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| | ==Explanation== | | ==Explanation== |
| − | This comic is the last of five consecutive comics published in the week before and during the {{w|solar eclipse}} occurring on Monday, {{w|Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017|August 21, 2017}} which was visible as a total solar eclipse within a band across the {{w|contiguous United States}} from west to east and visible as a partial eclipse across the entire contiguous United States and beyond. The other comics are [[1876: Eclipse Searches]], [[1877: Eclipse Science]], [[1878: Earth Orbital Diagram]], and [[1879: Eclipse Birds]].
| + | {{incomplete|First draft - Additions to this would be useful, alter this tag if you alter the explanation}} |
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| − | The comic is another comparison graph, like [[1775: Things You Learn]] or [[1701: Speed and Danger]]. It contrasts how cool something ''sounds'' and how cool it actually ''is''. It has five points on it, planetary conjunction, supermoon, lunar eclipse, partial solar eclipse, and total solar eclipse. | + | This comic is the fifth consecutive comic with a {{w|solar eclipse}} as the topic. On {{w|Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017|August 21, 2017}}, a total solar eclipse was visible within a band across the {{w|contiguous United States}} from west to east. The other comics are [[1876: Eclipse Searches]]. [[1877: Eclipse Science]], [[1878: Earth Orbital Diagram]] and [[1879: Eclipse Birds]]. The comic is another comparison graph, like [[1775: Things You Learn]] and [[1701: Speed and Danger]]. It contrasts how cool something ''sounds'' and how cool it actually ''is''. It has five points on it, Planetary Conjunction (many planets visible in night sky), Supermoon (when the moon is at its closest to Earth by far, making it appear ginormous in the sky), Lunar Eclipse (Earth's shadow falls on the moon, reverse solar eclipse), Partial Solar Eclipse (when the sun is only partly blocked) and Total Solar Eclipse (complete blockage of the sun by the moon). Total Solar Eclipse is both sounds like and is (according to randall) the coolest thing on the graph. |
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| − | While the four other things than total solar eclipse are relatively close to each other on the "how cool to see" scale, the graph is not even high enough to plot the total solar eclipse point as indicated by the dotted arrow showing that this point should be way higher up. This is as opposed to leaving the point out, as Randall did with the coconut in [[388: Fuck Grapefruit]], where it is only mentioned in the title text. This could be an indication that if the scale had been high enough to fit the total solar eclipse point, then the rest of the points would be on the x-axis without any indication of which would be cooler.
| + | In the title text, Randall Munroe laments that, without any exaggeration or hyperbole, the total solar eclipse was the coolest thing he has ever seen in his life. |
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| − | A total solar eclipse correctly sounds like it is the coolest of the five, but it is vastly cooler to see it in person by a wide margin. It seems like Randall is trying to convince those who missed the eclipse this time to go watch in seven years when another total solar eclipse is visible in the USA.
| + | ==Transcript== |
| − | | + | {{incomplete transcript|Literally nothing here}} |
| − | ;Planetary Conjunction
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| − | In a {{w|Conjunction (astronomy)|planetary conjunction}} two or more planets are visible close together in the night sky. This happens relatively {{w|List_of_conjunctions_(astronomy)|often}} because all planets lie in roughly the same plane around the sun (the <s>Sagittal</s> {{w|ecliptic}}). This looks like two big stars close to each other, and isn't particularly exciting.
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| − | ;Supermoon
| + | [A scatterplot, with 5 labeled dots and two labeled axes. Below are the names of the labels, first for the axes and then for the dots.] |
| − | A {{w|Supermoon|supermoon}} is a full moon or a new moon that approximately coincides with the Moon's closest approach in its elliptic orbit around the Earth. This results in a larger-than-usual apparent size of the lunar disk, but a typical human doesn't recognize the difference. Nevertheless, in recent years the press has often announced supermoons as important astronomical events. The opposite of a supermoon is called a micromoon. A "supermoon" sounds very cool, but like a planetary conjunction it's almost indistinguishable in the average night sky (see [[1394: Superm*n]], and this [[:Category:Supermoon|list]]) of other comics that have referred to the term). | |
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| − | ;Lunar Eclipse
| + | X-axis: How cool it sounds like it would be |
| − | A {{w|Lunar eclipse|lunar eclipse}} occurs during the full moon and, like at a solar eclipse, happens only when the Moon is in the region where the orbital planes of the Moon and the Earth intersect. The Earth's shadow falls on the Moon, causing it to appear dark red. The moon doesn't generally darken completely due to some light still reaching the Moon through the outer layers of the Earth's atmosphere. As with solar eclipses, lunar eclipses occur on average once every six months, but they can be viewed by anyone who is on the night-time side of Earth during the eclipse, as opposed to only being visible from a small strip of the Earth's surface. A lunar eclipse looks noticeably different from a usual full moon, making it fairly cool.
