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Travel the path of the solar eclipse

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Re: Travel the path of the solar eclipse

#61

Post by idlewords »

tzs wrote: post #55
idlewords wrote: post #45

Earlier quoted context omitted.

St. Louis is a good hub near the eclipse track. You can rent a cheap car and head right into the New Madrid Seismic Zone to watch the eclipse from scenic Chester, IL! http://www.idlewords.com/2015/07/confronting_new_madrid.htm

Will you be able to rent a cheap car, though? I'd expect that rental cars are going to be like hotels--greatly jacked up in price on rental periods that include the eclipse, if any are even still available.

Current weekly price around that date at STL is ~$231

Re: Travel the path of the solar eclipse

#62

Post by Bulkington »

tzs wrote: post #25

> Unfortunately for residents of Oregon’s historically cloudy coast, NOAA scientists have calculated the chances of a clear day at about 44 percent. ... > A few hours east, however, the odds increase dramatically. Because the Cascade Range creates a significant rain shadow across central and eastern Oregon, chances are high that the view will be unobstructed. How good are the short term forecasts for Oregon? If the d…

I am truly bewildered. Was in Madras a couple of months ago, and all the talk of eclipse was, I thought then, preposterous. Now Portland businesses are making contingency plans for employees. Have friends in Charleston, SC, with 1.5 minutes of full coverage, and it's just an excuse to drink a little more, a little earlier.

Is this a social media/regional/generational thing? Do people really think they need to be on the 100% line for some reason? Do people think they won't live to see the next one in 2024?

Yes, it's an unusual event, and creepy if you're a caveman. Otherwise, this strikes me as Chamber of Commerce hype cashing in on Facebook vanity. Seriously, I don't get it.

1: "Then you flew your Learjet up to Nova Scotia to see the total eclipse of the sun." https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/You%27re_So_Vain

2: Rooftop party: https://youtu.be/kkKJ3NJl8sM

Re: Travel the path of the solar eclipse

#63

Post by my_first_acct »

repiret wrote: post #32
tzs wrote: post #25

> Unfortunately for residents of Oregon’s historically cloudy coast, NOAA scientists have calculated the chances of a clear day at about 44 percent. ... > A few hours east, however, the odds increase dramatically. Because the Cascade Range creates a significant rain shadow across central and eastern Oregon, chances are high that the view will be unobstructed. How good are the short term forecasts for Oregon? If the d…

In Eastern Oregon, summer weather is either clear or thunderstorms; thunderstorms develop in the afternoon, while the eclipse is in the morning. You're exceptionally likely to get a clear day East of the Cascades. I leave in rural Eastern Oregon. The population here is expected to swell by a factor of 5-10x during the eclipse, and this is expected to overwhelm local services. If you're headed to rural Oregon -- or pr…

In 2016, Madras went so far as to hire an event planner to organize the logistics [1]. The town has a web site with pointers to camp sites, RV parking, and day parking. (Sure, you can probably just pull off onto the side of the road, stop your car, and watch the eclipse for free, but if you want/need to be near, say, a porta-potty, this info might be useful).

[1] http://www.opb.org/news/article/solar-eclipse-madras-oregon-...

[2] http://madraseclipse.com/

Re: Travel the path of the solar eclipse

#64

Post by tspike »

Bulkington wrote: post #62
tzs wrote: post #25

> Unfortunately for residents of Oregon’s historically cloudy coast, NOAA scientists have calculated the chances of a clear day at about 44 percent. ... > A few hours east, however, the odds increase dramatically. Because the Cascade Range creates a significant rain shadow across central and eastern Oregon, chances are high that the view will be unobstructed. How good are the short term forecasts for Oregon? If the d…

I am truly bewildered. Was in Madras a couple of months ago, and all the talk of eclipse was, I thought then, preposterous. Now Portland businesses are making contingency plans for employees. Have friends in Charleston, SC, with 1.5 minutes of full coverage, and it's just an excuse to drink a little more, a little earlier. Is this a social media/regional/generational thing? Do people really think they need to be on t…

Totality is a completely different experience from a 99% eclipse. We are uniquely situated within the solar system in that the relative distances and sizes of the moon and sun mean they're nearly identical in size to us.

With a 99% coverage event, it is still daytime. You still need glasses to look at the sun. Animals continue behaving as normal.

With a total eclipse, day turns to night. Animals alter their behavior patterns. As the totality event begins, the corona casts flickering shadows over the ground. You can look at the sun directly with your naked eye, and observe nuclear fusion directly. On average, any given location on Earth sees a total eclipse once every 375 years, which, while astonishingly common relative to other locations in the solar system, is still extremely rare for a human lifespan.

