Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1918-06-06
See Eclipse Here
Saturday Afternoon

Tho eclipse of the sun, that will be
nearly total here, will be visible late
Saturday afternoon in this city. 1t will
be the only eclipse of the sun that will
be total and visible in the United States
for $50 years, so 1t is going to be of
more than passing interest.
The whole period of the eclipse, from
the time when the disk OF the moons
shadow first enters before the face of
the sun, to the time when the disk has
entirely passed away will be something
less than two hours, altho the period of
the maximum of the eclipse will be a
very short time here, approximately
about one minute.
The eclipse reaches its maximum at
the Mississippi river. which will be
about the same time as in this city
at 6:S7 in the evening, but the disk OF
the moons shadow will begin to show
on the face of the sun about 5:45 and
the disk will not be entirely cleared
from the sun until about 1880.
In Iowa and this city the eclipse
when at it's maximum will still leave
about IS per cent of the suns face Wis
ible. This is due to the fact that the
nearest point to where the eclipse will
be total is in southwestern Kansas and
for each thirty miles of distance from
the path of the total eclipse 1 per cent
of the suns face will be visible.
The path of the total eclipse is COM
paratively narrow, being seventy miles
wide where it first enters continental
United States at the mouth of the
Columbia river, but narrowing to forty
miles where it departs into the Atlantic
at Orlando, Fla. The path of totality
touches points of the following states
in it's sweep across the continent:
Washington. Oregon, Idaho. Wyoming,
Utah. Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma,
Arkansas. Louisiana, Mississippi Ala
bama and Florida. At Denver the to-
and one-half minutes, but in Florida
it will last for only fifty seconds.
An odd incident in regard to the
eclipse, due to change in time, is that
it really starts Sunday, June Q, at sun
rise at the island of Borodino, off the
coast of Japan. and rushes southeast
across the Pacific. Reaching the 1S0th
meridian of longitude, where the time
changes, the shadow is in June s in
what is there the afternoon of that day.
Here, along toward o'clock, if the
sky is clear, the light of the sun will
begin to pale and gradually grow dim
mer as the disk of the moons shadow
creeps in the path of the suns rays.
Steadily the light di1ns and as the
darkness increases the sensation is per-
turbing. Birds will cease their sing
ing and go to roost for the night. Here
the darkness will not be absolute, and
enough light will remain to give twi-
light, but where the eclipse is total the
sky will take on the hue of night and
stars will appear and brightly shine.
In this city it will probably not be pos
sible to gaze directly at the sun at any
time while the eclipse Is on. The
simplest means of watching the eclipse
is thru a piece of smoked glass that
softens the glare of thessun's rays.
A total eclipse of the sun, caused by
the moon passing between the sun and
the earth, results every year, but fire.
quently it is not visible in civilized
countries and frequently it is visible
only on the oceans. Next year there
will be total eclipse visible along the
Amazon in South America on the
southern Atlantic. and in Africa.