Here Comes the Eclipse

~by Bob Gustin

Thousands of visitors are expected to flock to Brown County to witness a rare total solar eclipse on the afternoon of April 8. The celestial event is seen by some as a chance for the party of the year, by others as a massive traffic jam. Most agree it will be something special.

The county is directly in the path of the best viewing for the eclipse, which cuts a swath across the United States, from the southwest to the northeast. According to calculations for Nashville, the partial eclipse phase begins at 1:49 p.m., and totality will begin at 3:05 p.m., lasting for nearly four minutes.

Chad Jenkins, director of Brown County Emergency Management, said it’s difficult to predict how many people will come here to view the eclipse. But based on projections, the number of visitors could hit 65,000. On a typical October weekend when leaves are at their peak and the weather is good, Brown County sees about 45,000 visitors, and the eclipse is expected to draw more.

“County-wide congestion” is what Jenkins expects. Emergency resources will be strained and traffic snarled. Traffic jams will push drivers onto rural roads, and more people will probably become lost. With many visitors using cell phones, Jenkins expects cell service will be degraded.

”Be patient and welcome the visitors,” he said. “Look at it as an opportunity.”

Jenkins also advises residents to stock up on groceries and needed items before the eclipse.

He is holding two town hall meetings to address the public’s concerns. They will be at 1 p.m. and 6 p.m. March 5 at the Brown County Inn’s meeting room. He said planning for the eclipse has been going on since February of 2023, and a dozen or so meetings have been held with local officials.

“We know we can’t solve every problem,” he said, but officials are also working on dealing with the aftermath of the visit, including trash removal.

Sheriff Brad Stogsdill said his department will have “all hands on deck,” with no vacations allowed. Overtime pay and reserve officers will be utilized. Deputies will be placed at strategic locations, such as Bean Blossom or Gnaw Bone, to be able to respond more quickly in case of an emergency. While the department normally has two or three deputies on duty at any time, he plans to have six available when the eclipse occurs. Even jail personnel will be involved, keeping cars from parking in the law enforcement center lot, which also houses ambulances.

Among his biggest concerns are traffic jams between Columbus and Nashville.

Stogsdill said his department will be triaging phone calls, and won’t be responding to minor incidents such as littering or cars parked in front of homes. He urges everyone to practice “common courtesy.”

“Don’t call in for a VIN check that day,” he said, and try to take care of minor issues yourself. If something is a true emergency, deputies will respond.

He said visitors to the county should have a full tank of gasoline, bring water with them, and be prepared to take care of their own trash.

“Have patience,” he said. “You won’t get anywhere fast.”

Experts warn that viewing the sun at any phase of an eclipse without proper eye protection could harm the retina, cause permanent eye damage or even blindness.

According to webmd.com, the only way to safely look at the eclipse is with special glasses made with filters that conform to a worldwide safety standard known as ISO 12312-2. Regular sunglasses or homemade solar filters are not safe for watching an eclipse because they transmit sunlight at a rate that is thousands of times too high. Damage may not show up until the next day. Never use a camera, binoculars, or telescope to look at a solar eclipse, even if you have your eclipse glasses on. These devices will intensify the sun’s rays and damage your solar eclipse glasses and your eyes.

In Brown County, obtaining a pair should not be a problem.

Stori Snyder, director of the Brown County Public Library, said the library has 9,000 pairs of solar eclipse glasses that are being given free to library patrons and others. No tax funds were used to buy the glasses, instead using grants and funds raised by Friends of the Library. The library began handing out glasses in February, and in March moved to “show us your library card or sign up for a library card and get a pair of glasses.”

The library reached out to county schools, offering a pair to each student and staff member. The library will be handing out glasses to those who attend programs, and a display of eclipse-related books has been arranged.

“We have scheduled programs and activities for all ages, ranging from a solar eclipse themed storytime for preschoolers and a hands-on eclipse focused STEM learning program.” Snyder said.

The library will be closed the day of the eclipse However, the library rented a portable toilet which will be available in the lower parking lot April 8.

Brown County schools will be closed that day.

Kamady Lewis, executive director of the Brown County Convention and Visitors Bureau, said visitors who do not already have lodging reservations should expect to see all places booked, and restaurants are prepared for big crowds.

“We’ve prepared for this really fun and exciting day.”

The eclipse may be the biggest tourist event for April in Brown County in recent years, and merchants are preparing for it as if it were a busy weekend in October.

“If any county is prepared for it, it’s Brown County,” she said, given the fall tourism experience, and the work organizations and officials have put into planning.

She has sent tourism packets to people planning to travel here for the eclipse from as far away as Utah and Arizona, as well as international requests. For some, Brown County may not have been on their radar had it not been in the path of the eclipse.

“We’re hopeful they’ll come back when we’re not so busy,” she said.

At Brown County State Park, all campgrounds, as well as all rooms at Abe Martin Lodge, were reserved by early February.

Ginger Murphy, deputy director for stewardship for Indiana State Parks, suggested Brown County residents may want to stay home and watch it from their backyards, avoiding the anticipated traffic jams.

