WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.120 --> 00:00:02.759 So picture this. You are standing out in an open 2 00:00:02.799 --> 00:00:07.599 field and it's mid afternoon. The biological clock in your head, 3 00:00:07.839 --> 00:00:10.599 you know, the one that's been talibrated by just millions 4 00:00:10.640 --> 00:00:13.720 of years of evolution. It is telling you exactly how 5 00:00:13.759 --> 00:00:15.839 the world is supposed to behave right now. 6 00:00:15.919 --> 00:00:17.879 Right the sun is up, obviously. 7 00:00:17.600 --> 00:00:19.640 Yeah, exactly, the sun is up, the air is warm, 8 00:00:19.640 --> 00:00:23.199 and you have that steady, familiar hum of ambient noise 9 00:00:23.239 --> 00:00:26.640 from birds and insects. It all feels completely. 10 00:00:26.160 --> 00:00:28.000 Normal until it suddenly doesn't. 11 00:00:28.199 --> 00:00:31.519 Right until it doesn't, because then, for absolutely no intuitive, 12 00:00:31.600 --> 00:00:35.679 terrestrial reason at all, the fundamental rules of your reality 13 00:00:35.920 --> 00:00:36.560 just break. 14 00:00:36.759 --> 00:00:38.640 Oh it's so unsettling, it really is. 15 00:00:38.719 --> 00:00:42.840 The sky just shifts into this bizarre, silvery twilight. The 16 00:00:42.880 --> 00:00:46.759 temperature suddenly plummets, and you feel this literal chill pulling 17 00:00:46.840 --> 00:00:50.320 right across your skin. You look up and the stars 18 00:00:50.320 --> 00:00:52.000 have actually appeared, right in the middle of the day. 19 00:00:52.039 --> 00:00:53.840 Yeah, the daytime stars really throw people off. 20 00:00:53.920 --> 00:00:57.039 Oh totally. But honestly, maybe the most unsettling part isn't 21 00:00:57.039 --> 00:00:58.600 even what you see, it's what you hear. 22 00:00:58.880 --> 00:00:59.520 The silence. 23 00:01:00.119 --> 00:01:04.000 Yes, the birds just stop singing entirely. The insects go 24 00:01:04.200 --> 00:01:10.079 completely dead. Quiet. It is just this surreal, violently primal experience. 25 00:01:10.319 --> 00:01:13.200 It completely overrides all of our modern sensibilities. I mean, 26 00:01:13.239 --> 00:01:15.120 you can understand the overhill mechanics all you want, you 27 00:01:15.120 --> 00:01:17.879 can read all the textbooks, but when that solar radiation 28 00:01:18.079 --> 00:01:21.239 is just abruptly severed, it hits you right exactly. It 29 00:01:21.239 --> 00:01:24.920 speaks directly to that ancient reptilian part of the human brain. 30 00:01:25.280 --> 00:01:29.719 The environment goes into shock. We usually call it cosmic awe, 31 00:01:29.760 --> 00:01:33.280 but fundamentally it's just a physiological reaction to the sudden 32 00:01:33.319 --> 00:01:35.239 removal of our primary energy source. 33 00:01:35.359 --> 00:01:38.480 Yeah, and honestly, understanding the sheer scale of that disruption, 34 00:01:38.959 --> 00:01:42.040 that is our entire mission for today, because right behind 35 00:01:42.120 --> 00:01:45.799 that primal awe is this brutal, really high stakes game 36 00:01:45.840 --> 00:01:48.519 of mathematics, meteorology and human logistics. 37 00:01:48.599 --> 00:01:49.760 That's a massive undertaking. 38 00:01:49.879 --> 00:01:52.319 It really is so for you, the listener. We have 39 00:01:52.400 --> 00:01:55.719 gathered just an absolute mountain of raw data today to 40 00:01:55.840 --> 00:02:00.159 fully decode this monumental total solar eclipse that is currently 41 00:02:00.239 --> 00:02:01.239 sweeping across the. 42 00:02:01.159 --> 00:02:04.719 Globe, and the variety of sources we have is just fantastic. 43 00:02:05.120 --> 00:02:08.599 Oh, it's wild. We have been literally pouring over these 44 00:02:08.800 --> 00:02:13.319 highly technical press releases from a major European space agency. 45 00:02:13.719 --> 00:02:17.639 Plus we have these incredibly granular local viewing guides put 46 00:02:17.680 --> 00:02:19.680 together by Icelandic geologists. 47 00:02:19.800 --> 00:02:22.439 Right, and we can't forget the online forums. 48 00:02:22.120 --> 00:02:26.159 Oh right, the enthusiastic, highly technical threads from an online 49 00:02:26.159 --> 00:02:29.919 community of meteorologists and eclipse chasers. Plus we've got live 50 00:02:30.080 --> 00:02:34.759 orbital tracking platforms and even the rigidly specific thermal and 51 00:02:34.800 --> 00:02:37.879 optical safety manuals right from the equipment manufacturers. 