Since I've seen my first partial solar eclipse on August 11th 1999 in Best near Eindhoven in the Province of Brabant, I've been amazed and enchanted by this spectaculair astronomical phenomenon. I remember the mysterious light when the sun was covered by the moon for 95.4%, as if I just stepped into an artwork by the respected Dutch painter Carel Willink. Willink called his artworks of the period 1931-1983 magic realism or imaginary realism, in which an almost alien light was present - to me quite similar to the lighting situation during the eclipse of 1999.
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| A partial solar eclipse with mysterious and dark clouds |
The partial solar eclipse of January 4th 2011 would be less interesting in eclipse magnitude, between 70-80%. The eclipse would already start during sunrise. I did believe that a partial solar eclipse with the bright red colours of a new day and the Wadden Sea scenery would be worth the trouble!
I set out at 8.30 AM to reach a wonderful spot on the dike, with sunrise starting at 8.53 AM. Unfortunately, the sky was filled with thick grey clouds, as a herd of sheep that never ends as far as the eye meets. Everytime when some patches in the sky became clear, dark clouds would take over. Eventually, I ended up collecting pink and purple shells to make my studio appartment at the campus more personal, instead of the casual look of all the IKEA furniture!
On my way back down the dike - dissatisfied by the lack of glimpses at the partial solar eclipse - I passed a young herring gull without seeing it first. I was shocked to see such a big bird close to the dike, taking no notice of me at all, even at 2 metres of distance. The bird didn't seem to be injured, had no broken wings and there was no evidence of the bird being sick, except for light-brown stains on its breast. The stains could be filt from the mud or another bird, killed or carrion. Still, most likely the bird was injured, only resting in the grass to spare energy. It took a drink from the fresh water stream close to the patch of grass that it was using for resting - walking slowly and carefully to the watersurface instead of using its wings. Flying takes up far more energy than walking. After a few minutes I left the bird to rest, hoping that it would make it during the day or to die in peace... sad, really sad. Nature's call indeed.
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| Resting in the grass close to a fresh water resource for keeping up the energy levels - if possible |
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| Another portrait of this rough and striking bird |
After my grieving encounter with the young herring gull, I was getting ready for another working day at IMARES. Out of the blue, I saw through the window that the sky became partly clear with dark clouds that seemed to be shimmering, and revealed... the partial solar eclipse, eventually! After ten years, I was finally able to photograph the phenomenon that intrigued cultures for centuries. I used my Canon 300mm lens F4, a 1.4x converter, a polar filter to decrease the sunlight coming in, 1/4000 sec time-value and F32 (aperture). Still I needed to wait for cloudcover that was translucent to take a good photograph. Enjoy the results!
The next partial solar eclipse that can be seen from the Netherlands will be on March 20th 2015. On June 15th and December 10th 2011 we may enjoy a total lunar eclipse.
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| One third of the sun is covered by the moon |
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| The last phase of the solar eclipse of January 4th 2011 |
