Did NASA miscalculate the % by chance?

[SL6827]

We live about 30 minutes south of Chattanooga and was in the 99% totality today for the eclipse. I truly expected it to get darker than what it did, like close to dusk I guess.

But no, it wasn't dark what so ever??? Could had NASA miscalculated the %?

 

[StarGirl11]

I was on the totality path and it didn't really get dark until those last moments as the sun was finally getting covered. I mean it was getting slightly darker but it didn't become like the photo below until totality hit. It was more like a cloud shadow leading up to totality. So I'm inclined to think it's not a NASA error as much as a misperception about how dark it would get.

 

[sonnyjane]

We live about 30 minutes south of Chattanooga and was in the 99% totality today for the eclipse. I truly expected it to get darker than what it did, like close to dusk I guess.

But no, it wasn't dark what so ever??? Could had NASA miscalculated the %?

They didn't miscalculate - I think people around the country miscalculated as far as what actually happens during a solar eclipse! Only those right there in the totality path saw "darkness" and even then, as the PP described, it wasn't what many expected. I'm in a zone that got 95% and it was basically like any old day! Even when at the peak, it was still light outside - the shadows were weird, but it was still light.

 

[Squirlz]

We live about 30 minutes south of Chattanooga and was in the 99% totality today for the eclipse. I truly expected it to get darker than what it did, like close to dusk I guess.

But no, it wasn't dark what so ever??? Could had NASA miscalculated the %?

No. Anything less that 100% was just like a passing cloud.

 

[SL6827]

Oh, OK. I had no idea.

 

[AlohaNow]

Here in the Denver area we were told 92% so I think everybody expected it to be darker than it actually was. The shadows got kind of long and the light was a bit weird, but most people just seemed a bit disappointed!

 

[AquamarineSteph]

We were in the path of totality, and the difference between light/dark was incredible BUT that didn't happen (as stated above) until full totality was achieved.

 

[asta]

I agree with the other posters. We were in the path of totality and the dramatic change only happened at minutes of full eclipse. We were truly awed for those moments but I would not have been that impressed up until then. At totality it was very still and much darker than when even a tiny sliver of the sun was visible. We could see a bright star or planet, the air became cooler, fireflies rose from the grass and the noise from crickets began. It was over too soon and a reminder of the power of only a tiny portion of the sun.

 

[AquamarineSteph]

That struck me as well. It was so quiet. I could hear the voices of my neighbors. I could hear insects. But the birds had gone silent, and it felt like a larger than life moment.

 

[karensi]

We were in the 73% path and we were really disappointed. We (incorrectly) thought it would be kind of dark. We, my DD, son in law and 3 DGC went outside expecting to be awed, but nothing. My DGS had his bathing suit on and was ready to jump in the pool for some (what we thought would feel like) night swimming. We were telling my grandsons "you'll always remember where you were and what you were doing when the eclipse came, you'll be able to tell your children about it" ( they're 13, 11 and 9, lol). We really built it up but we thought it would really be kind of like nighttime during the day.

 

[CarolAnn856]

I feel bad for kids who got their hopes up. I can understand why people in areas with coverage percentages in the high 90s might have expected to see a change in the lighting. I think many just don't realize how powerful the sun truly is.

There were lots of articles posted on social media explaining what to expect in each area, but I think a lot of people didn't read up on that. Again, I really feel for the kids who were disappointed.

 

[marcyleecorgan]

I noticed it actually happening when it got just a little darker and cooler as I was enjoying my garden yesterday morning...

I too thought it might get darker but then I remembered all the physics and science that was actually happening, marveled at the universe, and went about my day. The whole process takes less than an hour so it CAN'T make the sky dark like night... totally wrong angle of the planet's orbit for that! We were just looking at a version of the "dark side of the moon" that doesn't happen often!

 

[rastahomie]

My front yard was to get 99.82% totality, and I jumped through far too many hoops to mention here to make sure I saw 100% totality. The difference would have been (no pun intended) night and day.

