Total Eclipse of the Hard

JohnInCarolina

Egghead_Ty said:

kl8ton said:

Has anyone checked the numbers on this, or are we relying on one person's calculation on when and where the eclipse is happening?  I would find it hilarious if it was next year or perhaps this year on 8-20 instead of 8-21.

Pretty sure NASA doesn't screw up

Well... that's not entirely accurate.  NASA has made a few mistakes in its history.

This eclipse has been pretty well understood for awhile now, however. It's a major celestial event, and it's not as though we just started studying these things.  There are literally thousands of scientists, amateur and professional, who've calculated the orbits/timings, because the observations they'll be making depend on it.

The chances that they've all somehow screwed up independently are pretty effing small.  

JRWhitee

northGAcock said:

theyolksonyou said:

northGAcock said:

Staying local but having a gathering of approx 30 at our baseball tailgat location. Hot dogs with slaw and chili....some BBQ and fixing. If you happen by, I will be the guy wearing the dark shades.

Wait! I thought Luke, J, me, and Craig were the extent of your crew. 30?  Must be free food and beer. 

You guys apparently were afraid of a little sun light / darkness. Who in there right mind would let work get in the way of this historical event? Luke will be there by the way....just received his 90 chip. He makes a great designated driver these days.

If Luke is going to be there I am coming for sure!

YukonRon

JohnInCarolina said:

Egghead_Ty said:

kl8ton said:

Has anyone checked the numbers on this, or are we relying on one person's calculation on when and where the eclipse is happening?  I would find it hilarious if it was next year or perhaps this year on 8-20 instead of 8-21.

Pretty sure NASA doesn't screw up

Well... that's not entirely accurate.  NASA has made a few mistakes in its history.

This eclipse has been pretty well understood for awhile now, however. It's a major celestial event, and it's not as though we just started studying these things.  There are literally thousands of scientists, amateur and professional, who've calculated the orbits/timings, because the observations they'll be making depend on it.

The chances that they've all somehow screwed up independently are pretty effing small.  

This true, NASA is not without failures along the way. However, as far as target acquisition, and celestial location, they seem to be doing alright. I think their maps are as good as anyone else's. I trust them.

HeavyG

JohnInCarolina said:

Egghead_Ty said:

kl8ton said:

Has anyone checked the numbers on this, or are we relying on one person's calculation on when and where the eclipse is happening?  I would find it hilarious if it was next year or perhaps this year on 8-20 instead of 8-21.

Pretty sure NASA doesn't screw up

Well... that's not entirely accurate.  NASA has made a few mistakes in its history.

This eclipse has been pretty well understood for awhile now, however. It's a major celestial event, and it's not as though we just started studying these things.  There are literally thousands of scientists, amateur and professional, who've calculated the orbits/timings, because the observations they'll be making depend on it.

The chances that they've all somehow screwed up independently are pretty effing small.  

Also worth remembering that we've been able to predict eclipses for hundreds of years before NASA even existed.

Egghead_Ty

JohnInCarolina said: 

Well... that's not entirely accurate.  NASA has made a few mistakes in its history.

This eclipse has been pretty well understood for awhile now, however. It's a major celestial event, and it's not as though we just started studying these things.  There are literally thousands of scientists, amateur and professional, who've calculated the orbits/timings, because the observations they'll be making depend on it.

The chances that they've all somehow screwed up independently are pretty effing small.  

I agree NASA has made mistakes, its space exploration, there's a lot of unknowns.  I'm sure they learn a lot from their mistakes as well.  I was referring more along the lines of predicting solar events such as comets, eclipses, monitoring asteroids/space debris things like that I feel they have a pretty good grasp on.

JohnInCarolina

Egghead_Ty said:

JohnInCarolina said: 

Well... that's not entirely accurate.  NASA has made a few mistakes in its history.

This eclipse has been pretty well understood for awhile now, however. It's a major celestial event, and it's not as though we just started studying these things.  There are literally thousands of scientists, amateur and professional, who've calculated the orbits/timings, because the observations they'll be making depend on it.

The chances that they've all somehow screwed up independently are pretty effing small.  

I agree NASA has made mistakes, its space exploration, there's a lot of unknowns.  I'm sure they learn a lot from their mistakes as well.  I was referring more along the lines of predicting solar events such as comets, eclipses, monitoring asteroids/space debris things like that I feel they have a pretty good grasp on.

I know, and I agree with you.  I was more responding to @kl8ton than you.

nolabrew

NASA doesn't make mistakes, just happy little accidents.

DoubleEgger

Geez. Real classy NolaBrew

RIP

Scottborasjr

I'll be at work. Hoping to get five minutes to step outside. Pretty sure everybody else will be too. 

thetrim

Hopefully they are different scientists that claimed all the bull$hit in Al Gore's movie that made him a millionaire.

thetrim

It's going to go almost directly over the Jefferson Davis Birthplace Historic Site in Hopkinsville, KY

HeavyG

I wonder how many commercial flights may be diverting their routes for a few minutes to be in the path of totality.

