Special Announcement: Solar Eclipse in New England Information – Monday Afternoon April 8th 2024

Hello to all…

A solar eclipse will take place across much of North America and the United States on Monday Afternoon April 8th, 2024. This eclipse will have a path of totality, meaning a total solar eclipse of 99-100% that will affect of Northern Vermont, Northern New Hampshire and Western and Northern Maine. In the path of totality, daytime will turn to dusk, a significant temperature drop of around 10 degrees will be observed along with other changes during the timeframe of darkness. It is noted that much of Southern New England will be in the path of roughly 89-95% totality. Despite such a small difference, Southern New England won’t see quite a dramatic change in terms of conditions versus the path of totality though temperatures will be a bit cooler and there will be some difference in daylight than a normal day without an eclipse in the 89-95% range along with the image of the moon blocking a significant portion of the sun. For those viewing the eclipse, eclipse glasses should be worn to avoid eye damage. Safety rules for viewing the eclipse can be seen at the following link:

https://www.weather.gov/media/aly/Climate/Eclipse/eng-2024-eclipse-safety-sheet.pdf

Weather is forecast to be clear with little cloud cover across all of New England which is expected to allow for ideal eclipse viewing conditions region wide. Therefore, it is expected that there will be a high amount of visitors particularly to Northern New England in the path of totality. For those travelling to Northern New England, the recent nor’easter caused widespread tree and power line damage and there are feet of snow on the ground in the area of the path of totality. While there will be some snow melt, travellers to Northern New England that are viewing the totality of the eclipse should be prepared for snow on the ground and dress accordingly for the conditions. Some roads which may be dirt roads will be muddy and could cause cars to get stuck etc. The NWS Gray Maine Office has asked for outreach regarding the conditions and that travellers take appropriate precautions. Links to that information are listed below:

https://www.weather.gov/gyx/eclipse
https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=801672845323161&set=a.225869419570176

Amateur Radio Operators will be prepared to react to any issues with infrastructure and communications overload particularly in the path of totality in Northern Vermont, Northern New Hampshire and western and Northern Maine. It is noted that this area is rural with a smaller amount of communications infrastructure than other parts of New England. In Southern New England, Amateur Radio Operators will monitor and be prepared for any communications needs or support for areas in Northern New England in the path of totality or locally as needed. Protocols are in place to self-activate nets on designated repeater and HF frequencies per each state/ARRL section’s communications plans.

The eclipse will also bring about changes to radio propagation and there are events designed to monitor and track these changes to radio propagation in addition to any needs for communications support. Links below from the ARRL, the National Association of Amateur Radio, summarize these events and are web stories that have been posted over the last month:

http://www.arrl.org/news/amateur-radio-stands-ready-to-support-eclipse-operations
http://www.arrl.org/news/ham-radio-s-many-roles-during-solar-eclipse
http://www.arrl.org/news/solar-eclipse-one-month-away

There are eclipse viewing locations and other safety information provided by the New England states and other resources. A summary of a few of the key resources can be seen below:
https://eclipse2024.org/
https://www.greatamericaneclipse.com/maine-2024-eclipse
https://www.visitnh.gov/industry-members/work-together/total-solar-eclipse
https://www.vermont.gov/eclipse#gsc.tab=0
https://www.maine.gov/governor/mills/eclipse2024
https://www.doe.mass.edu/stem/ste/eclipse.html
https://www.providencejournal.com/story/entertainment/2024/03/29/where-to-watch-the-solar-eclipse-in-rhode-islandon-april-8/73144041007/
https://www.bridgew.edu/center/case/observatory

This is a rare event for our region and an event that won’t occur again for many years. We hope those that are interested in viewing or participating in this event in various ways find this information useful for this rare experience. If there are any key updates or resource info updates, we will post a final update on Sunday Evening 4/7/24.

Respectfully Submitted,

Robert Macedo (KD1CY)
ARES SKYWARN Coordinator
Eastern Massachusetts ARES Section Emergency Coordinator
Home Phone #: (508) 994-1875
Home/Data #: (508) 997-4503
Email Address: rmacedo@rcn.com
https://ares.ema.arrl.org
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