# Any Aussies going to watch the eclipse? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 25, 2002, 12:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-aussies-going-to-watch-the-eclipse/138643 "2002-11-25T12:12:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![starman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8c91f0/32.png) [@starman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/starman)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2002, 12:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-aussies-going-to-watch-the-eclipse/138643/1 "2002-11-25T12:12:42Z")
Any other Australians going to watch the 4th December eclipse? Totality passes through SA, but we will still get an 80% eclipse here in Melbourne. -Oli ---
**Author:** ![TheLoadedDog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/35a633/32.png) [@TheLoadedDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheLoadedDog)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2002, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-aussies-going-to-watch-the-eclipse/138643/2 "2002-11-25T12:14:59Z")
First I’ve heard about it, mate. Sydney will no doubt miss out, as usual. ---
**Author:** ![starman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8c91f0/32.png) [@starman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/starman)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2002, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-aussies-going-to-watch-the-eclipse/138643/3 "2002-11-25T12:21:43Z")
Nah, Sydney should get a 70-80% eclipse. Unless you are looking for it, however, you might not notice. -Oli ---
**Author:** ![TheLoadedDog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/35a633/32.png) [@TheLoadedDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheLoadedDog)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2002, 12:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-aussies-going-to-watch-the-eclipse/138643/4 "2002-11-25T12:23:24Z")
Aah, so we’re talking lunar then. Yeah, I’ll be looking for it. I like all that kinda stuff, ---
**Author:** ![starman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8c91f0/32.png) [@starman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/starman)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2002, 12:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-aussies-going-to-watch-the-eclipse/138643/5 "2002-11-25T12:29:56Z")
Nope, its solar, but until you get above an 80% eclipse, you probably won’t notice much of a drop in brightness. -Oli ---
**Author:** ![hawthorne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@hawthorne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hawthorne)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2002, 12:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-aussies-going-to-watch-the-eclipse/138643/6 "2002-11-25T12:38:01Z")
Whew. For one horrible moment I thought you were suggesting we go Ceduna. Yep, I’m being ware. Up in sky, near sunset 4/12, don’t look directly at it, portent of doom etc. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2002, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-aussies-going-to-watch-the-eclipse/138643/7 "2002-11-25T12:40:43Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by TheLoadedDog \* > \*\*First I’ve heard about it, mate. Sydney will no doubt miss out, as usual. \*\* Disappointment loves company. We had an annular eclipse, in '91, and everyone went down to the Palisades in Santa Monica to try to watch it. But it was totally overcast. But I have seen a couple of good partials. Very, very strange effect if you get more than say 60% obscuration. When you look outside it seems like dusk until you notice that the shadows are sharp and not the right size. ---
**Author:** ![starman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8c91f0/32.png) [@starman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/starman)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2002, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-aussies-going-to-watch-the-eclipse/138643/8 "2002-11-25T12:43:29Z")
Heres hoping for clear skies on the 4th December. If anyone wants some eclipse shades, they are free with this months Astronomy magazine. -Oli ---
**Author:** ![reprise](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ea666f/32.png) [@reprise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/reprise)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2002, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-aussies-going-to-watch-the-eclipse/138643/9 "2002-11-25T19:53:00Z")
A heap of the people from [SSSF](http://www2.abc.net.au/science/k2/stn) are heading to Ceduna for the eclipse. Sydney seems to have a habit of turning on inclement weather at short notice when there’s a significant astronomical (hehehe - I finally got to use that word properly) event happening - I was so pissed off about missing the _aurora_ because the sky went cloudy about 15 minutes before they were due to be seen and stayed that way for hours. ---
**Author:** ![starman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8c91f0/32.png) [@starman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/starman)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2002, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-aussies-going-to-watch-the-eclipse/138643/10 "2002-11-26T00:34:33Z")
You got an aurora in Sydney?? Wow. That’s very unusual at such a high latitude. -Oli ---
**Author:** ![reprise](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ea666f/32.png) [@reprise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/reprise)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2002, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-aussies-going-to-watch-the-eclipse/138643/11 "2002-11-26T00:37:59Z")
That’s why everyone was so pissed off that after perfectly clear skies, clouds rolled in just before the event **starman**. It was one of those “you aren’t going to have another opportunity to see this for X years” happenings. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![starman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8c91f0/32.png) [@starman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/starman)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2002, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-aussies-going-to-watch-the-eclipse/138643/12 "2002-11-26T00:57:04Z")
I know the feeling. I was extremely peeved last year when we were predicted to get a Leonid storm. Got up at four in the morning, and all I saw were clouds. -Oli ---
**Author:** ![reprise](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ea666f/32.png) [@reprise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/reprise)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2002, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-aussies-going-to-watch-the-eclipse/138643/13 "2002-11-26T01:03:58Z")
I’m sure the SSSF crew in Melbourne will have organised something for the eclipse - you might want to check out the forum and see what’s happening. [Dr Karl’s Self-Service Science Forum](http://www2.abc.net.au/science/k2/stn). ---
**Author:** ![BigNik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/73ab20/32.png) [@BigNik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigNik)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2002, 7:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-aussies-going-to-watch-the-eclipse/138643/14 "2002-11-26T07:11:53Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by starman \* > \*\*Nah, Sydney should get a 70-80% eclipse. Unless you are looking for it, however, you might not notice. > -Oli \*\* IIRC, the Sydney eclipse is going to be at its best about, well, a quarter of an hour after sunset. Given the southerlies that have been coming up in the afternoons recently (accompanied by cloud), I wouldn’t expect to see much, but I’ll be keeping an eye out in the evening. Only one eye, of course - I’ll need the other one to see things with for the rest of my life. ---
**Author:** ![sKipping\_girl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e19adc/32.png) [@sKipping\_girl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sKipping_girl)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2002, 11:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-aussies-going-to-watch-the-eclipse/138643/15 "2002-11-26T11:29:12Z")
Huzzah! For once I am ACTUALLY glad that I live in S.A. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![reprise](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ea666f/32.png) [@reprise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/reprise)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2002, 11:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-aussies-going-to-watch-the-eclipse/138643/16 "2002-11-26T11:59:58Z")
I seriously doubt that we’re even going to get half a chance to see the eclipse here. It’s “bushfire central” right now, with smoke extending as far ass the eye can see and then some. I just want rain - lots of. ---
**Author:** ![Burnt\_Sugar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ee59a6/32.png) [@Burnt\_Sugar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Burnt_Sugar)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2002, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-aussies-going-to-watch-the-eclipse/138643/17 "2002-11-26T13:01:40Z")
Will we see it in Brisbane? If we will I’ll look out for it.