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Wednesday 12th 55F/13C [7.40] Overcast. Forecast to be wall to wall sunshine. Creeping up to 22C/72F in the late afternoon. It usually peaks around 16.00. Winds fairly light. Performing a slow somersault. From NW to NE before going southerly this evening.
Up at 7am after a quiet night.
Visiting my English friend this morning. Or later.
Pennisetum rubrum.
There is a partial solar eclipse this evening. Even assuming it remains magically clear I have a wood to my west. Thirty years ago it was a wind break. My wife added multiple skyscrapers as tiny shoots. Even the neighbours best attempts to poison some of them did not hinder their final height.
Which all means I have to go at least 100m away from the house. Just to see the sun in the evening from the main drive. Providing mains electricity for the telescopes is a problem. My longest extension lead is only 30m long. A daisy chain is possible but not to 100m. The longest drum type, extension cables are only 40m. The sun will be only 6ยบ above the horizon to the WNW. That's a lot of atmospheric thickness to hide the sun with clouds.
8.30 I've had my morning online chat. Watered the outside plants. Pulled up loads of Rosebay willowherb. An invasive, head height weed.
11.45 I have run the big mower up and down the drive to prepare it for the robot mower. 7 lengths filled the collection basket. Then I sent Euforya off to do its job. It seems to prefer working near the house. While I want it to mow along to the end of the drive. I may have to devise a cunning plan for another zone. Right out to the junction with the main drive.
13.20 My friend has just left. I wasn't expecting him and had continued gardening.
6.45 Waiting for the solar eclipse. The sun is visible through a gap in the neighbour's hedge. Though heading for the trees. There is another gap further along. 100mm Apo telescope fitted with a Lunt Herschel Wedge for eye safety. Sitting on a flimsy Manfrotto carbon fiber, photographic tripod. On a gimbal mount. My bigger astronomical tripods are all very much heavier. Since I may have to carry the equipment so far. I'd rather not struggle with heavy weights.
The eclipse lasts from 19.00-21.00. With the maximum obscuration of 84% at around 20.00. I am having a large, fresh bread roll with extra mature Cheddar cheese for dinner. With a cup of tea.
8.20 Back indoors. There was some cloud around maximum obscuration but otherwise mostly clear. I moved three times to end up at the T-junction with the main drive. I was using a binocular head for comfortable viewing of the magnified sun.
I held my mobile phone camera took the eyepiece for 70 snaps taken at intervals. Just carrying the telescope there and back made me very breathless. Even carrying the little picnic chair was hard work! My last snap at 20.04 CET was sheer luck during a short clearing. There were times it was impossible to see the sun through the telescope.
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