Once in a lifetime phenonema

For those of you who read my latest entry (The Summer Triangle, yes I know it is fall), I did spend a little time gazing at the stars last night. The forecast for this weekend calls for rain, so gazing heavenward may have to wait for clearer skies. Speaking of astronomy, I had the privilege of seeing two once–in–a–lifetime events while I was still in grade school.

The first was a total solar eclipse of the sun. To set the stage for this story, the eclipse happened sometime in the summer of 1963 in Massachusetts. I remember the year because I spent several weeks in the hospital, first with a bone infection in my left hip, and later with a broken hip. As a brief sidebar, I was very lucky. I was spared surgery and my hip healed completely.

Anyway, I was in four-bed ward in pediatrics in the town hospital. Much to my delight, the nurses and the rest of the hospital staff took pity on me, making sure I had one of two or three TVs in the hospital, and a remote control. At some point between the baseball games, cartoons, and Dobie Gillis reruns, I heard about the upcoming solar eclipse. I was really excited because I had a bed by the window where I could see the sun at the time the eclipse was to happen.

When I heard that I could damage my eyes if I were to look at the eclipse with out eye protection, I was disappointed. Someone on the hospital staff came up with the idea that I could look at the eclipse through some exposed x–ray film. At the appointed time, someone gave me the x–ray film and I watched the eclipse. I seem to remember that there were one or two nurses watching the eclipse with me. There was something about the eclipse on the TV, so I had commentary while the eclipse was going on. It was very, very cool. I saw the moon gradually “moving” across the sun before blocking out the sun completely. Just as I had heard on TV, the sky grew dark. Then just as quickly, the moon seemed to move away and the sky grew lighter.

I would not recommend that anyone try to use exposed x–ray film to look at an eclipse. I heard somewhere that this is not a good idea. But, even with all the attention lavished on my by the hospital staff that summer of 1963, it was not fun to be in a hospital. The eclipse was one of the high points.

The second was a display of the northern light in August, either in 1965 or 1966. I know the month because I was on vacation with my family, camping on the coast of Maine. During those years, we would take our vacation in the month of August. The campground was on an island on the coast. We had a campsite that fronted on the rocky shore. About once a week, there was a large bonfire on what we called “the rocks.” The campground was fairly small, so many of the campers were sitting around the bonfire when we began to notice some greenish lights in the sky. If my parents were not at the bonfire, they came down to watch. My Dad told me that I was seeing the northern lights and that they rarely occurred this far south for they were a much more common occurrence in the artic.

I don’t quite know how long we sat there looking at these wonderful ribbons of light dancing in the sky. We were all mesmerized. Any one who has seen a northern lights display knows what I mean. All too soon, the ribbons of light began to fade, finally disappearing all together.

I have “seen” a couple of partial solar eclipses since 1963, or at least the shadows on a safe surface. I have not seen a total solar eclipse and doubt that I will have another opportunity in my lifetime unless I travel to some far off location. A few years, there may have been a display of the northern lights visible in New Jersey. At least the media reported that a display had occurred. I remember hearing the media report and kicking myself for not paying attention to the sky the night before. I was “too busy”, at the time to notice the strange lights in the urban sky. My loss.

Will I be too busy the next time?