GATraveller

Egghead_Ty said:

Some how I lucked out and live in one of the top 5 places in the world for viewing this eclipse, which is Casper, WY.  The city is doing a big festival with a Pink Floyd cover band/ laser light show, beer festival at river park, plus tons more.  Casper alone is expecting 50,000 vistors (our population is roughly 60,000).   So our family stocked up with 2 bags of lump coal, 2 bags of smoking chucks and put in an 4 day order at the local meat market so we can avoid crowds and just stay home grilling on the egg Friday-Monday lol. Here's the 4 day grill menu:  Friday night stuffed jalapeños and smash burgers, Saturday rib eye steaks with double smoked baked potato, Sunday night is deep dish moon (pizza) pies 1 classic pepperoni, the other grilled chicken spinach and alfredo sauce, then Monday is a smoked pork butt for carnita tacos the day of the eclipse.   Safe travels and safe viewing to all the fellow eggers this weekend!  

I love Casper. Would move there if it suited the wife. 

GATraveller

nolabrew said:

NASA doesn't make mistakes, just happy little accidents.

Too soon

JohnInCarolina

thetrim said:

Hopefully they are different scientists that claimed all the bull$hit in Al Gore's movie that made him a millionaire.

thetrim said:

Hopefully they are different scientists that claimed all the bull$hit in Al Gore's movie that made him a millionaire.

Yeah Hansen was WAY OFF in the prediction he made of a 0.25 C rise per decade he made back in 1988.  What a kook!

Gr_egger

Our weekend getaway from Portland. Suppose to be 150,000 people headed to this town of 7,000. This will be a colossal mess - but should make for some interesting pics. We are only going to make someone doesn't claim "squatters" rights.

Gr_egger

That was supposed to be posted on the OT - NASA tool. My bad. 

bgebrent

"...of the hard."  What's that hard John?

JohnInCarolina

bgebrent said:

"...of the hard."  What's that hard John?

Eclipse of the hard = easy.  Easy cooks.  

bgebrent

JohnInCarolina said:

bgebrent said:

"...of the hard."  What's that hard John?

Eclipse of the hard = easy.  Easy cooks.  

Just a stupid Vande guy that read the thread.  Disappointed in your lack of humor...

Hibby

I plan to do my first butt using the Stoker II. I hope your trip is uneventful and you get a great observation of totality Monday 

JohnInCarolina

bgebrent said:

JohnInCarolina said:

bgebrent said:

"...of the hard."  What's that hard John?

Eclipse of the hard = easy.  Easy cooks.  

Just a stupid Vande guy that read the thread.  Disappointed in your lack of humor...

LOL Brent!

YukonRon

GATraveller said:

nolabrew said:

NASA doesn't make mistakes, just happy little accidents.

Too soonNASA was not the cause of this. Parker Seal, the company that provided the faulty of rings, we're the culprits.

HeavyG

YukonRon said:

GATraveller said:

nolabrew said:

NASA doesn't make mistakes, just happy little accidents.

Too soonNASA was not the cause of this. Parker Seal, the company that provided the faulty of rings, we're the culprits.

That's not quite how I remember the conclusion of the report of the Presidential Commission of the Challenger accident. 

nolaegghead

It was a design failure.  There are better O-rings now, like Viton (sp?).  I have used those in some analytical instruments where there are extremely challenging conditions of temp.

But the design was at fault, mostly the culture, as the problem was known, they measured the "safety factor" completely incorrectly, management over-rode engineering warnings, etc.  Same ol' same ol'. 

Viton probably wouldn't have failed, but the design of the assemblies encouraged the failure to be catastrophic.

thetrim

Yup more a failure of group think.  

YukonRon

I was living in Lexington, Kentucky at the time, and it was interesting, because Parker Seal, a major employer there, was heavily scrutinized for the roll they played in the disaster. They later discovered they had a defective product, which, had been designed by them, made by them and supplied by them. There was much to be done throughout the network, the culture, and essentially the entire program.
For the want of a nail...... 
The old joke....in the airborne, rest assured, the parachute you need to deploy, in order to land safely, is made by the lowest possible bidder. See you on the ground, one way or another.

JohnInCarolina

Eoin

YukonRon said:

I was living in Lexington, Kentucky at the time, and it was interesting, because Parker Seal, a major employer there, was heavily scrutinized for the roll they played in the disaster. They later discovered they had a defective product, which, had been designed by them, made by them and supplied by them. There was much to be done throughout the network, the culture, and essentially the entire program.
For the want of a nail...... 
The old joke....in the airborne, rest assured, the parachute you need to deploy, in order to land safely, is made by the lowest possible bidder. See you on the ground, one way or another.

In the engineering business a lot of decisions are made by commercial people with no technical training, certainly in the UK. None of these people want to make an informed choice, because they don't understand what they are buying, so it's easier to buy the cheapest.

fishlessman

ive built some pretty high tech things over the years with orings, high pressure and extremely low vacuum. its usually something stupid that makes them leak like a guy dragging a 10 foot oring across a floor in a clean room thinking nothing of it