​I was so lucky to get a window seat on our flight back from Perth to Brisbane on the 22nd April 2023.
 
Looking out the window at sunset I saw this gorgeous view while we were at 30,000ft or 11,000 meters, you can still see those stunning colours from the volcanic aerosols in the atmosphere!
 
As it got darker, you could see a tiny 2 day old crescent Moon with the planet Venus above, it was a bit tricky to get the photo’s but I put a blanket over my head to try and get rid of the reflections from the down lights on the plane…. and it worked, the colours were very vivid…Amazing!
 
Images were taken with a Canon G7 x Mark11 camera on manual focus at infinity. I’m on our way back from the incredible Solar Eclipse Cruise on the P&O Pacific Explorer :-)

I wasn’t really sure what these shimmering undulating bands of light were running along the ships deck just a few minutes before totality, but I did think they might have been those rare shadow bands that I’ve read about during a solar eclipse.
 
Thank goodness I had my camera with me and was able to capture a short movie as I hurried back to my setup on the back deck. They were quite mesmerising and I will never forget that strange pulsating shimmering light…I hope you enjoy the movie!

To read more about these fleeting shadow bands please go to the links below:
​
https://eclipse2017.nasa.gov/exploring-shadow-bands
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shadow_bands
https://www.strickling.net/shadowbands.htm

It was all very exciting to get on a plane in Brisbane, fly to Perth and board a cruise ship just to get under the shadow of the Moon, I think Graham and I are now true eclipse chasers along with a couple of our fellow SAS members.
 
The ship provided plenty of excellent astronomy presentations from members of the Australian Society of Australia (ASA) but what we really wanted to see would happen on the morning of the 20th April if the weather stayed nice and clear. Kelly Beatty from Sky & Telescope was working with the Captain to find us a safe anchorage so the ship would be stable enough for all on board to view and take pictures of the event.
 
The Captain did a wonderful job of positioning the ship and anchored in the Exmouth Gulf just off the mainland, being on a moving surface did present its own set of problems, but excuse the pun…we were all in the same boat!
 
Cheesy brought along his telescope to image the event and spend days worrying about how he was going to take his images, but in the end he got some amazing photos of the eclipse. Belinda and Warren also set up on the ships deck not far away from me and got some awesome images.
 
You never know what’s going to happen on the day, I was all set up with my gear on the back deck and was really getting carried away with the atmosphere of the event. I left my setup a few times to go exploring to see what other people were doing, what I saw were so many families waiting patiently and excitingly to see the eclipse with all sorts of equipment to capture some pictures.
 
I came across sunlight breaking through tiny holes in the banisters of the ship that produced little crescent Suns on the deck, I also saw this weird shimmering effect in front of me just before totality and was so thrilled to be seeing what’s known as shadow bands, I took a small movie as it’s quite rare to capture, Yay!
 
I got back to my camera just a few minutes before totality and that’s when somebody called out look at the Moons shadow path!!! I looked behind me and saw this shadow race over us and across the water, it was so fast, when I looked back in front of me and up…there was this incredible diamond ring flash on the limb of the Sun it was just AMAZING! I was bedazzled by it and that’s when it happened…I looked down at my viewfinder and it was black, I thought I had knocked the camera and could not believe I could not see the Sun. (Oh dear!)
 
I picked up my little Canon G7X camera and took a picture and then another incredible diamond ring flashed and that was it, it was all over…only 58 seconds, but ‘Oh Boy’ it was just awesome, and I didn’t get any pictures of totality except the one with my point and shoot Canon camera!!!
 
I could not believe it, what I’d done in all the excitement was to forget to remove the solar filter off the lens :-o Cheesy was so excited he got the whole of totality through his telescope and Belinda got some awesome pictures as well, everyone was just so excited. Lynn a past member of SAS was also on board and she captured a lovely picture too.
 
I was very conflicted, on one hand I was so upset with myself, but on the other hand I saw and experienced the whole event with my eyes, but I can tell you 58 seconds goes so fast and it was worth every second of it :-)
 
Please see a photomontage of the solar event; I took photos every 10 minutes of the partials right up until the end of the eclipse. I’ve put in my one and only picture of totality that I took with the Canon point and shoot camera. My friends (including Tel) have offered to give me one of there images of totality which was very kind of them, but I’ve gone with my own image to let me know that sometimes things are just the way they are…. are we going overseas for the 2024 eclipse next year, you bet we are!
 
Please see a slideshow of my pictures from our adventure, would we go on board a cruise ship again for an eclipse…Yes, we definitely would, as it’s lots of fun and the atmosphere was just awesome!

