Solar Eclipse 1999, Stephen O'Brien's Eye-Witness Account

Stephen O'Brien's Eye-Witness Account
of the Last Total Eclipse of the Sun
of the 2nd Millennium

on 11th August 1999 - as seen from the UK

The Greatest Light-Show on Earth

The momentous occasion of the last total eclipse of the sun before the start of the third millennium was witnessed by an estimated three hundred million people across the globe. As one of them, I stood on a beach in Wales, with special solar-viewers held to my eyes - and for me it was a spiritual experience.

Dawn in Britain on that Wednesday had started very miserably: cloud cover was very thick and many of us despaired that we would see anything at all - but Nature took a turn in our favour, as you will see...

Further south in Cornwall millions of people, including hordes of scientists and astronomers, were dismayed at the virtually impenetrable cloud-cover they saw high above them: their leaden-grey skies rained down and many feared they would glimpse nothing of the eclipse.

We later discovered that South Wales turned out to be one of the better places in Great Britain from which to see this once-in-a-lifetime event: and we were promised that 97% of the sun would vanish behind the moon.

From about 9.30 a.m. hundreds started to gather all along the beach: people from all walks of life arrived in cars, on motorbikes and by foot to see the promised spectacle.

It seemed that everyone wanted to 'be there'. In fact, millions of people around the world wanted to watch as the Great Forces of Nature - controlled, as I believe, by The Great Spirit (or God) - moved the moon, the Earth's satellite, across the face of the Sun.

On the beach, mothers wheeled their toddlers in pushchairs up the grassy banks and then down onto the sands. Dads and couples gathered with single people of all ages - we all seemed drawn towards the beach on that morning.

One man, who was well over 90 years old, and who had probably witnessed the last British Total Eclipse on 29th June 1927, was helped out of a car by his daughters and grandchildren. Aided by his loved ones and two stout walking-sticks, he ambled his way slowly to a prime position on the beach, his back bent by age and infirmity. Back in 1927, solar eclipse-viewers were not widely available, so most people had improvised by looking at the sun through pieces of glass covered with candle-smoke. But today, this old man had come well prepared and he held on tightly to his special viewers.

I think we'd all gathered on the flat sea-front because we thought we'd get a complete view of a vast expanse of sky and would see more clearly any changes in the light - and we were right.

We would be just outside 'The Tract of Totality' so we were not expecting to experience the total darkness which had been promised to engulf the tip of Cornwall; nevertheless, we knew from the mathematically precise calculations of astronomers that we would fall just outside the moon's shadow (its umbra), and that we'd experience 97% of 'Totality' (because we were in the moon's penumbra or semi-shadow). But that didn't dampen our spirits or our enthusiasm: we'd be just 3% away from the full eclipse and we couldn't believe our luck.

While waiting for 'first contact' (that moment when the moon first touches the edge of the sun), I chatted with others and I was reminded of scenes from Steven Spielberg's film, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, when many psychic people had felt 'compelled' to be present at a special meeting-place.

The sky on the horizon was a clear blue, way past the thick grey clouds, and its brightness was travelling nearer to us by the minute; but the moment of 'first contact' was to be denied us because the clouds held fast. However, they did break - many times - and we saw an amazing sight that would not be repeated again in Great Britain until the year 2,090.

Like many others who witnessed this remarkable event, I cannot describe my feelings of amazement, humility, respect and wonder at the Great Creative processes at work before my eyes.

The Tract of Totality (the darkest path of the moon's shadow)
fell across the tip of South-Western Britain, touching Cornwall at Falmouth,
and then it sped on at 1,500 miles per hour towards north-west France.

The light-blue band represents the entire dark shadow
cast over the earth by the moon; the thin black line within it,
is the central line of deepest darkness.
Wales lies just north of this map.

Thinking back to that morning now, the crowds that had strung out along the sands were remarkably patient; and the atmosphere was very still... yet there was a hidden current of expectation rippling through the air.

Throughout the next hour or so, the rainclouds thinned increasingly and drifted slowly overhead, presenting us with dozens of opportunities to view the solar eclipse as it progressed to 97% cover - and we took them all gladly.

I suppose my innate psychic sensitivity came into play when I studied the sun because I could see clearly the outline of its bright corona, which we aren't supposed to see until Totality reveals it.

People of all ages watched, utterly fascinated as the sun's perfectly round disk gradually became 'eaten away' by the slow-moving bulk of the moon. Every few minutes or so, we gasped in wonderment at what we saw...

97% of the sun was obscured by the moon
on that Wednesday morning in South Wales, Great Britain,
at approximately 14 minutes past 11 am, on 11th August 1999 -
and for two minutes an 'unearthly twilight' descended

At approximately 11.14 a.m. the shadow of the moon rushed towards us from the west; but for many of us its approach went unnoticed and we were conscious only of a darkening of the light. It wasn't like twilight, which has a richness of golds and blues within it, this was an eerie 'negation of light'. As our eyes turned towards the sun, the land fell under the huge shadow of the moon's penumbra (which was hundreds of miles in diameter) and bright daylight turned into 'evening' - in the middle of the morning.

The remaining clouds above us appeared iron-grey, as if a great thunderstorm were gathering; and the moon's shadow threw a soft coppery-orange 'evening' glow over the earth, which fascinated us.

Suddenly the beach became quiet; the temperature dropped and the breeze became stronger. I felt cold. Then the light faded quickly to its darkest.

It was so eerie...

Seagulls cried out above the distant water; but we were stunned into silence - except for some people who whispered phrases like... 'My God...', 'This is absolutely incredible...', 'Amazing...', 'I've never seen anything like this before...'

Everyone was affected by the event.

And even those who had no eye-protection were fortunate enough to witness this amazing phenomenon because whenever a thin layer of clouds veiled the sun, the eclipse was clearly visible to the naked eye.

A jittery young lad of about eight was looking at the sun without any protection - an act which could cause blindness. I handed him my viewers and his eyes sparkled with joy; he tilted his head towards the sky... and he was so affected by what he saw that he stood absolutely still; and looked and looked, and stared at the heavens...

'This is a day for you to remember;' I said to him, 'something to tell your children and your grandchildren about when you're old and grey... a once-in-lifetime event.'

'Oh, I'll never forget this,' he said, his voice full of wonder.

I lent my solar-viewers to a number of other people so that they too could experience the phenomenon: to a young biker from Bristol, who'd travelled west because he'd heard that was likely to afford the best viewing-place, and also to a family of four who'd arrived unprepared.

While the eclipse was underway I was completely enthralled; it was only later that I wept when I saw the whole event broadcast on television and heard thousands of people in countries across the world cheering, clapping, whistling and crying with joy as absolute Totality passed over their heads.

The sun's bright corona or halo of light
is revealed only during Totality

Two minutes and 23 seconds later, the light began to brighten gain - then it quickly returned to normal.

For us, it was all over - much too soon.

But I looked across towards the east and fleetingly saw darkened skies over the eastern coastline as the massive penumbra rushed past the headland at 1,500 miles per hour...

In my quiet moments, some thoughts occur to me:

Who among us has the power to prevent or delay such a remarkable event as this from happening?

The answer is: no-one - not one of us.

On that late late summer's morning in August 1999, like millions of others I was struck dumb by the Majesty of Nature and the Magnificence of the Creator's Universe as I watched the Immutable Natural Laws in action before my eyes.

We, who believe ourselves to be so sophisticated and intelligent, can only stand and stare in the presence of such incredible phenomena - and marvel at the awesome power that is displayed.