winterymix Posted August 15, 2017 Share Posted August 15, 2017 6 hours ago, ice1972 said: IDK man pulling off the road and just sleeping in the car seems, at best, weird......I booked a hotel in Quincy, IL for $128 - right on the Mississippi River.....lol I booked it tonight.....its only 2 hrs from the totality path.....early Monday I plan to leave for Fayette, MO......112 miles......theres no interstates to Fayette and I don't have to cross any major interstates to get there.....stay north of I-70.....really have no idea what to expect.....gonna be a fun few days either way Where? I'm looking at MU Extension in Howard County. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ice1972 Posted August 15, 2017 Author Share Posted August 15, 2017 38 minutes ago, winterymix said: Where? I'm looking at MU Extension in Howard County. You gotta be kidding me.....At the fairgrounds? Lol ya.....I emailed the coordinator yesterday and she's like "yep, it's free and we're gonna have the 4-H building open for bathrooms and to get out of sun....don't forget to reserve your glasses, we have those too...." How will you be getting there? Total Solar Eclipse Flyer(1).pdf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bdgwx Posted August 15, 2017 Share Posted August 15, 2017 7 hours ago, ice1972 said: Thanks.....gotta say that's discouraging for the town I've targeted - Fayetteville, MO - but I've got flexibility leaving from Quincy, IL early early Monday....like 3 or 4 am....lol FWIW the Euro looks better for MO. It has clear skies in the morning giving way to cumulus clouds in the afternoon. Research shows that the reduced solar radiation at the surface can slightly suppress convectively forced cumulus clouds (see here) so maybe that'll help this time too, I don't know. Regardless, be flexible. Right now official forecasts are more favorable the further southeast along the path you go so consider a drive more toward St. Louis if necessary. Keep in mind that traffic could be a problem especially along major interstates and near the St. Louis metro area. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ice1972 Posted August 15, 2017 Author Share Posted August 15, 2017 12 minutes ago, bdgwx said: FWIW the Euro looks better for MO. It has clear skies in the morning giving way to cumulus clouds in the afternoon. Research shows that the reduced solar radiation at the surface can slightly suppress convectively forced cumulus clouds (see here) so maybe that'll help this time too, I don't know. Regardless, be flexible. Right now official forecasts are more favorable the further southeast along the path you go so consider a drive more toward St. Louis if necessary. Keep in mind that traffic could be a problem especially along major interstates and near the St. Louis metro area. Ya thats something I do not want to have to contend with that day......anywhere south of St. Louis.....I picked Fayette since its north of I-70 and I won't have to use an interstate to get there from Quincy......I can adjust as we get closer but really really really don't want to have to go south or southeast......that area southeast of St. Louis into southern IL and western KY is gonna be a ****show with max eclipse happening there.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heavy_wx Posted August 15, 2017 Share Posted August 15, 2017 18 minutes ago, ice1972 said: Ya thats something I do not want to have to contend with that day......anywhere south of St. Louis.....I picked Fayette since its north of I-70 and I won't have to use an interstate to get there from Quincy......I can adjust as we get closer but really really really don't want to have to go south or southeast......that area southeast of St. Louis into southern IL and western KY is gonna be a ****show with max eclipse happening there.... It's only like an extra second longer in southern IL vs. central MO so I'm not sure that will really cause people to seek out that area especially; weather and convenience are probably the dominant factors in where people end up going. Getting to the center of the totality path is also important if you want a longer eclipse. I booked a hotel in Richmond, KY for Sunday night with plans to drive into central TN or western KY depending on the weather. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ice1972 Posted August 15, 2017 Author Share Posted August 15, 2017 6 minutes ago, heavy_wx said: It's only like an extra second longer in southern IL vs. central MO so I'm not sure that will really cause people to seek out that area especially; weather and convenience are probably the dominant factors in where people end up going. Getting to the center of the totality path is also important if you want a longer eclipse. I booked a hotel in Richmond, KY for Sunday night with plans to drive into central TN or western KY depending on the weather. True.....whats your thought on the traffic as you get closer to ground zero? What time do you think you will leave Monday morning? Fayette, MO is not right on the centerline but offset a few miles to the north.....its right on the northern 2min 30sec totality time line......I figure less than 5 seconds is fine.....also looking at a few other spots so that I can decide Monday morning where I ultimately end up..