What’s the big deal with the eclipse? An astronomy historian weighs in

Everybody’s talking about Monday’s solar eclipse. But this isn’t the first time humanity’s been psyched about the astronomical phenomenon. Astronomy historian and author Steve Ruskin tells us how this week’s event compares to other historic eclipses, and why we humans are so fascinated by the subject.

Solar eclipses are actually not all that uncommon. And yet, anyone with access to a computer or a newspaper could tell you, people in the United  States are all pretty excited about the total solar eclipse that’s set to take place Monday. That’s because this eclipse, unlike the ones that happen about every 18 months or so on average, will be a total eclipse we can actually see from across the U.S. from South Carolina to Oregon. It’ll be the first total solar eclipse visible from the U.S. mainland since 1979 and the first coast to coast total solar eclipse visible here since 1918. Some are even dubbing it The Eclipse of the Century, or The Great American Eclipse.

The latter title is of particular interest to Dr. Steve Ruskin, an astronomy historian based in Colorado Springs whose new book America’s First Great Eclipse takes a deep dive into another eclipse that had Americans buzzing, 139 years ago. And just like the eclipse of 1878, Monday’s event is arriving during a perfect storm of circumstances that’s allowing the whole country to look forward to it, Ruskin told us. The eclipse of 1918 showed up just as World War I was ending and people were preoccupied. This eclipse is coming at a time of (relative) peace.

“Something like this happening in a time of relative peace,” Ruskin said, “people have the time and money to go see it. Plus, we have the internet now. So, other than politics, that’s all that anyone’s talking about.”

Astronomy historian Steve Ruskin, photo courtesy of Steve Ruskin

History repeats itself

Much of the talk about Monday’s eclipse has centered on people traveling to communities where “the path of totality” will allow them to experience a more intense view of the eclipse. The buzz has cities and communities like Carbondale, Illinois—which is the place where people will have the longest chance to view the eclipse, a full two minutes and 43 seconds without sunlight—bracing for a flood of tourists. The same thing happened in 1878. Ruskin says in his research he came upon one story of a Colorado Springs hotel keeper who ran out of rooms so quickly when tourists arrived to catch a glimpse of the eclipse from the mountains, he rented out a local livery stable and started putting guests in the stalls. At that time, also, railroads were first stretching across the country, so people were able to travel to these resort communities for a better look.

“When this eclipse came in the summer [of 1878], it was the perfect storm of natural phenomena, scenic beauty, transportation to get people there, and people having money to spend,” Ruskin said.

We’re way beyond new railroads, transportation-wise, these days, but with easy access to online tools and live streams, pretty much anyone can check out Monday’s eclipse.

They had their own version of those special glasses back in the day

Those specially verified eclipse glasses everybody’s been trying to get their hands on in recent weeks? People in the 19th century tried to make their own version of them, too.

“We as humans know it’s painful to look at the sun, even if the eclipse is blocking part of it,” Ruskin said.

To protect themselves in the 1870s, Ruskin says Americans took either a piece of glass especially cut for this purpose, or even just a broken shard of window pane, and held it over a candle or oil lamp until the soot had created a sort of smoked glass through which they could watch. People were still using similar methods in the first half of the 20th century, Ruskin said, though optometrists started to warn against the practice.

Universe appreciation

Whether it was the 1878 eclipse or eclipses far more ancient, civilization has long been in awe of the forces of nature around it. People from agrarian civilizations may not have know what was actually happening when the world went dark in the middle of the day, but Ruskin says because they tracked the growing seasons, they took note of things like eclipses, too.

“If you don’t have a scientific explanation, imagine what an ancient civilization woukd have thought,” he said.

The ability to track eclipse patterns with much accuracy didn’t come about until a few hundred years ago, Ruskin says. But they’ve always had a way of getting people’s attention—much like Monday’s will.

Next: Solar eclipse 2017 live stream: Watch online

“You’ll see day turning to night, the stars will come out, you’ll see planets, it’s kind of like looking into the heart of the solar system,” Ruskin said. “Some people say it’s pretty neat.”