Yay! My husband and I are going on this wonderful cruise to see the eclipse and flying to Perth on the 16th April 2023. We’ll stay a night in Freemantle first before getting on the ship for a 9pm sailing on the 17th April 2023.
 
I’m a bit concerned about being on a moving surface like but I’m sure the ship will stop while the event is happening so we can capture our images. It’s a five-hour flight from one side of Australia to the other but how exciting!!!
 
Totality is only for 58 seconds so if anything happens…blink and you’ll miss it!
Is it worth all the money and trouble to go see it…you bet it is :-))
 
Please see the information on the cruise below; perhaps you may be able to make it too…
 
https://www.pocruises.com.au/cruises/solar-eclipse
 
This once-in-a-lifetime 5-night cruise is an opportunity to view a Hybrid Solar Eclipse that will track over the North West Cape of Western Australia, including Exmouth. Pacific Explorer will be in a prime position to catch a glimpse of the first Hybrid Solar Eclipse to be visible from Australia in 1000 years. Also known as the King of Eclipse’s, our unique vantage point will put us in place to observe the sun, moon and Earth’s discs aligning. Certainly an event not to be missed!

We have invited special presenter partners to entertain and educate you as we cruise up the coast. Professional astronomers from the Astronomical Society of Australia, will give lectures, Q&As and during networking sessions share their knowledge on eclipse and astronomy basics, cutting edge astronomical research occurring in Australia and other special topics. And of course there will be stargazing to explore the Southern sky and cultural knowledge.

​More information can be found at the main Western Australia Government website at:
https://ningalooeclipse.com/
 
https://ningalooeclipse.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/Ningaloo-Eclipse-downloadable-booklet.pdf
 
Also at the Gravity Centre in Perth at:
https://gravitycentre.com.au/2023-exmouth-solar-eclipse/
https://gravitycentre.com.au/
​

Have you ever wanted to learn the night sky?
Join Noeleen from the Southern Astronomical Society to see how easy it is to find the constellations, planets and other beautiful celestial objects in the night sky, even from your own back garden.
 
Please scan the QR code on the poster below to book or go to GC Libraries What’s on at:
https://www.goldcoast.qld.gov.au/libraries/Whats-on?trumbaEmbed=view%3Devent%26eventid%3D160827310

Noeleen Lowndes is the former president of the Southern Astronomical Society on the Gold Coast and is now a lifetime member. She has actively been involved with astronomy and space education for over 25 years and has supported Gold Coast Libraries with astronomy events since 2003.
 
Noeleen has been a member with NASA’s Saturn Observation Campaign (SOC) for the past 20 years where she educates the public on NASA's Cassini mission to Saturn, then shows the real planet through her large telescope to everyone’s delight.

~ Gold Coast Libraries for 6 – 12 years old ~
 
~ Discover the planets in our Solar System ~
Southport Library  - Tuesday, 11th January 2022 at 2 - 3pm
Every planet in our Solar System is so incredibly different. How did NASA take all those amazing pictures of the planets and send them back to Earth for us to see? Come along to the library and lets discover how they did it!
 
~ Discover Our Amazing Moon ~
Burleigh Waters Library - Thursday, 13 January 2022, at 2 – 3pm
The Moon is our closest neighbour in space, how old is it, what is it made of and how does it light up our night sky?
Come to the library and lets discover all these things and how mankind is going back to the Moon and building a Moon base…Wow!
 
~ Discover and explore the night sky ~
Helensvale Library - Tuesday, 18 January 2022, at 2 – 3pm
Have you ever wondered why the stars are different colours, or where you can find the constellations in the night sky? How do you use a telescope and what will you see with a pair of binoculars? Come along to the library and see how to discover so many amazing things in the night sky from your own back garden.
 
Bookings are essential at:
https://www.goldcoast.qld.gov.au/libraries/Whats-on
 
Presented by Noeleen Lowndes, Southern Astronomical Society Member (Gold Coast)
https://sas.org.au

Please go to the live broadcast that both NASA and the European Southern Observatory (ESO) will be broadcasting from 5.30am on the 3rd July (Australian EST).
 
NASA has partnered with the Exploratorium in San Francisco to bring live views to people across the world of a total solar eclipse, occurring Tuesday, July 2, over South America.
 
The eclipse will only be visible directly to observers within the path of totality, which stretches across parts of Chile and Argentina.

Live webcasting for Total Solar Eclipse 2019 at La Silla
https://www.eso.org/public/
NASA Live:
https://www.nasa.gov/nasalive

With the upcoming Total Eclipse of the Sun due in two days times in Chile I’ve turned my mind to our wonderful solar eclipse we had here in Queensland, Australia on the 14th November 2012.
 
