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 (Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics) |
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 20100909
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MPE News of September 9, 2010 |
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Total Solar Eclipse in PatagoniaOn 11 July 2010, a total solar eclipse was to be seen on the southern hemisphere. The totality started in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, east of Australia and New Zealand, went on to touch some small atolls of the Tahiti region, crossed Easter Island and finally ended at the very south east of Patagonia, Argentina. An Eclipse hard to get to, but - if visible - one that promised to be most spectacular.Even if an eclipse is not part of the scientific work at the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics, it is an exciting astronomical event that fascinates our scientists. Here, Maria Fürmetz and Anita Winter, both members of MPE, give an account of their trip to El Calafate, Southern Argentina.
However, things were not as straightforward as we had hoped for: just before travelling to Buenos Aires we were notified that the charter flight was canceled due to technical problems. With this news our chances of seeing the eclipse went from almost 100% down to practically zero. We decided to take the chance anyway and boarded the plane to Buenos Aires- just to be informed of a flight controllers' strike right after arrival, which meant that planes to El Calafate were not likely to leave Buenos Aires at all. The alternative, a 24h bus ride, was not very appealing. For once, luck was on our side and the plane took off - albeit with some delay. Just as predicted, the weather in El Calafate was cloudy upon arrival. But as we had been able to see some beautiful Andes peaks from the plane, we had not given up hope quite yet. Next day was eclipse day, and during an early breakfast we could see starlit skies outside - and no clouds. After a short introduction into the southern sky, our first stop on the way to the viewing site was the famous Perito Moreno glacier, where a beautiful sunrise and gorgeous cloudless skies over the glacier promised a good chance of being able to observe the totality. In the early afternoon, off-road buses brought us to 1000 metres altitude and our specially chosen viewing site, above the Lago Argentino and El Calafate with a beautiful view of the snow-capped Andes. While we waited in perfect sunshine some clouds started to come in from the East. Luck stayed on our side, however, and the totality, just a few degrees above the Andes peaks, was of stunning beauty. The corona was bright yellow so close the horizon, and the shadow cone could be seen as clear as can be, racing across the Earth's surface. After the totality, we could see the shadow cone moving away and literally lifting up the Earth - we were indeed at the very end of the totality path and the last persons to see the total eclipse! While we waited in the tents for the buses back down, cheering and celebrating, more clouds came in and we finally left the mountain in the middle of a heavy snowstorm, a mere two hours after totality. In retrospect the hard and tiring trip was certainly worth these couple of minutes of an unforgettable total solar eclipse - one of the most beautiful astronomical events ever to be seen from Earth.
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Last update: 2010-09-09 by
 H. SteinleContact: MPE public outreach department |
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