In the days before the eclipse, both Alex Filippenko and Jay Anderson mentioned they wanted clouds - preferably cumulus to add some drama to the eclipse. In retrospective, both commented they did not want as much drama as they got.
We awoke to broken clouds. Jay was not worried as he thought they would burn off. They did not. With precious minutes slipping away, we were sailing directly into a cloud. At the last minute, the Captain maneuvered the ship saving the day. However, it put the Sun for Alson and I behind a bulkhead.
Even so, the first minute or so of the eclipse occurred behind some thin clouds. The Diamond ring was visable, but not some of the coronal detail. Fortunately, the Captain got the ship into clear waters. Alson got back to his camera and got some detailed images he is combining now. I stayed with the video camera and got some wide-angle shots including a panorama. Here are some early processed versions. I need to get these home to tweak them.
The crew looks at the Total Solar Eclipse seconds before 3rd Contact
Panorama of the eclipse showing part of the 360 degree sunset
No comments:
Post a Comment