Oregon reacts to total eclipse

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The 2017 eclipse as seen from Corvallis.

Oregon, OB, reacts to solar eclipse.

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My husband and I made the trek down to Corvallis and the path of totality Sunday evening. We got there in a mere 90 minutes. The projected traffic apocalypse never materialized. By 9 a.m. Monday, we were camped out in a friend’s backyard with eclipse glasses, marveling at the tiny black sliver slowly making its way across the sun.

By the time totality began, we were shivering from the drop in temperature. The two minutes of darkness set in. Cheers disrupted the silence, and a few bars of “Total Eclipse of the Heart” reverberated around the yard. The eclipse continued for the next hour, but we moved on. Eclipse glasses were abandoned in the grass. Some relived the moment via cell phone video. We were awed, humbled.

BD2F7734Photo by | Jason Kaplan

Like many Portlanders, we decided to return home post-haste — and spent the next six hours in gridlock traffic.

But it’s all a part of the experience.

To celebrate the historic event, here’s a look at how a few fellow OB staffers celebrated the eclipse, as well as statewide reaction.

OB Research Editor Kim Moore
Because of all the talk of terrible congestion, I watched the eclipse from my backyard in Portland. Although it was a solitary event for me, I enjoyed every minute of it. Clear skies gave me a wonderful, stress-free viewing from the beginning to end. I really felt like I was watching the truth and beauty of science. It was humbling. I biked to the Oregon Business office around 11 a.m. when the eclipse was partially over. Unlike much of the hype, Portland traffic was very light. Lighter than on a normal workday.

OB Art Director Joan McGuire
Can’t let the bad traffic eclipse the experience of totality! It was super easy coming down Sunday night to Corvallis, and we needed to do it anyway: Our daughter, who’s a junior at OSU, starts work on Tuesday. We loaded up the car with all her gear (bike, winter clothes, etc.) and spent the night at her apartment, along with the families of her roommates.

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This morning we found a lovely grassy spot right by the volleyball courts on campus, and got to view the spots on the sun through a nearby watcher’s telescope. As the temperature dropped and the light grew strange and dusky, the excitement of the hundreds of viewers behind us on the Intramural Field grew. At the moment of totality, everyone began cheering — and that minute was unearthly and strange, and so worth the trip. Unforgettable.

RELATED STORY: Slideshow — 2017 Eclipse

Sen. Jeff Merkley

Gov. Kate Brown

Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler

NASA Moon 

Provenance Hotel

Oregon Office of Emergency Management

Secretary of State Dennis Richardson

Oregon Department of Environmental Quality

Oregon State University

University of Oregon

Multnomah County Sheriff 

Oregon Department of Energy

OMSI

Bureau of Labor Statistics

 

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