52 00:02:37.919 --> 00:02:41.759 It's just a remarkable conversions of disciplines, honestly, because you know, 53 00:02:41.800 --> 00:02:44.159 we aren't just looking at a celestial vent here. We 54 00:02:44.199 --> 00:02:48.479 are looking at how one localized shadow dictates these massive 55 00:02:48.479 --> 00:02:49.639 shifts in human behavior. 56 00:02:49.759 --> 00:02:50.039 Yeah. 57 00:02:50.039 --> 00:02:53.680 It tests the absolute limits of atmospheric physics and frankly, 58 00:02:54.000 --> 00:02:56.639 it even challenges the biological limits of the human eye. 59 00:02:56.719 --> 00:02:58.719 Yeah. The ice safety stuff we will get to later 60 00:02:58.879 --> 00:03:02.000 is just terrifying. But let's start with the raw mechanics 61 00:03:02.000 --> 00:03:04.680 of this shadow, because that is where this story really begins. 62 00:03:05.000 --> 00:03:07.800 We have the data tracing the path of totality, and 63 00:03:08.000 --> 00:03:09.919 I mean it isn't just some simple line drawn on 64 00:03:09.960 --> 00:03:14.919 a map. No, it's a massive supersonic projection the umbra, 65 00:03:15.240 --> 00:03:19.039 which is the darkest central part of the Moon's shadow. 66 00:03:19.599 --> 00:03:22.360 It basically slams into the Earth right near. 67 00:03:22.319 --> 00:03:24.560 Greenland, traveling at thousands of miles an. 68 00:03:24.520 --> 00:03:27.919 Hour right, and then it tears across the volcanic landscape 69 00:03:27.960 --> 00:03:31.479 of Iceland, races entirely over the open North Atlantic, and 70 00:03:31.520 --> 00:03:34.599 finally slices across the northern half of Spain and a 71 00:03:34.680 --> 00:03:37.479 tiny sliver of Portugal before it just vanishes. 72 00:03:37.719 --> 00:03:42.879 And see, the geometry of that specific projectory dictates absolutely 73 00:03:42.919 --> 00:03:46.360 everything about the human experience on the ground. How so well, 74 00:03:46.400 --> 00:03:48.479 because the Earth is a sphere, right, this shadow isn't 75 00:03:48.479 --> 00:03:51.280 just striking a flat movie screen. It hits the curvature 76 00:03:51.319 --> 00:03:53.800 of the planet at vastly different angles depending on where 77 00:03:53.800 --> 00:03:57.639 it actually lands and at what specific time it hits. Okay, 78 00:03:57.919 --> 00:04:01.199 so this creates these severe, fun fundamental differences in the 79 00:04:01.240 --> 00:04:05.120 Sun's altitude for the actual observer standing on the ground, which. 80 00:04:04.879 --> 00:04:07.719 The sources detail so beautifully. Like, if you are standing 81 00:04:07.719 --> 00:04:10.360 in Iceland catching the shadow as it makes its first 82 00:04:10.400 --> 00:04:13.680 really major terrestrial landfall, the eclipsed Sun is going to 83 00:04:13.680 --> 00:04:16.040 sit about twenty four degrees above the horizon. 84 00:04:15.919 --> 00:04:18.240 Right positioned over in the west southwest. 85 00:04:17.800 --> 00:04:22.120 Exactly, and that is a very comfortable, relatively high mid 86 00:04:22.160 --> 00:04:25.399 afternoon posture for the sun. But because the shadow is 87 00:04:25.399 --> 00:04:28.439 moving so incredibly fast, by the time it actually reaches Spain, 88 00:04:29.160 --> 00:04:30.600 the sun is just exhausted. 89 00:04:30.800 --> 00:04:32.240 It's dropping incredibly fast. 90 00:04:32.360 --> 00:04:35.800 We are talking about altitudes plunging from twelve degrees down 91 00:04:35.879 --> 00:04:39.480 to a really perilous three degrees right before sunset, and 92 00:04:39.519 --> 00:04:40.079 that right. 93 00:04:39.959 --> 00:04:44.079 There is the first major logistical filter for anyone trying 94 00:04:44.079 --> 00:04:47.519 to intercept this event. Because what does a three degree 95 00:04:47.560 --> 00:04:51.040 altitude actually mean in a practical mechanical sense. 96 00:04:51.120 --> 00:04:52.759 I mean, it sounds incredibly low. 97 00:04:52.879 --> 00:04:56.480 It is visually and photographically, a low altitude eclipse is 98 00:04:56.519 --> 00:04:58.319 actually widely considered the Holy Grail. 99 00:04:58.480 --> 00:04:59.519 Really, why is that? 100 00:05:00.040 --> 00:05:03.319 Because the atmospheric refraction at that severe angle makes the 101 00:05:03.360 --> 00:05:06.920 Sun appear slightly larger and often much deeper in color. 