Once In Lifetime August Solar Eclipse Will Bring A Million Tourists to Oregon
In case you haven't heard, a very rare solar eclipse could bring over a million tourists to Oregon, especially across a band reaching from Salem through Umatilla County including Baker and Prairie Cities. That's the main path where it will be most visible anywhere.
According to the East Oregonian, August 21st around 10:15am, the event will begin. A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between the Sun and the Earth, partially or completely blocking the light for a brief period of time. Such an event will not occur in Oregon until the year 2108, truly making it a once-in-a-lifetime event. The stages of the eclipse will look like this. In ancient times, such events often caused panic, as people thought the Gods were mad or it was the end of the world.
The East Oregonian says Pendleton will likely serve as a base camp for many of the watchers, and the number of people expected to block to the area is enormous, perhaps as many as one million.
The path of the eclipse is expected to be about 90 miles wide, meaning anyone within it will clearly see what's going on, and Oregon officials in Hermiston, Pendleton and surrounding areas expect to start getting phone calls about reservations very soon. In fact, some have already begun.
These are the eclipses where people are urged to wear those special glasses, because using binoculars or a telescope and looking directly at the center or apex of the eclipse can expose your eyes to dangerous invisible light rays that only occur at the peak of the event.