Who invented the solar eclipse? Just kidding :) But I did find this information about the history of solar eclipses interesting and relevant to our community. 🌟 Scientific Discoveries The word eclipse comes from ekleipsis, the ancient Greek word for being abandoned. The British astronomer and mathematician, Sir Arthur Eddington, used the total solar eclipse of May 29, 1919 to test Albert Einstein's theory of general relativity. By taking pictures of stars near the Sun during totality, Eddington was able to show that gravity can bend light. This phenomenon is called gravitational deflection. ☀️ Helium Named After the Sun A solar eclipse is also responsible for the discovery of helium. The first piece of evidence for the existence of the second lightest and the second most abundant element known to humans was discovered by the French astronomer Jules Janssen during a total solar eclipse on August 18, 1868. Because of this, it's named after the Greek word for the Sun: Helios. 🏰 Predicting the Emperor's Future Surviving records have shown that the Babylonians and the ancient Chinese were able to predict solar eclipses as early as 2500 BCE. In China, solar eclipses were thought to be associated with the health and success of the emperor, and failing to predict one meant putting him in danger. Legend has it that 2 astrologers, Hsi and Ho, were executed for failing to predict a solar eclipse. Historians and astronomers believe that the eclipse that they failed to forecast occurred on October 22, 2134 BCE, which would make it the oldest solar eclipse ever recorded in human history. 👑 Substitute Kings Clay tablets found at ancient archaeological sites show that the Babylonians not only recorded eclipses—the earliest known Babylonian record is of the eclipse that took place on May 3, 1375 BCE—but were also fairly accurate in predicting them. They were the first people to use the saros cycle to predict eclipses. The saros cycle relates to the lunar cycle and is about 6,585.3 days (18 years, 11 days, and 8 hours) long. Like the ancient Chinese, the Babylonians believed that solar eclipses were bad omens for kings and rulers. Predicting solar eclipses enabled them to seat substitute kings during solar eclipses with the hope that these temporary kings would face the anger of the Gods, instead of the real king. 🕊️ Eclipses as Peacemakers According to the Greek historian Herodotus, a solar eclipse in 585 BCE stopped the war between the Lydians and the Medes, who saw the dark skies as a sign to make peace with each other. The Greek astronomer Hipparchus used a solar eclipse to determine that the Moon was about 429,000 km (268,000 mi) away from the Earth. This is only about 11% more than what today’s scientists accept as the average distance between the Moon and the Earth. 🌟 Kepler Close, Halley Closer Although early eclipse pioneers, including Chinese astronomer Liu Hsiang, Greek philosopher Plutarch, and Byzantine historian Leo Diaconus tried to describe and explain solar eclipses and their features, it was not until 1605 that astronomer Johannes Kepler gave a scientific description of a total solar eclipse. More than a century later, Edmund Halley, who the famous Halley's comet is named after, predicted the timing and path of the total solar eclipse on May 3, 1715. His calculations were only 4 minutes and about 30 km (18 mi) off from the actual timing and path of the eclipse. Full article here: https://www.timeanddate.com/eclipse/solar-eclipse-history.html And Scientists Pursue the Total Solar Eclipse with NASA Jet Planes: "On April 8, 2024, a total solar eclipse will captivate observers across North America, offering an extraordinary spectacle especially from NASA's WB-57 jet planes flying at 50,000 feet. This vantage point is pivotal for three NASA-funded scientific teams aiming to harness the eclipse to gain insights into the Sun's corona and the ionosphere. Utilizing the unique conditions of total solar eclipses, which dim the Sun's brightness to reveal its outer atmosphere, the missions will explore the corona's structure, temperature, and effects on Earth's upper atmosphere, alongside investigating solar phenomena like coronal mass ejections and solar wind origins. The elevated observation altitude not only promises clearer imagery by avoiding atmospheric interference but also extends the duration of totality, enhancing data collection opportunities. This endeavor builds upon past eclipse studies, employing advanced imaging and measurement techniques to deepen our understanding of solar and atmospheric dynamics, with potential implications for models of coronal heating and solar particle emissions." Full article here: https://science.nasa.gov/solar-system/skywatching/scientists-pursue-the-total-solar-eclipse-with-nasa-jet-planes/

Posted by Andy Katz at 2024-04-08 15:45:54 UTC