102 00:05:07.439 --> 00:05:09.600 But more importantly, it allows you to frame the black 103 00:05:09.639 --> 00:05:14.319 and sun with that glowing ethereal corona directly against terrestrial landmarks. 104 00:05:14.399 --> 00:05:17.000 Oh, so you can get the horizon in the shot exactly. 105 00:05:17.160 --> 00:05:20.319 You can compose a photograph with the eclipse hanged directly 106 00:05:20.319 --> 00:05:23.959 over a cathedral or a mountain range or a local cityscape. Yeah, 107 00:05:24.160 --> 00:05:27.040 high noon eclipses where you are basically just staring straight 108 00:05:27.120 --> 00:05:30.920 up at the zenith. They completely lack that earthly context. 109 00:05:31.160 --> 00:05:33.600 Okay, I totally see the appeal of the photography there, 110 00:05:33.839 --> 00:05:38.680 But structurally doesn't that introduce just a massive trip ruining risk. Oh? Absolutely, 111 00:05:38.720 --> 00:05:41.439 because if the sun is only three degrees above the horizon, 112 00:05:41.879 --> 00:05:44.519 you aren't really looking up anymore. You are looking directly 113 00:05:44.560 --> 00:05:46.040 across the surface of the Earth. 114 00:05:46.160 --> 00:05:46.920 Yes, exactly. 115 00:05:47.000 --> 00:05:49.920 It feels like like trying to see a specific lighthouse 116 00:05:49.959 --> 00:05:52.959 beam from ten miles away, but you are standing right 117 00:05:53.000 --> 00:05:54.600 in the middle of a dense forest. 118 00:05:54.759 --> 00:05:55.879 That is a great way to put it. 119 00:05:55.920 --> 00:05:58.959 Like, the beam is definitely there, and it's incredibly bright, 120 00:05:59.040 --> 00:06:02.720 but any single tree trunk, or any slight rise in 121 00:06:02.720 --> 00:06:05.920 the elevation between you and that lens, it just completely 122 00:06:06.040 --> 00:06:07.920 kills your line of sight. Your bearing has to be 123 00:06:07.959 --> 00:06:09.240 mathematically flawless. 124 00:06:09.519 --> 00:06:13.160 Your lighthouse analogy is perfectly aligned with the topographical reality. 125 00:06:13.160 --> 00:06:17.680 In Europe, the trees in your scenario are actually the 126 00:06:17.720 --> 00:06:21.519 Pyrenees mountains or local hills, or honestly, even just a 127 00:06:21.519 --> 00:06:23.680 two story building in a Spanish coastal town. 128 00:06:23.720 --> 00:06:25.560 Wow, just a building can ruin it easily. 129 00:06:26.199 --> 00:06:29.720 In Iceland, at twenty four degrees the geometry is very forgiving. 130 00:06:30.000 --> 00:06:32.120 You can be standing down in a valley or surrounded 131 00:06:32.120 --> 00:06:35.439 by these modest coastal cliffs and you will still easily 132 00:06:35.480 --> 00:06:38.839 clear the local horizon. Right But in Spain, at five 133 00:06:38.879 --> 00:06:42.839 degrees or three degrees, you are literally fighting the Earth's crust. 134 00:06:43.160 --> 00:06:47.199 Every single degree the sun drops essentially multiplies the risk 135 00:06:47.240 --> 00:06:48.839 of terrestrial obstruction. 136 00:06:48.480 --> 00:06:50.759 Which means you can't just you know, casually pull off 137 00:06:50.759 --> 00:06:53.399 the highway in northern Spain, lean against your car hood 138 00:06:53.519 --> 00:06:54.800 and expect to see totality. 139 00:06:54.920 --> 00:06:57.399 Oh, absolutely not. It demands mellicin scouting. I mean you 140 00:06:57.439 --> 00:06:59.879 have to calculate the exact asimuth, which is the compass 141 00:07:00.000 --> 00:07:02.519 bearing of the sun at the precise moment of totality, 142 00:07:02.720 --> 00:07:05.480 and then you have to map that precise vector against 143 00:07:05.519 --> 00:07:08.439 high resolution topographical models of local landscape. 144 00:07:08.439 --> 00:07:10.519 So you need to know exactly how high ridge is 145 00:07:10.560 --> 00:07:12.680 five miles to your west exactly. 146 00:07:13.120 --> 00:07:14.839 You have to know if that ridge is going to 147 00:07:14.879 --> 00:07:16.079 block a three degree sun. 148 00:07:16.560 --> 00:07:20.800 So this geographic reality just immediately forces this brutal choice 149 00:07:20.800 --> 00:07:23.519 on the observer. Do you choose the high altitude much 150 00:07:23.560 --> 00:07:26.439 more forgiving site lines of the North Atlantic, or do 151 00:07:26.519 --> 00:07:30.800 you gamble on those dramatic, super high risk sunsets of 152 00:07:30.879 --> 00:07:33.879 the Iberian Peninsula is absolutely a fork. 153 00:07:33.639 --> 00:07:35.720 In the road for every single person tracking this. 154 00:07:35.959 --> 00:07:39.199 So let's actually trace the shadows path chronologically and look 155 00:07:39.240 --> 00:07:42.240 at the Iceland strategy first, because the variables over there 156 00:07:42.279 --> 00:07:43.120 are completely different. 