Millions await ‘two minutes of astronomical awesomeness’
Across the USA, eyes are looking skyward
A swath of the U.S. from Oregon to South Carolina already was drawing crowds Sunday in anticipation of the nation’s first coast-to-coast total solar eclipse in almost a century.
But just about everyone will be an astronomer for about two minutes on Monday.
Millions of Americans are traveling to the “path of totality.” That’s where the moon will completely cover the sun, and it will first reach the USA in the area of Salem, Ore., and sweep through a myriad of cities and towns on its way to Charleston. Those peering at the sky from outside the golden path will see a partial eclipse as the moon covers a portion of the sun’s disk.
South Carolina was expecting as many as 2 million visitors to watch the eclipse. It’s the prime location for folks along the Eastern Seaboard, home to more than 100 million Americans. Charleston is the last big city that will see the total eclipse.
A flight Sunday from Washington to Charleston was packed with eclipse tourists. Chelsey Barrett of Greenbelt, Md., was traveling with a large family contingent. Because of the gloomy forecast, they decided to make the three-hour drive to Greenville for what they hoped would be a clear view.
Beach towns such as Edisto Beach, about an hour southwest of Charleston, were seeing a boom in business. A group of friends from Maryland rented a house there for the week just to watch the eclipse.
“When we learned of the solar eclipse, the middle-age nerds among us were giddy with excitement,” said Allison Leaver of Silver Spring, Md. “We couldn’t wait for a trip to the beach together and the joy of inflicting true experiential learning on our nine teenagers.
“They’re almost as thrilled as we are to be making the pilgrimage south for two minutes of total darkness,” Leaver said.
Jenny Kelley, also of Silver Spring, said: “It’s a long way to drive for two minutes of astronomical awesomeness.”
The mayor of McClellanville, a small town halfway between Charleston and Myrtle Beach, said residents weren’t sure what to make of all the hype, according to the The Post and Courier. “We’re all sort of in the dark about what to expect,” Mayor Rutledge Leland said, adding he hoped the 10 port-a-potties the town rented will suffice.
Weiser, Idaho, was celebrating its lofty status on the “path of totality” with an eclipse festival. Patrick Nauman, festival chairman, said he expected 60,000 visitors. He said he has met people from New York, Maryland and even France.
“It’s pretty awesome that they chose to come to Weiser,” Nauman said.
Bostonian Rob Mathis, 29, was spending a long weekend in Nashville with three friends. They were planning on watching the eclipse from the “Love and Unity Under One Sun” festival in North Nashville.
“The reason I wanted to be in a city is it’s not just me being excited,” Mathis said. “It’s everyone around me being excited.”
Nebraska was expecting more than 500,000 would-be astronomers from around the world for the solar extravaganza, the Omaha World-Herald reported. That’s a big number for a state with fewer than 2 million residents.
In Oregon, the Westernthemed town of Sisters had been excited about the eclipse. Located on the edge of the path of totality, Sisters residents expected to be packed with visitors over the weekend for the big event.
A wildfire put an end to that, shutting down nearby highways and prompting evacuations.
“A lot of people worked hard to get prepared for the eclipse, and a few days ago there was excitement in the air,” said Sisters resident Kristan Collins, watching the fire from the edge of town. “But now that’s turned to a little bit of soberness.”