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heavy_wx Posted August 15, 2017 Share Posted August 15, 2017 8 minutes ago, ice1972 said: True.....whats your thought on the traffic as you get closer to ground zero? What time do you think you will leave Monday morning? I think it's probably best to be at your intended viewing location at least a couple hours before the eclipse. I would definitely avoid big metro areas like St. Louis or Nashville if possible. Major interstates near the path of totality will probably be OK a few hours before the eclipse. Interstates that connect directly to large cities like I-55 and I-70 in Illinois, I-65 in IN/KY, and I-75 in KY may be pretty busy early in the day if people are driving south for the day. I'm considering going to Sparta, TN because it isn't near any north-south interstates and it's also not really that close to I-40, so traffic shouldn't be bad a few hours before the eclipse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ice1972 Posted August 15, 2017 Author Share Posted August 15, 2017 3 minutes ago, heavy_wx said: I think it's probably best to be at your intended viewing location at least a couple hours before the eclipse. I would definitely avoid big metro areas like St. Louis or Nashville if possible. Major interstates near the path of totality will probably be OK a few hours before the eclipse. Interstates that connect directly to large cities like I-55 and I-70 in Illinois, I-65 in IN/KY, and I-75 in KY may be pretty busy early in the day if people are driving south for the day. I'm considering going to Sparta, TN because it isn't near any north-south interstates and it's also not really that close to I-40, so traffic shouldn't be bad a few hours before the eclipse. Ya...avoiding the big interstates and not having to cross I-70 was sort of my priority.....if I do go to Fayette, MO its all back roads from Quincy, IL......Probably will leave early to make sure.....like 4 or 5 am Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wackymann Posted August 15, 2017 Share Posted August 15, 2017 Flying from Boston to Chicago Friday night (mostly because of the super cheap flight), and driving from there. First target choice is St Louis area (since my brother lives there). If that looks really bad, we will probably head for either Tennessee or Nebraska, whichever looks best. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hoosier Posted August 15, 2017 Share Posted August 15, 2017 3 hours ago, ice1972 said: Ya thats something I do not want to have to contend with that day......anywhere south of St. Louis.....I picked Fayette since its north of I-70 and I won't have to use an interstate to get there from Quincy......I can adjust as we get closer but really really really don't want to have to go south or southeast......that area southeast of St. Louis into southern IL and western KY is gonna be a ****show with max eclipse happening there.... There's very convenient interstate access into southern IL from Chicago, Milwaukee, etc. so my guess is that the first choice for most of that crowd is going to be southern IL or thereabouts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hoosier Posted August 15, 2017 Share Posted August 15, 2017 Gotta like the 12z GFS. Limited clouds almost perfectly overlaying the path of totality from eastern Nebraska to Tennessee. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wxdude64 Posted August 15, 2017 Share Posted August 15, 2017 10 minutes ago, Hoosier said: Gotta like the 12z GFS. Limited clouds almost perfectly overlaying the path of totality from eastern Nebraska to Tennessee. Yes, that is a win for eastern TN, BUT we still have several days to go. Looking great for now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nrgjeff Posted August 15, 2017 Share Posted August 15, 2017 KCMO area back through Nebraska has MCS risk, and it is too early to tell what time of day. However climo is night/morning. A lucky scenario would be subsidence behind any early MCS suppresses Cu. Then the partial phases keep Cu in check. Risk is lingering mid-level clouds. East Tennessee might edge out Nashville for a couple reasons. Lower elevations in the Tennessee Valley usually have slightly less Cu. Current NWP has a stationary front encroaching from the south, which must also be watched. North side of Totality in the Tennessee Valley (valley lower el.) is also farther from the said front (models verbatim). STL Carbondale Hopkinsville are kind of a crap shoot right now, anything from MCS hell to weak (but favorable) surface ridging. South Carolina depends on a boundary. Data and cell coverage will be awful to non-existent in Totality. We lose data on obvious dry line stakeouts. Everybody already knows the path of totality. So, I would not make target decisions based on cell networks. Forecast it right in the morning and use visuals for repositioning if needed. One could also call someone from a land-line for a nowcast. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bdgwx Posted August 15, 2017 Share Posted August 15, 2017 12Z GEFS continues to trend slightly stronger and further northeast with upper and mid level ridge. I do wish it would slide further to the northeast though. For the St. Louis region I do have a concern with a possible MCS in NB having its cloud debris blown into MO by upper level winds, but if we could get that upper level anticyclone to move further north and east winds would blow more to the east instead of southeast nevermind that it would keep any shortwaves rippling through the flow further away to begin with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