We were at a place called Ellis Beach just north of Cairns in tropical Queensland and at that time of year its notorious for heavy rain, and so it was as day dawned that the eastern sky was leaden with clouds, but then a miracle happen and from our beach location we saw the incredible eclipse of the Sun.
 
I wish everyone who has ventured to Chile and other places under the shadow best of luck for the 2nd July, seeing this spectacle is one of the most amazing things you will ever experience in your life :-)

~ TEDx Helensvale Library ~
Gold Coast Libraries are very excited to announce the release of seven TEDx Talks from our recent TEDx Helensvale Library event!
 
Seven stories from inspirational Gold Coast locals sharing their passions for architecture, ballet, circus, music, astronomy and social enterprise. Watch the videos now and be inspired to MAKE IT! 

The presenters on the night were:
(L Top) Karl Smith, Kristy Seymour, Noeleen Lowndes, Barry Lee, Nicolle Edwards,
Jordyn de Boer & Georgia Canning.

~ Starry Starry Night ~
Look up and discover your night sky
 
Noeleen talks about her love affair with the stars and the steps we can all take to discover more about our night sky. To find out more visit mystardustobservatory.com
 
Noeleen is president of the Southern Astronomical Society, having been a member for 22 years. She is an astrophotographer, astronomy and space educator, and is NASA’s Saturn Observation Campaign member in Australia.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkaXnghax8c

Please go to my TEDx talk at the Helensvale Library Blog on the 2nd June 2017
​to read all about this wonderful event at:
http://www.mystardustobservatory.com/astro-blog/-tedx-talk-at-helensvale-library-2nd-june-2017

Our Australian group with the Mayor of St Joseph Mr Bill Falkner…Aussie, Aussie, Aussie, Oi Oi Oi!! :-)

St Joseph Facebook page at:
https://www.facebook.com/Eclipse2017inStJoMo/

~ The Great American Solar Eclipse of the Sun ~

​Wow, what a day it was at the St Joseph Rosecrans airport, where on the 21st August forty three very excited Aussie eclipse chasers waited for the skies to clear to witness the great American Total Eclipse of the Sun.
 
We left Kansas City for a 100 kms drive to St Joseph at 3.30am because of warnings about the traffic and we were lucky to have a clear run to the airport, because it was dark when we arrived I even got to see the constellation of Orion the right way up instead of upside down, like I see it here in Australia :-)
 
The skies became more cloudy as the morning progressed, but we had so much fun talking with all the media and giving lots of TV and radio interviews to explain what people would expect to see. We also made friends with a lot of the local people who were just amazed that we had travelled all the way from Australia to see the eclipse.
 
Just before first contact the skies become a lot more threatening and the local sheriff came along and told us that a storm cell with hail was about to hit, so for a little while we took cover but kept a watchful eye on the sky.
 
Because of the weather we missed the partials, but we kept telling everyone not too worry as they would still experience the amazing darkness of totality, and just a few seconds before the Sun was eclipsed it began…
 
It grew dark quite quickly with an eerie bright golden light all around the horizon and because of the cloud it got very dark, a group of little songbirds darted all over the sky not knowing where to go. We were all scanning the cloudy sky just hoping for a break in the clouds when all of a sudden we heard this mighty roar come from the other field, everyone over there had seen something, it was like being at a soccer match, it was just incredible!!!
 
We knew that they had seen something but the sky was still cloudy, and then it was our turn, a small break in the cloud and there it was, the total eclipse of the Sun in all its glory with its beautiful corona….Wow!
 
It only lasted about 5 seconds before the clouds started to roll in again…but Wow, we had all seen it, and everyone on the field was just in awe from the whole experience!
 
In the end because of the weather, both my husband and I just quickly grabbed our cameras and on video mode captured the whole event.
 
Please see some images below of our amazing day, I know it wasn’t clear, but the overwhelming changes in the environment around us still challenged all our senses just the same if not more, because it became a it became so much darker with the cloud… it was just awesome!!!

This amazing trip to the US was organised by the Sutherland Astronomical Society in NSW, we went all over American visiting the different space centres and also many of the historical observatories including the beautiful Griffith Observatory in LA, and it was a fantastic trip, I'll write more about it later....

Now, bring on USA 2024 for the next solar eclipse :-)

Our Australian group with the Mayor of St Joseph Mr Bill Falkner…Aussie, Aussie, Aussie, Oi Oi Oi!! :-)

St Joseph Facebook page at:
https://www.facebook.com/Eclipse2017inStJoMo/​