Park gates will open at 7 a.m. April 8, and gate fees will be charged as normal until all parking spaces are filled. She said the park is working with conservation officers, volunteers, and staff members to make sure it is a safe experience. Fresh gravel has been put in vista parking sites in preparation for the day. Restrooms will be open, and wristbands will be available for parents wanting to put them on children in case they become separated.

Eclipse glasses will be sold at the park office and the Abe Martin Lodge on days leading up to the eclipse, and on April 8 if any are still available. She cautioned to make sure glasses are ISO certified and purchased from a reputable dealer, since during the last major eclipse, some glasses sold were improperly labeled as certified when they were not. Murphy recommended checking the American Astronomical Society’s website for a list of dependable suppliers.

Interpretative naturalist Eli Major will conduct programs in the weeks leading up to the eclipse, and will be at the park to answer questions on April 8.

One of the advantages of viewing the eclipse at the state park will be to observe changes in wildlife behavior during the totality.

“It will be like sunset for wildlife,” Murphy said. Birds will begin to roost for the night, and insects and other animals will become confused.

Murphy, like many others, is hoping for clear skies and good weather on April 8. She said there is about a 70 percent chance of cloud coverage for early April in Indiana. But even with cloudy skies, viewers can experience the sudden darkness and note natural changes.

Many Brown County organizations or businesses are offering special events, camping or viewing spots before, during, and after the eclipse.

What will you see?

When the moon passes in front of the sun during a total eclipse, the portion visible is called the corona.  The sun is surrounded by an atmosphere of gases. The corona is the outermost part of the sun’s atmosphere, usually hidden by the bright light of the sun’s surface. However, it can be seen during a total eclipse. During the nearly four minutes of totality, the sky will become dark, as if it were dawn or dusk. The temperature could drop about 10 degrees, depending on the humidity and cloud cover.

A little history

The earliest recorded solar eclipse dates to 2137 BCE, nearly 4,000 years ago, in China. Ancient civilizations in Europe, Africa and Asia saw eclipses as omens of doom or messages from their gods.  Native Americans had their own beliefs and explanations. Some ancient civilizations accurately predicted solar eclipses and used them to test the validity of calendars.  Astronomer Johannes Kepler wrote about the corona during an eclipse in 1605. Since then, scientists have used eclipses to make new discoveries about the sun, moon, and Earth’s atmosphere.

More information

Websites containing information on the eclipse include:

American Astronomical Association: eclipse.aas.org

Brown County Visitors’ Center: browncounty.com

National Aeronautics and Space Administration: science.nasa.gov

Indiana State Police: Indiana.gov/isp

State of Indiana: eclipse2024.in.gov, visitindiana.com/eclipse2024

Brown County Library: browncountylibrary.info

Indiana Department of Natural Resources: Indiana.gov/dnr

A Cosmic Coincidence

A total solar eclipse, in simplest terms, occurs when the moon’s orbit comes between the sun and the earth’s orbit. The American Astronomical Society (AAS) calls it a rare event and a “cosmic coincidence.”

In our solar system, there are 290 moons orbiting planets, some of which are quite small: One moon for Earth, two for Mars, 95 at Jupiter, 146 at Saturn, 27 at Uranus, 14 at Neptune, and five for dwarf planet Pluto. But Earth is the only place that has a moon the right size and distance from its planet to barely cover the sun and reveal its corona. Total eclipses occur somewhere on Earth every year or two, but on any given spot on the planet, a total eclipse could be visible only once about every 400 years, scientists say.

The AAS explains it this way: “The sun’s diameter (865,000 miles) is about 400 times the moon’s (2,160 miles). The sun is also (on average) about 400 times farther away (93 million miles vs. 240,000 miles). As a result, the two bodies appear almost the same angular size in the sky….This truly remarkable coincidence is what gives us total solar eclipses.”

At new moon — the only lunar phase when a solar eclipse can occur — the paths of the moon and Earth usually don’t line up. Given all the variables, it’s almost surprising that we see eclipses at all, the society explains.

“The moon orbits Earth; both swing around the sun. In a perfect universe, we’d see totality every month. But we don’t, and here’s why: First, the apparent size of the sun varies during the year because Earth’s orbit is an ellipse, not a perfect circle. Our planet is closest to the sun (perihelion) in early January and farthest (aphelion) in early July….More dramatic is the change in the moon’s apparent diameter due to its elliptical orbit around Earth. When the moon is closest to Earth (perigee), its apparent diameter is up to 14 percent larger than when it’s farthest (apogee). When near perigee, the moon can easily cover the entire solar disk and create a total solar eclipse. But at apogee the moon is too small to cover all of the sun’s brilliant face. At mid-eclipse an annulus (ring) of sunlight surrounds the lunar silhouette, resulting in an annular eclipse.”

The whole thing gets more complicated by the tilt of the moon’s orbit, and the path of the Earth’s movement around the sun. But roughly every six months, the new moon’s orbit lines up and a total, annular or partial eclipse is possible at some place on Earth.

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the next total eclipse visible in the U.S. will be March 2033, only in Alaska. After that, it will be August 2044 in Montana and North Dakota, then August 2045, when the eclipse will traverse from California to Florida.