Rare Solar Eclipse March 29, 2006
I have only seen one solar eclipse. It was either in the late 70s or early 80s; I was working on the 7th floor of an office building and it was an excellent view (not of the sun of course, because you can’t look at that directly) but of the planet below (granted, a very small piece of the planet). All of the street lights came on, everyone had to turn their headlights on – it was a slice of night in the middle of the day.
I can understand why cultures viewed eclipses as something very mysterious and as having great spiritual significance. After all, what could possibly block out the rays of the sun? What could it mean? And, human nature, being what it is, thought it had to be bad.
Today we know that it is merely the moon passing between the earth and the sun. But, a fragment of that primordial fear lingers. The eclipse is big news! It is a rare occurrance and just between you and me, it is kind of scary.
This is the site to go to – Take some time and read the information. See the photographs and watch the eclipse live. It really is quite amazing – which just goes to show, I am caught up in all of it just as much as anyone else. And besides, I love it when the government does something that doesn’t tick me off. Kudos to NASA for an awesome Web site on this eclipse!
To Watch The Webcast – Live From Turkey
Understand the time differences in the world or you could miss the whole thing!! It starts at 5:00am Eastern Standard Time, 2:00am Pacific Standard Time, March 29th. Here is a World Clock – bookmark it – you won’t need it just for the eclipse – with the Internet, this is a necessity!!
Some news about the eclipse lets us know that eclipses still have mystery surrounding them. A South African newspaper said, “One Indian paper advised pregnant women not to go outside during the eclipse to avoid having a blind baby or one with a cleft lip. Food cooked before the eclipse should be thrown out afterwards because it will be impure and those who are holding a knife or axe during the eclipse will cut themselves.” Another newspaper notes that half of the world will not be able to see the eclipse, but announced that NASA will webcast it for people on the Internet to watch.
The online Hindu Newspaper has some interesting facts about eclipses – “Nearly identical eclipses (total, annual, or partial) occur after 18 years and 11 days, or every 6,585.32 days (Saros Cycle)” – that was something I didn’t know.
Why Do People Pray During An Eclipse
NASA Eclipse Home Page – This site covers eclipses in general.
Solar Eclipse: Stories From the Path of Totality Where else can you read about the “Sun Eating Dragon,” and other stories that have evolved around eclipses?
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