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email: By
Paul
Clark Having spent the previous 2 nights in
Poole on business, I awoke just after 5am on the great day,
had breakfast and set out towards Devon shortly before 6am.
The weather report that morning didn't look too promising
but knowing our Great British weather there was always the
chance that the clouds would break and display the grandest
show in the heavens.I arrived outside Exeter around 8am and
the clouds had broken to about 65% blue sky. Radio Cornwall
had reported an Atlantic front approaching at around 30mph
so it seemed South East Devon was best placed to see the sun
at the crucial moment, so I looked at the map and decided to
head for Dartmouth upon hearing there were still some car
parking spaces available there. I arrived in Dartmouth
shortly after 9am and found a convenient parking spot on the
harbour side to view the eclipse. bThe town was already busy
and the number of people carrying mylar glasses was very
evident.At this time, a thin white veil of cloud was
covering the area but with the sun still making occasional
appearances through tenous holes. The western horizon,
however, was looking rather grey &endash; perhaps this would
move slowly &endash; I'd have to wait and see.Having walked
around the town and taken some light refreshments I arrived
at the car around 10am and found that an English chap now
living in Oklahoma had set up a base with a TV broadcasting
live coverage of the event which by this time was looking
like the only way the eclipse could be viewed. Cloud cover
was total by now. From around 10.35 onwards the light
levels slowly began to fall and this may have been due to
the thickening cloud &endash; but at this time it was hard
to tell. At around 10.50, the sun made an appearance and it
was again behind milky clouds but the eclipse was now very
evident. This brief appearance continued off and on until
around 11am when it disappeared for good. At 11am the light
levels were markedly lower with the horizon growing greyer
by the minute. A real sense of expectation had now set in.
As we watched the pictures beamed live from the Hercules
overhead, the disappearing sun and encroaching gloom
heralded the moment I had been waiting for. The buzz in the
crowd was electric and by 11.10 the Scilly Isles were moving
into totality. The light levels had by now fallen to the
equivalent of 15 minutes after sunset on a cloudy day, but
the last 10 seconds before totality were the most
amazing. Suddenly, the light was fading. It
seemed that the remaining light was being sucked out of the
atmosphere as if controlled by a dimmer switch.The final
arrival of totality was greeted by a loud chorus of Herring
Gulls that all at once seemed to take off into the air and
start flying across the bay. At the same time, thousands of
camera flashes all went off. I don't know what was being
photographed but I guess it was one way of capturing the
spirit of the moment. The crowd around me were gasping in
awe at the event, I noticed some couples hugging close
together &endash; perhaps a little afraid. The horizon
seemed to glow a purplish colour all around &endash; not at
all like a normal sunset. Suddenly, the light levels began
to increase as the moon's shadow swept into the English
Channel.Well it was a very brief and special moment. The
feeling of having been part of an event that I first read
about in the 1970's in my early childhood left me feeling
ecstatic. The only pity I suppose was the fact our British
Weather hid the total show from me, but it was still very
worthwhile and an experience I will keep in my memory until
the next one in 2090. Return to September 1999
Spacereport
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