Total eclipse brings US towns to a standstill
SALEM: A string of tail lights could be seen on the Interstate 5 in the direction of Salem, Oregon, before 5am on Monday, as people from all over the world rushed to the small city for a first glimpse of a once-ina-century total eclipse.
Car plates revealed that some drove from as far as New York, Pennsylvania, Texas and the Canadian state of Alberta to reach Salem which, if not for the rare phenomenon, would be little known to the world.
Patrons lined up at a Starbucks after travelling through the night to beat the traffic, which authorities warned could turn six-lane highways into a parking lot.
By 6am, parking lots around the Oregon state capital had been all but filled, as had the square in front of the building, with camp chairs and tripods.
Scores of people waited in line outside the capital for free solar eclipse glasses to be handed out as all stock had been depleted on the market all over the US days before the event.
The eclipse started a little past nine, with a dark arc slowly chipping away at the sun’s edges, prompting viewers to put on their glasses and peer towards the sky.
Ryan Jackson, the creative director of the Montreal Planetarium in Canada, had set up nearly 10 cameras pointing towards various directions in the sky, forming a circle which he said could help him capture the moment when the sky darkened.
“This is my first eclipse, and one of my biggest and most challenging tasks,” he said, adding that he drove more than 20 hours for the occasion.
Coming from further away were the Maletzs, a retired couple from Dresden, Germany. Michael, the husband, said he has long been an eclipse fan, but it was only in 1999 that he had a chance to see his first in Germany.
“But this time will be my first total eclipse,” the 64-yearold said.
As time wore on, the sky darkened. By 10am, the dark sphere of the moon had covered about four-fifths of the sun, edging toward the climax.
A total eclipse is not a rare occurrence, appearing on Earth about every 18 months, but a total eclipse that stretches from coast to coast in the US is rarer, with the last one taking place nearly a century ago and the next one scheduled for 2045.
A band of shadow, 110km wide, would blindfold the US from Oregon on the West coast to South Carolina on the East coast, crossing 14 states.
The US media reported that 12 million people lived in the path of the total eclipse, while 200 million within a day’s driving distance from the band.
Some experts predicted the eclipse would be the most watched in history.
At precisely 10.17am local time, darkness engulfed the sun and night fell on the cheering crowd. Indian tribes performed dances to the moon and the sun, celebrating life, while others embraced and kissed, some even cried.
Street lamps came back on and stars twinkled from the sky. But before long light began to reappear from behind the moon, first as a diamond ring, then an arc of white light.
The total eclipse in Salem would last only a minute and 54 seconds, but as the moon’s relative speed with the Earth slowed, regions in the central States would have longer eclipses, as long as two minutes and 40 seconds in some places in Illinois and Kentucky.
Moving at a speed of thousands of kilometres per hour, it would take about 90 minutes for the total eclipse to pass through its course in the US and move into the Atlantic Ocean.
As the shadow moved across the country, tens of thousands of people stood still and watched the sky.
US President Donald Trump appeared on the White House balcony with his family.
According to media reports, the distraction caused by the eclipse woud cost US companies $700 million (R9.2 billion).
However, other analysts argued that with all the tourism and consumption, the economy had benefited from the event. – Xinhua