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February 26 1998 Eclipse Corona

Photo by Joe Cascella near the center line in Aruba.

1/4 sec exposure using 1250mm efl Meade ETX

with 35mm camera body and Kodak Gold 400 print film.

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Happy campers Joe Cascella and Jim Andreolo waiting for something to happen

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After the action.

Joe Cascella with his equipment weighted down against the constant wind. Note the filtered lenses on his telescope, binoculars and video camera. And note also the fine T-shirt he has on.

Countdown to Totality

the sequel, finale (for now)

by Joe Cascella

Two for two. Hawaii in 1991, now Aruba in 1998. I can't express how fortunate I feel to have been able to visit two wonderful vacation spots and stand in the shadow of the moon while there!

Aruba was a resounding success. And that's considering many glitches that came up during the trip. Not everything went as smoothly as hoped. But there is one thing that tips the scales far to the positive side. My family and I experienced totality, Debbie and I for the second time!

Lots of people have been asking me how the trip went. Most know I'm a "space cadet" and went on the trip specifically for the eclipse. So naturally they are most interested in how the eclipse was. But I try to resist getting excited as I tell them about it. Instead, I like to refer them to Debbie, or my daughters. Or my mom, who was able to come with us. Or Jim, a fellow S*T*A*R member who was there for his first eclipse. Or Marilyn and Bob, friends who have been wanting to go on this trip since they saw my photos from Hawaii in 1991. These folks had far less interest in the eclipse than I did. (Well, Jim's interest was actually pretty close to mine. But we'll include him because he was a "totality rookie"). Yet they all use words like UNBELIEVABLE, AWESOME, INCREDIBLE, and AMAZING. and they start getting excited as they describe the experience. Eyes widen, and smiles grow. This description, coming from people not as interested in the subject matter as I am, carries a lot more weight than anything I can say. And they all mention they hope to get a chance to see another one. Ahh, to witness the birth of "eclipse chasers"!

I've come to the conclusion that totality is addictive. It's rare to find someone who has experienced a total solar eclipse and had no desire to experience another. And I'm not talking just about professional and amateur astronomers. I met several "lay" people who have had the good fortune of experiencing totality several times. And they can't wait for the next one. They don't care where they have to travel to. I'm in big trouble! I thought Aruba would be enough to hold me over to 2017, the next time the Moon's shadow touches American soil. Not a chance. I'm already experiencing withdrawal symptoms. When you experience totality once, you WANT to experience it again. When you experience totality twice, you NEED more. It is far more addictive than I ever imagined. A vacation in Romania or Turkey in August 1999 is starting to look good, and perhaps required for the sake of my own mental well-being. And an Africa safari a few years later is sounding better and better. Perhaps all those wacky stories about some strange cosmic rays striking you during a solar eclipse are really true. How else can I explain this incredible desire to experience more?!

At our April 1 meeting, Jim Andreolo and I will share our stories and pictures with everyone on our trip to Aruba. My pictures were taken through three cameras. One was mounted on a Meade ETX (90 mm Maksutov) having a 1250 mm focal length (big image!). Another camera carried a 200 mm lens, while the third was a hand held automatic 35 mm. Jim's camera was mounted on a 90 mm Maksutov with a 500 mm focal length. I used 400 speed print film in each camera while Jim used 200 speed Ektachrome slide film. The combination of these four cameras side by side, with different image sizes, film types and speed, should provide some interesting results. My video of the eclipse was an unfortunate bust. A casualty of the excitement surrounding totality. But my other video camera was pointed as us and came out pretty good. (That's right, I had three cameras and two video cameras. Now do you believe me that this is a disease!?!). And the sound is terrific. Remember Phil Harrington's recording? This time we see the observers engulfed in darkness as we hear the crowd cheering. Cool! Hope to see you at the April 1st meeting -JC

STAR member Lee Baltin booked passage on the cruise ship FASCINATION that followed the path of totality east of Aruba. He sends these five photos that showed a time sequence of

menacing cloud cover just minutes before first contact, then clearing to allow

crescent image of the sun,

first diamond ring,

full corona, and

second diamond ring.

Photos were taken at latitude 12 deg 17.5N, longitude 69 deg 43.0W. The camera was hand held 35mm Pentax using 200 mm f4 lens, Kodak 200 Gold Print Film, 1/500 sec, exposed through a filter made of exposed and developed x-ray film.