Open-source interactive map for the Aug 12 total solar eclipse
112 points by MarcoDewey 10 hours ago | 26 comments

glimshe 9 hours ago
Very cool! Just remember the one truth about solar eclipses: total or nothing.

While I don't want to dismiss partial eclipses entirely, please don't think that partial eclipses are "almost the same" as total eclipses. One is a curiosity, the other is a memorable life event.

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teraflop 8 hours ago
Agreed, but I'll just add that annular eclipses occupy an intermediate point on that scale.

With a partial eclipse, shadows look odd and the sunlight "feels" noticeably dimmer and more muted, but if you're not paying attention you might not notice much out of the ordinary.

An annular eclipse is much more dramatic and unmistakable. It's not as striking as totality, and of course you can't directly observe it without eye protection, but the "ring of fire" is beautiful in its own way.

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monster_truck 7 hours ago
If you've ever needed an excuse to rent a sports car and drive for 4-8 hours, this is the one.
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spenrose 6 hours ago
Got caught in a day-long traffic jam leaving a rural area in North America after the 2017 total eclipse.
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tverbeure 31 minutes ago
It’s the one time I remember when the French highway toll booths said F that, let’s just open them up and let everyone pass. The August 11, 1999 solar eclipse.

The whole of Northern Europa driving back up, me included.

To bad it was cloudy, not sun to be see. I saw the 2017 one in Oregon though, it was scorching hot but no cloud to be seen.

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echelon 2 hours ago
Partial and annular solar eclipses are interesting.

Total solar eclipses are magical.

The sun turns into a gleaming jewel and all of nature around you enters another dimension. The animals freak out, the temperature of the air around you drops dramatically, your shadows morph and multiply into weird shapes, it feels like midnight with an ethereal glow.

You see the atmosphere of the sun glow in all chromatic glory.

You'll never witness anything else like it.

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folkrav 44 minutes ago
The drop in temperature was the most striking part for me. It wasn't just dark, it was night in the middle of the day for a couple of minutes.
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guillego 12 minutes ago
Obligatory reference https://xkcd.com/2914/
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alkyon 7 hours ago
In Spain it's a trio of consecutive eclipses from 2026 to 2028 (the last one annular). To view the second one I don't even need travel anywhere.

Will be in Saragossa on Wednesday and gonna use Canon binos with image stabilization, the partial phase with filter and then some precious seconds without (a scary moment, I'll rely on an alarm to prevent my eyes to get damaged when the totality is over). Some people generally advised to skip any instruments and just enjoy it with your own eyes for the first time, but I'm too curious about corona details to let this opportunity pass.

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frankensteins 7 hours ago
Very detailed site. It said open source. where is the source?
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dizzant 2 hours ago
A real treat for all the pilgrims on the Camino this year
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clbrmbr 6 hours ago
Whoah, so cool how the map shows the shadow of mountains at that late time in the day. Geneva and the Jura look awesome.
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tamimio 7 hours ago
I saw the one in Canada back in 2024, I don’t think I have ever witnessed such an amazing phenomenon like that before, a white glowing ring in the sky!! I will see if I can catch the 2027.
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ProllyInfamous 47 minutes ago
I brought binoculars to the 2024 event and made sure to keep my eyes closed during the preceding partial solar eclipse (eye acclimation).

After the total eclipse was over, I watched a single honeybee re-orient itself, having temporarily lost its heliocentric bearings (bees "see" the sun's polarity, which helps keep them oriented).

Having also witnessed the 2017 total eclipse, certainly these are memorable events worth traveling into their totalities (could not say the same for partial eclipses).

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mr1337 5 hours ago
I was able to catch the last solar eclipse in the US, and it was amazing. I'm a little sad I won't be able to catch this one, especially in Mallorca. Seeing the eclipse low in the sky, an hour before sunset. That has got to be a phenomenal view.

I think this tool is super neat. I love the shadow simulation for the terrain. Very well done!

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sneak 7 hours ago
I’ll be in Iceland this week to photograph it. Any other HNers going to be around?

I’m @sneak.07 on Signal, let’s meet up.

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torgoguys 3 hours ago
I'll be there! Hoping the forecast changes!
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gbear605 6 hours ago
Best of luck with the weather!
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a1o 9 hours ago
Awesome, people in Spain are lucky to see this!
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embedding-shape 7 hours ago
The sea is hitting record high temperatures, we're overrun by tourists and our country is on fire but at least we get like three eclipses in a row, so that's pretty cool :) Jokes aside, life's overall pretty great, and the eclipses are exciting!
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ajmurmann 9 hours ago
People in Iceland as well!
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MrDresden 7 hours ago
Heavy rain forcast on Wednesday, with sun the day before and after.

Hoping the weather forecast will shift (as often happens here)!

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nekusar 8 hours ago
In Hofn right now, taking the ring road.

We have a hotel in þingeyri on eclipse day. We're at 1min50s at our hotel.

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tom1337890 8 hours ago
Incredible page. Taking into account terrain and sunlight path. Wow
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orsenthil 9 hours ago
Such a sophisticated website with great details. Good luck on watching. I think, rest of folks in other parts of the word will be tuning in virtually.
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DerekAndJason 3 hours ago
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C0sm0Sheep 8 hours ago
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