#2 and
still counting!!!! Ever
since my first Total Solar Eclipse in Joensuu, Finland July 22nd 1990
was clouded out, I promised myself that I would keep on chasing Total Solar
Eclipses until I finally got to see one during clear skies.
I did a fair amount preparation and planning for this event. Originally my girlfriend and I where thinking about joining Deep Sky Exploration on their eclipse expedition to Austria. They where going to travel by bus and the whole trip was supposed to take approximately 14 days including visits to astronomy related sites on the route. At first it sounded very convenient to travel by bus. You could just put your equipment on the bus and leave it there throughout the trip. I also new from earlier expeditions that DSE is very skilled at arranging expeditions. Nevertheless we decided to join Stavanger Astronomiske Forening on their trip to Balatonfured, Hungary. The reason for this is that we found the combination of only a weeks stay together with the convenience of traveling by plane very appealing. In addition the weather prospects for the Balaton area was relatively promising and both Budapest and Balatonfured were quite interesting places to visit.
As part of the preparations I tried to read and absorb almost all the information I could come over. My main source was the excellent NASA Reference Publication 1398 published by Mr. Fred Espenak. I also read several books which I all found very useful in their own different way:
Information found on the
WEB together with the books provided me with
lots of information and input on what to expect and what to do. Especially most
of them pointed out the importance of being prepared and plan and train for the
event. Another thing they all stressed was to plan for time to actually view the
event.
Based on this information I started to acquire what I felt
was the necessary equipment based on my ambitions. I also made a checklist
for all equipment I needed. The reason for doing this was to ensure that I
brought all necessary equipment needed for the eclipse. I also used the checklist
to ensure that I remember to get everything back with me to Norway.
I also left a copy of the checklist at home so that in case of anything
got damaged or lost during travel I would have no problems listing the items for
my insurance company.
My equipment consisted mainly of a Meade ETX-90 mounted on a Meade Deluxe Field Tripod with an Olympus OM-1 camera and an Olympus OM-10 using an Olympus Zuiko 300mm lens mounted on a video tripod. Both cameras where equipped with a Motor Winder which were controlled from one single remote control. In addition I brought a GPS to get excact timing and position and an Olympus Pearlcorder to record my exposure data together with my audible reactions.
I then started testing and practicing using the equipment. And based on this I come up with a detailed plan on how to photograph/observe the event. I decided to have 4 viewing phases and 3 photographing phases. All three photo phases would be concentrated around totality with first phase taking pictures of Baily’s Beads and Diamond Ring, the second phase would be of totality and the third phase of Diamond Ring and Baily’s Beads again. Before, in-between and after these phases I would observe visually.
Early Saturday morning the 7th of August we left for the Oslo Airport. At the airport we met many of our friends from Oslo who where joining us on this trip to Hungary. The plane left on time and took us to Copenhagen, Denmark, where we teamed up with the participants from Stavanger. From there the trip continued to Budapest, Hungary where we switched to a bus which took us to Balatonfured. When we arrived in Balatonfured we checked in at Hotel Fured. The hotel was residing next to Lake Balaton and had it's own beach. After unpacking our belongings we went for a short swim in the hot water (approx. 27º C). After about 10 minutes it got very windy and started raining. We picked up our towels and ran inside to prevent getting wet :-). Later that evening the whole party had dinner at the hotel.
The next day the weather had improved and we went out for sightseeing. Outside the hotel we where met by a long line of people just wearing swimsuits. We where wondering if it was traditional clothing to just wear a swimsuit in these parts of Hungary, but it turned out to be a big swimming contest that day. Several thousand people where lined up in order to swim across from the Marina, close by the hotel to Tihany. A famous Hungarian person had done this many years ago and turned it into a tradition for people to show their fitness. We decided to show our fitness by getting some food and beer. In the evening we brought our telescopes to the hotel beach. We where hoping to maybe observe some southern object not visible from Norway. Unfortunately the conditions was less than favorable because of high temperature and humidity. This combined with local light pollution made quite poor transmission. We ended up just sitting outside talking, enjoying the warm summer night and Hungarian beer.
The following day went as the previous. The temperature was even higher. With 35ºC in the air and about 28º C in the water we focused on doing as little as possible.
On the 10th of August the weather changed. A cold front moved in and for the first time we could see the shore on the other side of Lake Balaton clearly. This night the transmission was great, but most of us decided to go to bed early to be relaxed for the next day.
The big day! At 04:00 UT I didn’t wake up to the rain, but was actually woken by the rain. I was very depressed by the weather and didn’t bother to wake up my girlfriend who was still sleeping. Despite the bad weather I started to prepare my equipment. After one hour, around 05:00 UT my girlfriend also woke up. It had now stopped raining and the clouds looked a little lighter. Another half-hour later I could see some clear sky in west. Maybe there was still hope. I went down for quick breakfast and when I had finished eating almost all of the clouds had disappeared. I went up to my hotel-room and picked up some of the gear and told my girlfriend to join me on the hotel-beach, with the remaining gear when she was ready. On the beach I met with some of the other people from our group and together we rented some 10-15 sun-beds which we used to ‘claim land’ on the spot we had picked out the night before. Another hour later my girlfriend joined me on the beach with the rest of the equipment. The sun was now shining from a cloudless sky as I set up the equipment. One hour before first contact I have everything set up and ready. As first contact approaches some high thin clouds move in.
First contact occurs precisely at 09:29:10 UT. During the
partial phase the thin clouds starts moving in front of the sun and we are very
worried about how this will affect our view of the totality. About 15 minutes
before totality we are starting to notice that it’s getting darker and that
everything around us is rendered in a strange light. As we approach totality it
feels like everything changing more and more rapidly. 8-10 minutes before
totality I notices that the birds start acting strange, they seem worried.