It is equally bewildering to me that someone would not care about the opportunity to witness such an event.

Re: Travel the path of the solar eclipse

#65

Post by tspike »

LeifCarrotson wrote: post #36
dboreham wrote: post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Beware that a million other people may have the same idea.

For better or for worse, I suspect that while a significant percentage of HN readership may be planning to travel to see the eclipse, a far smaller percentage (certainly not 1/3 of Seattle) of the general population is going.

Oregon Dept of Transportation (ODOT) is expecting the single largest traffic event in Oregon history. Over one million people are expected to travel to the path of totality within the state.

Re: Travel the path of the solar eclipse

#66

Post by learc83 »

Kuberkibo wrote: post #58
euroclydon wrote: post #15

I love North America! I feel privileged to live here and have access to the Interstate System to travel across such varied topology.

The governments of the countries built them. Engineering solved the issues of building roads over varied terrain efficiently. You should give back instead of just "feeling privileged".

What was the purpose of this comment? Since when does "feeling privilaged" imply not "giving back"?

Re: Travel the path of the solar eclipse

#68

Post by manyxcxi »

Diederich wrote: post #39
repiret wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In Eastern Oregon, summer weather is either clear or thunderstorms; thunderstorms develop in the afternoon, while the eclipse is in the morning. You're exceptionally likely to get a clear day East of the Cascades. I leave in rural Eastern Oregon. The population here is expected to swell by a factor of 5-10x during the eclipse, and this is expected to overwhelm local services. If you're headed to rural Oregon -- or pr…

We reserved an RV back in October with the intent of seeing the eclipse somewhere in your neck of the woods. We're picking it up a full 3 days ahead of time. We're going to overnight around Shasta, and arrive almost two full days before the eclipse. We will be 100% self sufficient in the RV. That's the plan at least. (: Here are some questions: how appropriate is it for us to park in 'some random place' for a couple…

Just a warning (in case you haven't been made readily aware a thousand times already)... The local agencies (I live in SW Portland area) are basically telling the residents to treat this like a huge natural disaster.

If you were coming from Shasta to the Madras area (or just central OR in general) you'd likely be going I-5 to 97 (or further north 20/22) and they can get jammed up pretty good just on a Labor Day weekend.

Do yourself a solid and make sure you get that RV stocked and fueled to the brim before you hit the road. Expect it to be worse than the fearmongers on TV say, then be pleasantly surprised when you don't have much to worry about is the angle I'd take.

Re: Travel the path of the solar eclipse

#69

Post by tzs »

my_first_acct wrote: post #63
repiret wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In Eastern Oregon, summer weather is either clear or thunderstorms; thunderstorms develop in the afternoon, while the eclipse is in the morning. You're exceptionally likely to get a clear day East of the Cascades. I leave in rural Eastern Oregon. The population here is expected to swell by a factor of 5-10x during the eclipse, and this is expected to overwhelm local services. If you're headed to rural Oregon -- or pr…

In 2016, Madras went so far as to hire an event planner to organize the logistics [1]. The town has a web site with pointers to camp sites, RV parking, and day parking. (Sure, you can probably just pull off onto the side of the road, stop your car, and watch the eclipse for free, but if you want/need to be near, say, a porta-potty, this info might be useful). [1] http://www.opb.org/news/article/solar-eclipse-madras-o…

> Sure, you can probably just pull off onto the side of the road, stop your car, and watch the eclipse for free, [...]

They say not to do that. From the FAQ at the Madras eclipse site:

> Can we park on the side of the highways & roadways?

> No. The Eclipse is occurring at the height of fire season in an agriculturally dominant landscape. Over-heated vehicles are of major concern. Pulling your vehicle off on to an area that is not designated for parking is not only dangerous for yourself and other drivers, but can also produce a fire.

Re: Travel the path of the solar eclipse

#70

Post by repiret »

vvanders wrote: post #54
repiret wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In Eastern Oregon, summer weather is either clear or thunderstorms; thunderstorms develop in the afternoon, while the eclipse is in the morning. You're exceptionally likely to get a clear day East of the Cascades. I leave in rural Eastern Oregon. The population here is expected to swell by a factor of 5-10x during the eclipse, and this is expected to overwhelm local services. If you're headed to rural Oregon -- or pr…

I can confirm that EMS/LE services will be very busy. I know some people in the local ham group there who are helping and it sounds like it's going to be pretty crazy.

One of the two air ambulance services that serves my area has already announced that they will cease service surrounding the eclipse in order to have more capacity near their home base.
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