157 00:07:43.160 --> 00:07:45.720 Right. We aren't fighting the horizon there, No, in Iceland, 158 00:07:45.959 --> 00:07:48.560 you are fighting a much more volatile enemy, which is 159 00:07:48.600 --> 00:07:52.720 the maritime climate. A dedicated icelandic eclipse guide we reviewed 160 00:07:53.199 --> 00:07:57.240 lays out what the local geological community calls the Iceland equation, 161 00:07:57.439 --> 00:07:58.839 the Iceland equation. 162 00:07:59.040 --> 00:08:00.439 That sounds intense, it is. 163 00:08:00.480 --> 00:08:04.120 It is a high stakes, almost cruel trade off between 164 00:08:04.160 --> 00:08:07.199 the mathematical duration of totality on one hand, and the 165 00:08:07.240 --> 00:08:10.600 historical meteorological data of an island sitting right at the 166 00:08:10.600 --> 00:08:13.120 intersection of the Goldstream and Arctic air masses on the other. 167 00:08:13.519 --> 00:08:17.120 Yeah, the data breakdown for the different regions of Iceland 168 00:08:17.160 --> 00:08:20.319 and these guys is just fascinating because it essentially proves 169 00:08:20.439 --> 00:08:23.360 that there is no perfect spot, there's no silver bullet. 170 00:08:23.720 --> 00:08:25.040 No, you always have to compromise. 171 00:08:25.920 --> 00:08:29.480 Let's look at the extremes first. You have the West 172 00:08:29.519 --> 00:08:33.200 Fords way up in the northwest. Now, mechanically this area 173 00:08:33.320 --> 00:08:36.440 intersects with the absolute thickest part of the shadow cone. 174 00:08:36.600 --> 00:08:39.799 So the data shows this region offers the absolute longest 175 00:08:39.879 --> 00:08:42.519 duration of totality on the entire island. 176 00:08:42.600 --> 00:08:44.879 Right will over two minutes if you are out on 177 00:08:44.919 --> 00:08:45.679 the outer caves. 178 00:08:46.039 --> 00:08:49.600 But the penalties for choosing the west forwards are just severe. 179 00:08:49.960 --> 00:08:52.960 We are talking about punishing four to five hour drive 180 00:08:53.039 --> 00:08:55.960 straight from the capitol, and much of it involves navigating 181 00:08:56.000 --> 00:08:59.320 these unpaved, winding gravel roads. They call them f roads. 182 00:08:59.320 --> 00:09:00.519 I think yes, the roads. 183 00:09:00.600 --> 00:09:03.720 They are rough, and the physical infrastructure to support thousands 184 00:09:03.759 --> 00:09:05.840 of tourists up there simply does not exist. 185 00:09:05.919 --> 00:09:07.759 Either are enough hotels or gas station. 186 00:09:07.720 --> 00:09:12.000 Exactly, and critically, from a weather standpoint, this specific microclimate 187 00:09:12.120 --> 00:09:15.279 historically suffers from over ninety percent cloud cover for this 188 00:09:15.480 --> 00:09:16.759 exact time of year. 189 00:09:17.279 --> 00:09:18.840 It is a massive gamble. 190 00:09:18.639 --> 00:09:22.159 I mean over ninety percent chance of thick clouds. I 191 00:09:22.279 --> 00:09:25.039 was staring at that statistic, just trying to comprehend the 192 00:09:25.080 --> 00:09:28.919 psychology of someone making that choice. Think about the sheer 193 00:09:29.039 --> 00:09:32.639 human drive required to pack all your expensive gear, drive 194 00:09:32.720 --> 00:09:37.159 five hours on volcanic gravel entirely away from civilization, knowing 195 00:09:37.279 --> 00:09:40.919 with near mathematical certainty that You're driving straight into a 196 00:09:40.960 --> 00:09:44.919 massive wall of gray maritime clouds just for chance, right, 197 00:09:45.080 --> 00:09:48.879 all for a two minute window of a cosmic shadow 198 00:09:48.919 --> 00:09:51.720 that you probably won't even see. It's equal parts inspiring 199 00:09:51.840 --> 00:09:53.960 and just deeply masochistic. 