Approximately 2 minutes and 30 seconds before second contact I suddenly become
aware of a bright light down at 7 o’clock from the sun, it’s Venus. About 25
seconds before second contact I remove the solar filters in front of both the
Meade ETX and the telephoto lens. 14 seconds before totality I start on first
phase of photographing the eclipse by taking pictures of Baily’s Beads and
Diamond Ring. I get so overwhelmed by the view that I loose track of time and
the number of pictures taken. At
10:48:47 UT totality starts and I can see protuberances around almost the whole
solar disc. Prominences can bee seen at 3-4, 6, 8-9 and 11 o’clock. The first
one mentioned has actually let go of the solar disc and can be seen floating in
space. I take a quick look using an 8x22 binocular and there the prominences are
even more impressive. The corona is very beautiful with lot of details. It’s
quite symmetrical around the sun and can despite the thin cloud layer, be seen
stretching out at least one solar diameter in all directions. After having
enjoyed this magnificent view for a while I move to the second phase of my
photographing plan, which is taking pictures of the totality. At the end of
phase to I decide to take 2 additional pictures, which I hadn’t planned for.
This turned out to be very dumb, because it didn’t leave time for a second period of visual observation and also made me start my third
photographing phase a little late. Third phase was to once again photograph the
Diamond Ring and Baily’s Beads using a little longer exposure time. I kept on
shooting pictures on the third phase until I run out of film and last picture I
took was 16 seconds after third contact, which occurred at 10:51:09 UT. After
this I was so excited that I almost forgot to put back the solar filters on the
telescope and the telephoto lens. I try to look for the shadow and shadow bands,
but fail to see the phenomena. After celebrating the success with
champagne I follow the reminder of the partial phase through the ETX. I also
looked and photographed crescent images of the partially eclipse caused by small
pinholes between the leaves of nearby trees.
I have to admit that the partial phase between third and forth contact feels like an anticlimax after the intense totality. The rest of the day I’m just a big smile.
In the evening we celebrated the success with a dinner together at the hotel. The next day we head back to Budapest where we are going to stay for the rest of the trip. Budapest is a beautiful city. We manage to do a lot of sightseeing in two days (including visiting the Budapest Planetarium) before we travel home on the 14th of August.
So how was the photographic results? I'm quite pleased with the result. The pictures through the ETX turned out a little soft. This is a problem I was aware of as a result of my testing at home and I'm not sure if this is caused by vibrations, me not being able to focus 100% or some other aspect. These problems were my main reason for bringing and operating another camera simultaneously. With a 300mm focal length I should be able to get some results to bring home with me. My biggest mistake was to break one of the golden rules I was warned about through the literature. After testing with Kodak Color Gold film I made a last minute decision to use Fuji Superia instead. The reason for this was that I had great success using this film to photograph Noctilucent Clouds only a couple of weeks before. I thought the pictures had excellent color saturation and thought it would work great for the eclipse. Big mistake! The protuberances turned out purple instead of red. Only some processing on the computer somewhat saved the results. You can have a look at the results and judge for yourselves. Hopefully I will learn from my mistakes. :-)
As noted in the beginning, I promised myself that I would keep on chasing Total Solar Eclipses until I finally got to see one during clear skies. I also knew that most likely, after actually seeing one, I would get hooked on chasing Total Solar Eclipses. Now I know that the latter is true, and I have already started planning for the next one. See you all June 21st 2001!
Our Hotel, Hotel Fùred at the shore of Lake Balaton. |
Mikkel Steine (left) and me (right) trying to do some nightly observations also. Pay close attention to Mikkel's excellent footwork!! |
Me in front of a local eclipse poster |
E-day. Woke up to heavy rain!!! This picture is taken to the west. |
Setting up our equipment on the hotel beach. As you can see we where among the first to arrive. It has also stopped raining and the skies are blue. |
It's starting to get a little bit more crowded as the eclipse closes in. |
My main instrumentation. To the left you see an Olympus OM-10 with a Zuiko 300mm f/4,5 lens on a video tripod. Right is an Olympus OM-1 camera attached to a Meade ETX90 on a Meade Deluxe Field Tripod. Both cameras where equipped with Motor Winders which where operated by a single remote control. An Olympus Pearlcorder and a GPS is attached to the 'north' leg of the ETX mount. |
My girlfriend, Barbara is watching the moon as it covers some sunspots. |
Kåre Dobloug (left) is watching the partial phase while Robert Gibala (right) gives him some advice. |
As totality approaches some thin cirrus clouds moves in. I might look relaxed on the picture, but nothing could be further from the truth. |
This photograph is to the south-east and shows the moons shadow as it travels acrosse Lake Balaton after third contact. |
Same as previous photograph, but this is taken to the south against Tihany. |
Watching the partial phase after the totality using the 'pinhole' effect created by leafs. |
Barbara posing together with the images of the eclipsed sun created by small leafholes. |
MIB's. Men (and Women) In Black celebrating the success during dinner. |
Team Oslo gathered at the beach the day after the big E-day. Back row from left: Gitte Rydberg, Tore Engen, Ole-Bjørn Fogth, Stig Foss, Mikkel Steine, me, Arild Moland (with Tarjei) and Lene Moland. Front row, also from left: Kåre Dobloug, Barbara Kajl and Robert Gibala. |
A sun dial on the wall of the Budapest planetarium. |
Me in front of the entrance to the Budapest planetarium. |
The projector in Budapest planetarium. |
Created 28. May 2000
