# Another Solar Eclipse Question

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-solar-eclipse-question/794457>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [August 23, 2017, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-solar-eclipse-question/794457 "2017-08-23T13:51:35Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\
**Post date:** [August 25, 2017, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-solar-eclipse-question/794457/21 "2017-08-25T15:33:49Z")

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> [@JohnGalt](#):
>
> Someone said that this rarity is the basis for a sci-fi story that aliens travel to earth to view such eclipses. Looking around at the crowd during totality, that might have been true.
> 
> Does anyone know the name of such a sci-fi story about alien travel to a viewing? It sounds like something Dr. Who would do an episode about.

Not the same thing but your question reminds me of Asimov’s Nightfall, which has been described as the greatest Sci-Fi short story of all time is about a civilization on a planet that revolves around a multi-star system such that night actually falls only once in every thousand years. When it happens people go mad and burn everything down (to make light). The thing is that without a night sky there can be no astronomy. Well, I suppose they could try tracking the suns, but with civilization having to reboot every thousand, they don’t, although one person tries.

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