 

[Hikergirl]

We were at 70% and knew what to expect so for us the excitement was watching the moon move in front of the sun. While I would have loved to be in full totality, this geek family was not disappointed at all in what we were able to see.
We will most likely travel for the one in 2024 since we will only have to go a few hours away.

 

[Magpie]

We were around 65 percent, and my mom and I went to a street party in a nearby town. It was a LOT of fun!

At the max eclipse, it got a little dimmer, and the shadows looked weird, and the dj blasted Dark Side of the Moon as loud as he could, and I don't think anyone was disappointed, because none of us expected it to be particularly dark at that percentage. Even 45 percent sun is a LOT of sun!

The real fun was in seeing the surface of the sun through various hobbyists' telescopes (sunspots! plasma!), and eating ice cream, and staring at the eclipse through borrowed viewers, and all the little kids running around with their home made cereal box viewers.

One lady commented to me that it felt like we'd stepped back in time 100 years, all of us gathering in a small town's park, with a high school band playing brass instruments and small children running around. She was right, too, it really did!

I can't wait for 2024. All we have to do is pop over to Montreal and we'll be in the path of totality!

 

[adelaster]

Reaffirming the above- it didn't get "dark" until totality-the moments before were an eerie twilight. Totality wasn't pitch black where I was either-unfortunately some lights I hadn't noticed kicked on and the corona provided some light too. Still could see some planets/stars though. The sky lower still looked like the last glimmer of sunset. Really weird. I think everyone had a slightly different experience based on where they saw totality- anyway, that was my impression listening to the NPR coverage & seeing photos afterward. Next time, if I am lucky, I want to find even more remote "country" viewing.

 

[Kingdome8]

Yeah I think it was a letdown. We're in 80% area and as I didn't expect total darkness I did think it would be darker.
News and experts said some places would see stars. I know that would be 99% or more.

 

[pryncess527]

I live and work in a 99% region, and decided at the last minute to drive to see totality. It was well worth it.

NPR put things in perspective about the difference between 99.9 and 100%. The sun is so bright, even .1% of it makes a big difference. I wouldn't have travelled a huge distance from it, but since I was 90 minutes from totality, and had a lovely place to be, I'm glad I made the trip. we could see stars & four planets. I didn't see it, but someone else took a picture that managed to capture hte International Space Station.

 

[smiths02]

We were in totality at my in-laws in a very rural area (so little light "pollution")...I think we saw Venus, but we did not see a bunch of stars.
The crickets started chirping before totality. It cooled at least 10 degrees before totality. It was really eerie.
I guess I'm glad we traveled (the trip up on Sunday wasn't worse than usual...about 3 hours not counting stops, and we saw it from my in-laws deck so no crowds to deal with or hotels to pay for, but driving home took about 6 hours not counting stops).

 

[asta]

We were in totality at my in-laws in a very rural area (so little light "pollution")...I think we saw Venus, but we did not see a bunch of stars.
The crickets started chirping before totality. It cooled at least 10 degrees before totality. It was really eerie.
I guess I'm glad we traveled (the trip up on Sunday wasn't worse than usual...about 3 hours not counting stops, and we saw it from my in-laws deck so no crowds to deal with or hotels to pay for, but driving home took about 6 hours not counting stops).

Your experience sounds like ours. We experienced over 2 and 1/2 minutes of totality in my mom's back yard. She lives on a hill top in a rural area so no light pollution. It was very eerie and noticeably darker than the seconds before totality. We only saw what was probably one bright planet, no stars. It was still very awesome and not to be missed if you get a chance. I have seen several videos that seem to show pitch blackness. I think they could be a little misleading and might be more of a result of the camera's inability to film in very low light. My only concern is that people see that and are then disappointed when they see less than total can't see a foot in front of you darkness.

If you get a chance definitely go see the next one.