Astronomy: Art of the eclipse
TL;DR: Pasachoff and Olson as discussed by the authors discuss how artists from the early Renaissance onwards have interpreted the phenomenon of a solar eclipse and how they interpreted it as a metaphor for the future.
Abstract: As the next solar eclipse approaches, Jay M. Pasachoff and Roberta J. M. Olson ponder how artists from the early Renaissance onwards have interpreted the phenomenon.
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TL;DR: A review of the recent advancements in coronal science from solar eclipses and the scientific and outreach plans for this year's total solar eclipse is presented in this article, with a focus on the lower solar corona where the solar wind originates.
Abstract: Total solar eclipses are a unique opportunity to study the lower solar corona where the solar wind originates. This review presents the recent advancements in coronal science from eclipses and the scientific and outreach plans for this year's totality.
26 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors report early results from a suite of instruments for imaging and spectra deployed to Salem, Oregon, for two minutes of totality at the August 21, 2017, total solar eclipse.
Abstract: We report on early results from a suite of instruments for imaging and spectra we deployed to Salem, Oregon, for two minutes of totality at the August 21, 2017, total solar eclipse. Our instruments included refracting telescopes and telephoto lenses for use with CCD detectors and DSLR cameras, narrow-band filters at the wavelengths of coronal emission lines ([Fe XIV] 530.3 nm and [Fe X] 637.4 nm), and spectrographs. We also monitored the effect of the eclipse penumbra and umbra on the terrestrial atmosphere.
16 citations
Cites methods from "Astronomy: Art of the eclipse"
...We use photographic techniques upgraded from earlier drawings and paintings (Pasachoff and Olson, 2014, 2015)....
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TL;DR: This paper examined 279 pictures that children aged 4 to 8 spontaneously depicted, paying particular attention to their solar representations and the relationship that they have with other pictorial elements, and found that young children very frequently draw the sun in their spontaneous depictions and that there are preliminary indications that this fact might be related to their conceptual development.
Abstract: Drawing has historically been the preeminent way of portraying the observations of the sun. The study of the early stages of the development of astronomical thought and the examination of human graphic expression indicate this. With that in mind, it is interesting to note that young children very frequently draw the sun in their spontaneous depictions and, also, that there are preliminary indications that this fact might be related to their conceptual development. This study examines 279 pictures that children aged 4 to 8 spontaneously depicted, paying particular attention to their solar representations and the relationship that they have with other pictorial elements. The data is also related to children’s understanding of the inanimate nature of the sun. The results lend weight to the assumption that children do not draw the sun without intent and allow for adding fresh data to the growing body of research showing the importance of considering young children’s graphical expression when it comes to gaining insight into their understanding regarding natural phenomena.
11 citations
Cites background from "Astronomy: Art of the eclipse"
...This also applies to the artists who express a significant interest in eclipses (Pasachoff and Olson 2014) and to the painters strongly influenced by the astronomical discoveries of their time as well (Leach 2016)....
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TL;DR: In this article , the authors analyzed Byzantine historical sources with reports of total solar eclipses along the Eastern Mediterranean coasts and added probable ΔT constraints on their basis, and compared them with the existing ΔT spline curve.
Abstract: As one of the greatest astronomical spectacles, total solar eclipses have long been a subject of scientific interest and have been recorded by numerous civilizations over the millennia. These records are an essential reference for constraining and reconstructing Earth’s variable rotation (ΔT) prior to the 17th century. However, ΔT reconstructions for the 4th–7th centuries have significant uncertainties, mainly owing to a data scarcity. Here, we analyze Byzantine historical sources with reports of total solar eclipses along the Eastern Mediterranean coasts and add probable ΔT constraints on their basis. We examined five cases of total solar eclipses in 346, 418, 484, 601, and 693 CE, identified times and locations of the observations, and compared them with the existing ΔT spline curve to derive new ΔT constraints. Our results probably tighten ΔT variability in 346 CE, show a larger ΔT range in 418 CE, and give smaller ΔT ranges in 484, 601, and 693 CE. Our study tightens the existing ΔT variations and occasionally support some ΔT constraints that slightly depart from the ΔT spline curve in the latest reconstructions. Our results are consistent with contemporary ΔT constraints from other studies and offer an improved understanding of Earth’s variable rotation.
2 citations