200 00:09:54.120 --> 00:09:56.759 It really is the ultimate expression of hoping to beat 201 00:09:56.799 --> 00:09:59.720 the house odds. However, for those who want to balance 202 00:09:59.720 --> 00:10:02.840 the equation slightly, the regional guys point heavily to a 203 00:10:02.840 --> 00:10:05.279 different area, the snaph Business Peninsula. 204 00:10:05.360 --> 00:10:06.759 Okay, yeah, I saw that one. 205 00:10:06.799 --> 00:10:10.320 This is structurally considered the strategic sweet spot. You remain 206 00:10:10.399 --> 00:10:12.960 relatively close to the center line of the shadow, so 207 00:10:13.039 --> 00:10:16.159 you are securing an impressive two minutes and ten seconds. 208 00:10:15.840 --> 00:10:18.279 Of totality, which is pretty close to the west Ford's 209 00:10:18.440 --> 00:10:19.480 duration exactly. 210 00:10:19.600 --> 00:10:22.679 Plus you have this stunning visual potential of the Snapfel's 211 00:10:22.720 --> 00:10:27.080 Yokol Glacier as a foreground. Right. But here is the key. 212 00:10:27.200 --> 00:10:30.720 Your historical cloud odds actually improve. They drop down to 213 00:10:30.759 --> 00:10:33.159 about seventy to seventy five percent coverage. 214 00:10:33.360 --> 00:10:36.000 I mean that is still terrifyingly high if you are 215 00:10:36.039 --> 00:10:38.440 flying all the way across the world for this, but 216 00:10:38.679 --> 00:10:42.440 undeniably better than ninety percent true. And then if you 217 00:10:42.480 --> 00:10:44.440 look at the data, it shifts down to the reck 218 00:10:44.519 --> 00:10:48.480 Jans Peninsula, and this really seems to be the pragmatic 219 00:10:48.679 --> 00:10:50.320 conservative play for most people. 220 00:10:50.440 --> 00:10:51.600 Yes, it's the safe bet. 221 00:10:51.799 --> 00:10:55.240 It is incredibly close to the main international airport, barely 222 00:10:55.240 --> 00:10:57.559 a forty five minute drive from the capitol. Now you 223 00:10:57.600 --> 00:10:59.600 do take a hit on the duration. You are down 224 00:10:59.639 --> 00:11:02.000 to about one minute and thirty nine seconds, maybe up 225 00:11:02.039 --> 00:11:04.440 to one minute and forty eight seconds. But this region 226 00:11:04.480 --> 00:11:08.360 boasts the absolute best historical cloud cover odds on the island, 227 00:11:08.600 --> 00:11:10.039 sitting at roughly sixty percent. 228 00:11:10.120 --> 00:11:12.759 And we absolutely have to discuss the capital city itself 229 00:11:12.759 --> 00:11:15.679 reikievic because the geometry here is just razor thin. 230 00:11:15.799 --> 00:11:17.879 Yeah, explain that because I found that part confusing. 231 00:11:17.919 --> 00:11:20.080 So the city limit is basically barely cling to the 232 00:11:20.120 --> 00:11:23.279 extreme southern edge of the umbra. Observers who just decide 233 00:11:23.320 --> 00:11:26.000 to stay in their downtown hotels might experience a few 234 00:11:26.080 --> 00:11:30.399 fleeting seconds of totality, or mathematically they might get absolutely zero. 235 00:11:30.480 --> 00:11:32.120 Just based on their street address. 236 00:11:32.080 --> 00:11:35.960 Completely depending on their specific street address. To guarantee even 237 00:11:36.000 --> 00:11:39.200 a few actual seconds of totality from the capital region, 238 00:11:39.960 --> 00:11:42.279 you have to travel to the extreme western tips of 239 00:11:42.279 --> 00:11:44.960 the city, such as out by the local lighthouses. 240 00:11:45.120 --> 00:11:47.320 So if you are just sitting at a nice cafe 241 00:11:47.440 --> 00:11:50.720 in downtown Reykivic, you might just see a ninety nine 242 00:11:50.759 --> 00:11:54.519 point nine percent partial eclipse exactly, which, as we know, 243 00:11:54.840 --> 00:11:58.000 means you still see ten thousand times too much sunlight 244 00:11:58.039 --> 00:12:01.440 to actually see the corona. The I won't go totally dark. 245 00:12:01.320 --> 00:12:03.759 Right, it ruins the entire visual of totality. 246 00:12:04.200 --> 00:12:06.840 So the golden rule of Iceland really seems to be 247 00:12:07.480 --> 00:12:11.120 move west and absolutely do not just stay in your hotel. 248 00:12:11.320 --> 00:12:12.720 Yes, you have to move. 249 00:12:12.720 --> 00:12:14.960 But if you do manage to find a gap in 250 00:12:15.000 --> 00:12:17.559 the clouds on one of these remote peninsulas, the sensory 251 00:12:17.600 --> 00:12:21.120 experience in that specific maritime climate is going to be 252 00:12:21.159 --> 00:12:22.559 incredibly jarring, isn't it? 253 00:12:22.600 --> 00:12:26.519 Oh radically jarring. Iceland's baseline temperatures are already pretty cool 254 00:12:26.559 --> 00:12:29.679 to begin with. When the Moon intercepts the Sun's radiant energy, 255 00:12:29.879 --> 00:12:31.919 the localized atmosphere reacts. 