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Solar Eclipse 2019 July 02
Although
this eclipse was a comparatively long one, as often happens, most of the track lay over
the water of the Pacific Ocean. Only towards the end did the moon's umbral
shadow touch land
passing over La Serena in north-central Chile, across the Andes and then into
Argentina. Totality on the centre-line on the coast of Chile was a
respectable 2m20s with the
duration diminishing rapidly eastwards. A bonus was that several large
professional observatories, including Cerro Tololo, Gemini South and La
Silla were on the track and it was exciting to contemplate sharing the
moon's umbral shadow with the "big boys". Our viewing
site was along a windy road to
the private observatory, Pangue, south of Vicuņa at an
elevation of 1500m in the foothills of the Andes, with Cerro Tololo and
Gemini South visible on
mountains not too far away. Pangue had two roll-off roof
observatories which housed telescopes up to 25"
in diameter.
July
is renowned for being a cloudy month in this part of the world, but the
weather was especially favourable providing clear blue skies, all day.
It
was a beautiful event shared, though the 2m17s of totality passed much more
quickly than desired. Nevertheless, it was a stunning light show and emotional experience enjoyed
in the mountains on the southern bounds of the Atacama
desert. A spectacle that left me and other eclipsers longing to have had more time to fully
savour the event. Chile left me with a desire to see more of this unusual and
diverse country. I will see Chile again, in December 2020, when the moon's
umbral shadow returns to the southern regions of the country. I enjoyed the
scenery and the birds.
Here
are some of my images.
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