In case you haven't already heard, that event is a total solar eclipse, one that people everywhere from Oregon to South Carolina will be able to view in all its celestial majesty.
As a tribute to this incredible astronomical event, the purpose of this post is to tell the grand narrative of the solar eclipse, from both a scientific and a cultural perspective. In it, you'll read about the following topics:
An accessible yet scientific explanation of the solar eclipse
An overview of the much anticipated “Great American Total Solar Eclipse”
Historically significant occurrences of solar eclipses
The different ways in which people have interpreted the solar eclipse over time
After reading our brief history of this fascinating astronomical phenomenon, you'll hopefully have a deeper appreciation of the beauty of the natural world. We also hope that you'll see that a scientific understanding of the natural world does not, as some opponents of science claim, decrease the level of wonder, awe, and mystery that you experience while witnessing one of its spectacular events. In fact, as you'll discover if you view the coming total solar eclipse through the lens of your new understanding, true knowledge increases the inherent beauty of the world exponentially.
An Explanation of the Eclipse from the General to the Particular
Before we dig into a more particularized explanation, let's have a look at the phenomenon known as an eclipse, a term that comes from the Greek ekleipein or “ to fail to appear.” The etymology of the word eclipse is of special interest here because its Greek root mirrors the early belief that whenever a heavenly body was ‘eclipsed,' it had actually disappeared.
In general terms, an eclipse is an astronomical phenomenon that happens when a heavenly body such as a moon, planet, or star is briefly obscured from view. An eclipse occurs under two different sets of circumstances. The first is when the obscured heavenly body moves into the shadow of another heavenly body. The second is when this second heavenly body moves into a position between the obscured body and the viewer.
As you can see from the definition, if humans could live on heavenly bodies other than earth, the number of possible eclipses is almost limitless. But since we remain earthbound (at least so far!), there are only two general types of eclipses we can see from our limited vantage – the lunar and the solar eclipses. What many people don't know is that lunar and solar eclipses always come in pairs, one following the other within about a two week period.
Beyond that, a simple internet search will help you learn more about lunar eclipses, but here we'll be discussing the solar variety exclusively. Now let's narrow our focus a bit on talk in a bit more detail about the in and outs of the solar eclipse.