256 00:12:31.639 --> 00:12:33.639 Immediately because the heat source is just. 257 00:12:33.600 --> 00:12:37.759 Gone, right, the data suggests temperatures will drop sharply, typically 258 00:12:37.799 --> 00:12:40.519 two to five degrees celsius. During that brief two minute window. 259 00:12:41.200 --> 00:12:44.120 You will physically feel the eclipse sweeping over you as 260 00:12:44.159 --> 00:12:46.240 this literal wave of cold air. 261 00:12:46.440 --> 00:12:47.080 Wow. 262 00:12:47.120 --> 00:12:50.080 Furthermore, the localized nature of the shadow means observers will 263 00:12:50.120 --> 00:12:52.919 witness a three hundred and sixty degree sunset effect. 264 00:12:53.120 --> 00:12:56.360 Okay, wait, a three hundred and sixty degree sunset. How 265 00:12:56.360 --> 00:12:59.480 does the geometry of that even work? I understand that 266 00:12:59.559 --> 00:13:02.120 the sky directly above you goes dark, but why is 267 00:13:02.159 --> 00:13:04.720 the horizon glowing in every single direction? 268 00:13:05.039 --> 00:13:09.240 Because the umbra that dark central shadow is really only 269 00:13:09.279 --> 00:13:11.960 about one hundred or so miles wide, So you are 270 00:13:11.960 --> 00:13:15.440 basically standing in a dark circle. But outside that circle, 271 00:13:15.480 --> 00:13:17.799 the sun is still shining on the earth. Oh okay, 272 00:13:17.840 --> 00:13:20.919 So that sunlight from outside your dark shadow zone scatters 273 00:13:20.960 --> 00:13:23.559 through the atmosphere and physically bleeds into your line of 274 00:13:23.600 --> 00:13:26.960 sight all along the edges of the horizon. It effectively 275 00:13:27.000 --> 00:13:31.360 paints those low hanging maritime clouds in twilight colors deep oranges, pinks, 276 00:13:31.360 --> 00:13:35.080 and purples in every single direction, simultaneously. 277 00:13:34.360 --> 00:13:37.600 A freezing three hundred and sixty degree twilight while standing 278 00:13:37.679 --> 00:13:40.240 under a glacier. That is staggeringly cinematic. 279 00:13:40.360 --> 00:13:41.200 It's beautiful. 280 00:13:41.279 --> 00:13:45.000 But again, that sixty to ninety percent cloud cover statistic 281 00:13:45.159 --> 00:13:49.200 is just hanging over this entire iceland strategy like an anvil. 282 00:13:48.840 --> 00:13:52.240 Which is precisely why static point eight to point B 283 00:13:52.399 --> 00:13:56.639 planning completely fails in Iceland. You cannot simply drop a 284 00:13:56.679 --> 00:13:59.399 pin on a beautiful cliff side on a map and 285 00:13:59.480 --> 00:14:00.120 just wait there. 286 00:14:00.200 --> 00:14:02.080 You have to be adaptable, highly adaptable. 287 00:14:02.320 --> 00:14:05.919 The consensus among the meteorological communities we reviewed is absolute 288 00:14:06.000 --> 00:14:10.759 on this. The only winning strategy is extreme real time mobility. 289 00:14:10.919 --> 00:14:12.519 So what does that look like on the ground. 290 00:14:12.679 --> 00:14:16.240 You must scout two or three vastly different candidate locations 291 00:14:16.279 --> 00:14:20.399 situated in distinct microclimates beforehand. Then you wake up on 292 00:14:20.440 --> 00:14:24.120 the day, you obsessively refresh the live radar and satellite feeds, 293 00:14:24.360 --> 00:14:27.840 and you make a game day, completely reactionary decision. You 294 00:14:27.879 --> 00:14:29.960 aren't just waiting for the eclipse to come to you. 295 00:14:29.960 --> 00:14:32.320 You are actively hunting for a clear patch of sky. 296 00:14:32.480 --> 00:14:35.360 You literally have to outrun the weather exactly. Okay, So, 297 00:14:35.440 --> 00:14:38.200 if Iceland is a high speed chase against maritime moisture, 298 00:14:38.240 --> 00:14:40.799 the Spanish Path is just a totally different theater of. 299 00:14:40.720 --> 00:14:42.320 War, a completely different set of. 300 00:14:42.240 --> 00:14:45.480 Problems, because the enemy there isn't just the water vapor 301 00:14:45.519 --> 00:14:49.080 in the sky, it's the solid earth itself and human gridlock. 