winterymix Posted August 16, 2017 Share Posted August 16, 2017 I'm fantasizing about displaying a thermometer at two meters and with some sort of sun shade. It would be interesting to record 2m temperatures during the event. I 'm reading that with favorable conditions, the 2m temp. can drop 15 to 20 degrees. I'm guessing dry soil, no clouds, no pollution, no wind shear will allow quick transfer of outgoing radiation starting about 40 minutes before second contact. I'm sure these stats will be gathered across the centerline and near center. Hopefully a lot of good temp logs will emerge. Can any-of-ya suggest a reasonably priced air thermometer I can buy before Friday, not the POC in Home Depot. Any tricks on a legit way to provide sunshade? Will the temps count if I do not have motorized ventilation? Thanks to the red taggers, keep those probabilistic forecast products coming. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derecho! Posted August 16, 2017 Share Posted August 16, 2017 I'm going to Idaho; based out of Mountain Home and driving morning of...somewhere. I am leaning Idaho/Oregon Border. Totality path forecast is clear but some clouds forecast for Southern Idaho worry me. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ice1972 Posted August 16, 2017 Author Share Posted August 16, 2017 1 hour ago, winterymix said: I'm fantasizing about displaying a thermometer at two meters and with some sort of sun shade. It would be interesting to record 2m temperatures during the event. I 'm reading that with favorable conditions, the 2m temp. can drop 15 to 20 degrees. I'm guessing dry soil, no clouds, no pollution, no wind shear will allow quick transfer of outgoing radiation starting about 40 minutes before second contact. I'm sure these stats will be gathered across the centerline and near center. Hopefully a lot of good temp logs will emerge. Can any-of-ya suggest a reasonably priced air thermometer I can buy before Friday, not the POC in Home Depot. Any tricks on a legit way to provide sunshade? Will the temps count if I do not have motorized ventilation? Thanks to the red taggers, keep those probabilistic forecast products coming. Does the moon count as sun shade? Lol.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ice1972 Posted August 16, 2017 Author Share Posted August 16, 2017 27 minutes ago, Derecho! said: I'm going to Idaho; based out of Mountain Home and driving morning of...somewhere. I am leaning Idaho/Oregon Border. Totality path forecast is clear but some clouds forecast for Southern Idaho worry me. I hate not knowing where the clouds will be in this whole planning thing....makes you realize not everything can be planned....lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
winterymix Posted August 16, 2017 Share Posted August 16, 2017 23 hours ago, ice1972 said: You gotta be kidding me.....At the fairgrounds? Lol ya.....I emailed the coordinator yesterday and she's like "yep, it's free and we're gonna have the 4-H building open for bathrooms and to get out of sun....don't forget to reserve your glasses, we have those too...." How will you be getting there? Total Solar Eclipse Flyer(1).pdf People are hush, hush about where they are observing/chasing. I'm bringing four Nikon dslrs, three or four tripods, a little folding table and some binoculars. Can't anyone observing near the CL in MO share some location observing tips? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
weathafella Posted August 16, 2017 Share Posted August 16, 2017 8 minutes ago, winterymix said: People are hush, hush about where they are observing/chasing. I'm bringing four Nikon dslrs, three or four tripods, a little folding table and some binoculars. Can't anyone observing near the CL in MO share some location observing tips? See I don't get this part. I'm dying to experience the event and spending time with tripods/cameras means that experience is diluted. I'll shoot one with my iPhone during totality and that's it. Triple creek park in Gallatin,TN. Register with eventbrite if you're there. I do plan to allow for hours getting there vs the typical 40 minutes from Nashville. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
winterymix Posted August 16, 2017 Share Posted August 16, 2017 1 minute ago, weathafella said: See I don't get this part. I'm dying to experience the event and spending time with tripods/cameras means that experience is diluted. I'll shoot one with my iPhone during totality and that's it. Triple creek park in Gallatin,TN. Register with eventbrite if you're there. I do plan to allow for hours getting there vs the typical 40 minutes from Nashville. Fair point. This is my fourth total. The new Nikons can be set with a built in intervalometer and built in exposure bracketing. I can get nine exposures bracketed with a range of shutter speeds after one command to the camera. So I can get correctly set exposures and still view with the naked eye. The Nikon D7500 can capture exposures almost good enough for National Geographic. Jerry, this is a must-read: Sperling's Eight Second Law - All Total Solar Eclipses Last Eight Seconds Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
