it doesnt work, send me your email and I will email it to you and you can edit it around to make it work.  EDIT: I cant attach it as it is over the allowed 1.95MB allowed.  Any ideas?

 

 

 

I'm glad it worked out in Columbia with mainly clear skies. Did you also notice the decrease in cu clouds as the partial stages set it?  I've never seen clouds behave the way they did yesterday.  

You can try to upload the video to YouTube then embed the video. 

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11 minutes ago, LithiaWx said:

 

I'm glad it worked out in Columbia with mainly clear skies. Did you also notice the decrease in cu clouds as the partial stages set it?  I've never seen clouds behave the way they did yesterday.  

You can try to upload the video to YouTube then embed the video. 

Thanks. Yeah we got lucky for sure. Totally worth the trip from Durham to see this. 

 

thanks for the you tube idea, I totally forgot I have an acct there so thats what I did :)

Here is the quick video of the shadow bands yesterday

https://youtu.be/Az31SHNsyzU

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2 hours ago, Avdave said:

 

Jburns, here is the video of the Snake Bands/Shadow bands as the eclipse started. Glad I got a small video if it happening. If it doesnt work, send me your email and I will email it to you and you can edit it around to make it work.  EDIT: I cant attach it as it is over the allowed 1.95MB allowed.  Any ideas?

 

 

3

I looked at it on Facebook. I'll be honest with you, it pretty much looks exactly like it looked in person. You probably could edit it to bring out the bands more but it would be less realistic.

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I came all the way from Maryland to see this, and it was just as Burns and Dave described. I've seen a lot of pictures of eclipses ever since I was a kid, but none of that compares to seeing the actual thing in real life, and experiencing all the rapid changes in the scenery that come along with it, especially in the last few minutes before totality. The weather also turned out to be much better than expected, and although there were some clouds building up early on, a lot of them died down as the eclipse progressed. Conditions were just about perfect.

Oh, and @buckeyefan1 was an amazing host. I'm so glad she brought us all together for this :)

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2 hours ago, jburns said:

I looked at it on Facebook. I'll be honest with you, it pretty much looks exactly like it looked in person. You probably could edit it to bring out the bands more but it would be less realistic.

True, I was hoping the bands would be darker some but then again it would look odd. Im glad you pointed that out yesterday.  That was pretty wild to see

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