Different people react in
different ways to a total
eclipse. Self-confessed
umbraphile, psychologist
and author Kate Russo
describes it as a “whole
roller coaster of emotions
that happen, and these
emotions are really quite
intense. Awe is at the central part
of the eclipse experience, but there’s
Mozambique
Milky Way, Madagascar
something I’ve termed ‘primal fear’, this
eerie feeling in the environment. The
primitive parts of our bodies are picking up
that things aren’t quite right in the natural
order of the world.”
Solar eclipses are not dragons or demons
eating the moon; they are perfectly natural
phenomena that occur when the moon
gets between the earth and the sun.
Interestingly, the moon is about a quarter
of the size of the sun, but the sun is about
four times further away than the moon
so, to us, they look about the same size.
A total eclipse occurs when the moon is
directly lined up with the sun and earth
and its full shadow falls on earth. But the
distance between the earth and the moon
is not constant so, if the moon happens
to be at its furthest point from the earth,
it doesn’t block the sun completely, but
leaves a perfect ring of fire around the deep
black shadow. This is called an annular
eclipse, and there will be one on the 1st of
September. You’ll be able to see a partial
eclipse from almost everywhere in South
Africa – but don’t even think of looking at
the sun without proper protective eclipse
glasses. If you do, you will – as boarding
school housemasters are fond of telling
errant schoolboys – go blind. But in this
case it’s true.
Lake Manyara, Tanzania
53
EAT, DRINK, TRAVEL
After three minutes and 20 seconds of
silence and darkness – of ecstasy tinged
with disquiet – the shadow shifted and a
bright dot of light escaped from behind
the moon. We all breathed out a deep
sigh of relief, the birds broke into song,
and the hippos started grunting loudly
and splashing around – recovering rather
rapidly from the short, dark night that took
them so by surprise. Life had returned
to normal. I put the glasses back on and
glanced up – relieved to see the sun was
coming back. But also a little sad, knowing
I’d experienced something very special. I’d
seen the sun sleeping – a moment of deep
intimacy – and now it was over. In three
minutes and twenty seconds I had,
forever, changed the way I think
about the sun. Never before
had I considered it to be
remotely vulnerable.