302 00:14:49.879 --> 00:14:52.559 Let's trace the shadow as it leaves the North Atlantic, 303 00:14:53.000 --> 00:14:56.960 sweeps completely across the Bay of Biscay and slams right 304 00:14:57.000 --> 00:14:58.720 into the Iberiana Peninsula. 305 00:14:58.799 --> 00:15:01.440 Right so as the shadow makes landfall in northern Spain, 306 00:15:01.519 --> 00:15:05.000 the timeline is obviously shifted. Totality is now occurring late 307 00:15:05.039 --> 00:15:08.360 in the evening. We're looking at cities like Oviedo, which 308 00:15:08.399 --> 00:15:12.399 will experience an impressive one minute and fifty one seconds 309 00:15:12.399 --> 00:15:15.720 of totality, But the sun is already sinking. It's sitting 310 00:15:15.720 --> 00:15:18.240 at just ten degrees above the horizon, and the. 311 00:15:18.200 --> 00:15:21.039 Further east the shadow moves across the country, the lower 312 00:15:21.080 --> 00:15:23.120 the sun gets. Exactly by the time it crosses the 313 00:15:23.159 --> 00:15:25.519 Central Plateau and reaches Burgos, you get one hundred and 314 00:15:25.559 --> 00:15:27.840 four seconds of darkness, but the sun is down to 315 00:15:27.879 --> 00:15:31.039 eight degrees. And when the shadow eventually leaves the mainland 316 00:15:31.159 --> 00:15:33.720 entirely and hits Palma in the Balaric Islands, you get 317 00:15:33.759 --> 00:15:36.480 one minute and thirty nine seconds of totality, but the 318 00:15:36.559 --> 00:15:39.600 sun is at a terrifying three degrees. It is practically 319 00:15:39.600 --> 00:15:41.679 scraping the Mediterranean Sea at that point. 320 00:15:41.440 --> 00:15:44.960 And this specific geometry creates what the local meteorological guys 321 00:15:45.080 --> 00:15:48.000 explicitly categorize as the sunset problem. 322 00:15:48.000 --> 00:15:48.879 A sunset problem. 323 00:15:48.960 --> 00:15:53.919 Yes, when most people visualize coastal viewing in Spain, their 324 00:15:53.960 --> 00:16:00.559 minds naturally default to the famous, highly developed Mediterranean coast resorts, 325 00:16:00.799 --> 00:16:01.360 the beaches. 326 00:16:01.440 --> 00:16:02.799 Sure, that's where all the tourists go. 327 00:16:03.360 --> 00:16:08.159 But the Mediterranean coast faces east. This cotal solar eclipse 328 00:16:08.200 --> 00:16:10.919 is happening in the west, tracking directly with the setting 329 00:16:10.919 --> 00:16:11.919 sun right. 330 00:16:11.799 --> 00:16:14.639 So you can't just book a beautiful, expensive hotel in 331 00:16:14.679 --> 00:16:17.559 Valencia or Barcelona, walk down to the beach with your 332 00:16:17.600 --> 00:16:19.279 towel and expect a cosmic show. 333 00:16:19.399 --> 00:16:21.399 No, you would be looking the wrong way. 334 00:16:21.440 --> 00:16:23.960 If you are on the Mediterranean beach facing the water, 335 00:16:24.480 --> 00:16:27.840 the eclipse is happening completely behind you. It's setting over 336 00:16:27.879 --> 00:16:30.320 the land mass, over the mountains, and over the high 337 00:16:30.399 --> 00:16:33.320 rise hotels you just walked out of. You are quite 338 00:16:33.399 --> 00:16:35.480 literally on the wrong side of the continent. 339 00:16:35.799 --> 00:16:40.279 It is a massive geographical paradox for tourism. The primary 340 00:16:40.360 --> 00:16:45.000 coastal infrastructure is facing the completely wrong direction for this event. Therefore, 341 00:16:45.360 --> 00:16:49.480 securing an unobstructed westward facing vantage point is going to 342 00:16:49.519 --> 00:16:54.919 create severe, highly localized logistical bottlenecks. People have to either 343 00:16:54.960 --> 00:16:57.279 traverse all the way to the northern coasts or find 344 00:16:57.360 --> 00:17:00.960 very high elevations on the western edges of the central planes. 345 00:17:00.840 --> 00:17:03.840 And the national traffic authorities in Spain are acutely aware 346 00:17:03.879 --> 00:17:04.119 of this. 347 00:17:04.680 --> 00:17:05.519 They are very worried. 348 00:17:05.640 --> 00:17:09.240 The data shows they have implemented these massive special mobility 349 00:17:09.279 --> 00:17:12.359 plans because you have hundreds of thousands of people, locals 350 00:17:12.400 --> 00:17:16.359 and international tourists, all converging on a very narrow band 351 00:17:16.359 --> 00:17:20.319 of totality, all desperately seeking a flat piece of land 352 00:17:20.319 --> 00:17:24.440 with a completely clear western horizon. The physics of that 353 00:17:24.519 --> 00:17:26.000 traffic alone are staggering. 