45.4

This is a close-up of the May 20th Solar Eclipse as seen over the San Francisco Bay Area. The eclipse occurred around 6:24PM in remarkably clear skies and could be seen over most of the western US. Over San Francisco, the eclipse never became more than this crescent shape while miles further north in Redding California it appeared in the sky as a ring of fire.

The color is natural, at least as natural as when shot though a
wrapper cut and held over the lens with a rubber band and used as poor man's solar filter. It was amazing how well the cheap wrapper that you typically would just toss in the trash made for a perfect solar filter. I think it also added a bit of refraction of the light causing the rainbow like color in the sun.

The next Solar Eclipse will be on August 20th, 2017. Just a mere 5 years beween the two eclipses. The 2017 eclipse will be a Total Eclipse as it crosses diagonally across from the Columbia River to the state of Georgia. Depending on your location is will be a partial eclipse as show here or as a Total Eclipse if your in the right spot. I intend to be in the right spot for the Total Eclipse.

© Darvin Atkeson
LiquidMoonlight.com

Note: If you want to know more about the Pop-Tart wrapper you will need to view this image on my Flickr photostream...

http://www.flickr.com/photos/liquidmoonlightcom/7239051062/