weathafella Posted August 16, 2017 Share Posted August 16, 2017 4 minutes ago, winterymix said: Fair point. This is my fourth total. The new Nikons can be set with a built in intervalometer and built in exposure bracketing. I can get nine exposures bracketed with a range of shutter speeds after one command to the camera. So I can get correctly set exposures and still view with the naked eye. The Nikon D7500 can capture exposures almost good enough for National Geographic. Jerry, this is a must-read: Sperling's Eight Second Law - All Total Solar Eclipses Last Eight Seconds Thanks Richard! I wish I were chasing with you- an experienced eclipse viewer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wxeyeNH Posted August 16, 2017 Share Posted August 16, 2017 Time for another post about this total eclipse. I have seen 3 partials, 1 annular and one total. Aruba 1998. From the beach. Almost a 3 minute eclipse. Total blows everything else out of the water. Photographers were set up all around me. I decided not to bother with cameras. So many wondrous things happen so fast. Not just the sun but the rapidly changing twlight all around me. The planets, stars, the eerie light on the hills. There will be a zillion pictures/videos on the web. Grab a couple of pictures just to say you were there but every second that you play with lens and exposures are seconds lost taking in the whole experience. It does go by ultra fast! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wxsniss Posted August 16, 2017 Share Posted August 16, 2017 That Sperling's Eight Second Law is a good read, thanks for that! I think my only photography, at most, will be 10 min video capturing before / during / after just to document that I was there. So I don't have to pay attention to the camera, but it will record. Heading to Nashville, TN. Not sure yet where to stage. My biggest concern is light pollution from photovoltaic streetlights or businesses going on automatically. wxeyeNH... any other tips to maximize the experience? Urban rooftop vs. open field? Video vs. still shots (of surroundings, again, I don't think my own photos of the eclipse will be worthwhile)? Anything else you would recommend? Thanks for sharing! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ice1972 Posted August 16, 2017 Author Share Posted August 16, 2017 Not liking the forecast for Missouri.....Nebraska may be better? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wxeyeNH Posted August 16, 2017 Share Posted August 16, 2017 6 minutes ago, ice1972 said: Not liking the forecast for Missouri.....Nebraska may be better? Hum, still quite aways out there. All in all the weather looks about as good as it can get if you factor in the whole track from Oregon to South Carolina. I see that moisture in Missouri and East Nebraska but again its only Wednesday. Too early to make adjustments..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ice1972 Posted August 16, 2017 Author Share Posted August 16, 2017 1 minute ago, wxeyeNH said: Hum, still quite aways out there. All in all the weather looks about as good as it can get if you factor in the whole track from Oregon to South Carolina. I see that moisture in Missouri and East Nebraska but again its only Wednesday. Too early to make adjustments..... True but I will begin looking at places that may be better within driving distance from Quincy, IL where I have a room booked......gotta say this is very stressful Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hoosier Posted August 16, 2017 Share Posted August 16, 2017 10 minutes ago, ice1972 said: Not liking the forecast for Missouri.....Nebraska may be better? The 12z GFS seems more favorable for Nebraska than Missouri. I would not get too hung up on individual runs yet. I really don't want to have to go out to Nebraska (mainly because I want to arrive home at a reasonable hour on Monday night and I'm assuming traffic will be heavy leaving the eclipse) but am prepared to do it if necessary. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hoosier Posted August 16, 2017 Share Posted August 16, 2017 Gotta say, the St. Louis office has been putting out some particularly detailed discussions for Monday. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
weathafella Posted August 16, 2017 Share Posted August 16, 2017 2 hours ago, wxsniss said: That Sperling's Eight Second Law is a good read, thanks for that! I think my only photography, at most, will be 10 min video capturing before / during / after just to document that I was there. So I don't have to pay attention to the camera, but it will record. Heading to Nashville, TN. Not sure yet where to stage. My biggest concern is light pollution from photovoltaic streetlights or businesses going on automatically. wxeyeNH... any other tips to maximize the experience? Urban rooftop vs. open field? Video vs. still shots (of surroundings, again, I don't think my own photos of the eclipse will be worthwhile)? Anything else you would recommend? Thanks for sharing! Are you solo? Gallatin looks a good spot with 45 seconds more totality va Nashville. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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