354 00:17:26.119 --> 00:17:28.119 It's a nightmare scenario for rural roads. 355 00:17:28.319 --> 00:17:31.200 You are funneling a massive volume of vehicles into these 356 00:17:31.279 --> 00:17:33.960 rural mountain passes that were simply never engineered for that 357 00:17:34.039 --> 00:17:34.880 kind of capacity. 358 00:17:34.960 --> 00:17:39.400 The post eclipse gridlock projections are immense. Once totality ends, 359 00:17:39.880 --> 00:17:44.079 human nature dictates an immediate, frantic mass exodus. Everyone wants 360 00:17:44.160 --> 00:17:47.200 to go home or back to their hotel. However, within 361 00:17:47.240 --> 00:17:51.799 the astronomical community sources there is a brilliant, almost elegant 362 00:17:51.839 --> 00:17:54.680 loophole to this exact traffic nightmare. 363 00:17:54.720 --> 00:17:55.519 I love this part. 364 00:17:55.720 --> 00:18:00.000 It turns out this specific eclipse perfectly aligns with another 365 00:18:00.200 --> 00:18:04.160 major celestial event. Now obviously, in eclipse requires a new moon, 366 00:18:04.400 --> 00:18:07.119 meaning the moon is entirely unilluminated from our perspective. 367 00:18:07.160 --> 00:18:10.400 So the sky is dark, right, It's just basic eclipse mechanics. 368 00:18:10.440 --> 00:18:14.680 But this specific new moon perfectly coincides with the absolute 369 00:18:14.759 --> 00:18:16.680 peak of the Perseed meteor shower. 370 00:18:16.839 --> 00:18:19.160 I was really hoping we would get to this because 371 00:18:19.200 --> 00:18:23.200 the Perseeds are arguably the most reliable and spectacular meteor 372 00:18:23.279 --> 00:18:26.079 shower of the entire year. They are caused by the 373 00:18:26.119 --> 00:18:29.599 Earth physically plowing through the ancient debris trail left behind 374 00:18:29.640 --> 00:18:32.200 by the swift tuttle commet exactly So, how does this 375 00:18:32.359 --> 00:18:36.200 orbital debris field actually solve a terrestrial traffic jam in Spain? 376 00:18:36.440 --> 00:18:39.279 It completely flips the tactical approach for the observer. Think 377 00:18:39.279 --> 00:18:43.079 about it. The sun has set entirely shortly after totality finishes. 378 00:18:43.200 --> 00:18:46.160 The sky is pitching to absolute black because that new 379 00:18:46.200 --> 00:18:48.359 moon ensures there is zero lunar light pollution. 380 00:18:48.559 --> 00:18:51.319 Okay, perfect viewing conditions, exactly. 381 00:18:51.680 --> 00:18:54.680 So instead of rushing straight to your car, fighting for 382 00:18:54.720 --> 00:18:57.160 a few inches of space on a two lane rural road, 383 00:18:57.440 --> 00:18:59.799 and just sitting in bumper to bumper misery for hours, 384 00:19:00.279 --> 00:19:04.039 the optimal strategy is to simply stay exactly where you. 385 00:19:04.000 --> 00:19:05.079 Are just wait it out. 386 00:19:05.279 --> 00:19:08.240 Yes, you allow the natural darkness to set in, you 387 00:19:08.359 --> 00:19:10.839 let the impatient crowds clear out of the area, and 388 00:19:10.880 --> 00:19:13.720 you just look up to watch a naturally pristine meteor 389 00:19:13.759 --> 00:19:15.279 shower directly overhead. 390 00:19:15.440 --> 00:19:19.559 It is the ultimate cosmic crowd control mechanism. I was 391 00:19:19.599 --> 00:19:22.440 trying to conceptualize this, and it feels exactly like the 392 00:19:22.440 --> 00:19:25.400 parking lot dynamics after a massive stadium rock concert. 393 00:19:25.480 --> 00:19:26.839 Oh that's a good comparison, right. 394 00:19:26.880 --> 00:19:29.240 The house lights come up, the final quard rings out, 395 00:19:29.480 --> 00:19:33.279 and fifty thousand people immediately sprint to their cars, only 396 00:19:33.319 --> 00:19:36.440 to sit entirely trapped in the exhaust fumes for two hours. 397 00:19:36.519 --> 00:19:37.480 Yeah, we've all been there. 398 00:19:37.599 --> 00:19:39.920 But in this scenario, it's as if the universe provides 399 00:19:39.960 --> 00:19:45.240 an incredible, completely unannounced acoustic encore performance specifically designed to 400 00:19:45.319 --> 00:19:47.759 keep you happily in your seat while the parking lot 401 00:19:47.880 --> 00:19:49.640