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| − | ;Partial Solar Eclipse
| + | Y-axis: How cool it is to see in person |
| − | There are three types of {{w|Solar_eclipse#Types|non-total solar eclipses}}. A ''partial eclipse'' occurs when the Sun and Moon are not exactly in line with an observer on Earth, and thus the Moon doesn't fully obscure the Sun. An ''annular eclipse'' occurs when the Sun and Moon do line up with an observer on Earth, but the Moon is too far away from earth to block the entire Sun. The Sun appears as a very bright ring, which is also called an annulus. A ''hybrid eclipse'' is an eclipse which is total when viewed from some parts of the earth, but is annular when viewed from others. These ''mixed'' eclipses are comparatively rare, even when compared with total eclipses. A large percentage of the continental United States experienced a partial eclipse along with the total solar eclipse on August 21st. A partial solar eclipse is quite cool, but nowhere near as dramatic as a sky-darkening total solar eclipse.
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| − | ;Total Solar Eclipse
| + | [Bottom left]: Planetary conjunction |
| − | The {{w|Solar_eclipse#Types|total solar eclipse}} is the topic of this and the four preceding comics. It occurs during the new moon, and happens only when the Sun and Moon are exactly in line with an observer on Earth and when the Moon appears large enough to fully obscure the Sun. Unlike a lunar eclipse, only a small portion of the Earth lies within the Moon's shadow at any given time, roughly a disc with a diameter of approx. 100 km. The disc moves very fast over the Earth's surface, meaning that at any given location eclipses can't last longer than a few minutes. At locations outside of this ''shadow-disc'', in a region over a few thousand kilometers, the eclipse is partial.
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| − | In the title text Randall reveals that he had traveled to a location in Missouri (possibly the {{w|Shaw Nature Reserve}}) because at his home in Massachusetts the eclipse was only partial. And, without a doubt, the total solar eclipse was the coolest thing he ever has seen in his life.
| + | [Bottom middle]: Supermoon |
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| − | ==Transcript==
| + | [Low left-center]: Lunar eclipse |
| − | :[A scatter plot with five labeled dots is drawn. The x-axis reads "How cool it sounds like it would be" and the y-axis is labeled with "How cool it is to see in person".]
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| − | :[Bottom left] <span style="color:grey;">Planetary conjunction</span>
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| − | :[Bottom middle] <span style="color:grey;">Supermoon</span>
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| − | :[Low left-center] <span style="color:grey;">Lunar eclipse</span>
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| − | :[Low-center middle] <span style="color:grey;">Partial solar eclipse</span>
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| − | :[Upper right, with a dotted arrow above it pointing up] Total solar eclipse
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| − | ==Trivia==
| + | [Low-center middle]: Partial solar eclipse |
| − | *While the ''WOW-effect'' happened mostly to people standing on Earth gazing at the sun, there were more astonishing pictures taken from this event: An ISS-transit in front of the [https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/iss-transit-during-2017-solar-eclipse partial eclipsed] sun, the shadow on Earth seen from [https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/the-eclipse-2017-umbra-viewed-from-space-1 space], the astronauts also could see a [https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/the-eclipse-2017-from-space partial eclipse] because the orbit was [https://twitter.com/Astromaterials/status/899475632912052224/photo/1 above America] by that time, the eclipse seen from a distance of 380,000 km in an orbit around the [https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2017/LRO-captures-eclipse-from-the-moon Moon], and an [https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/goddard/2017/nasas-epic-view-of-2017-eclipse-across-america animation] taken from a distance of 1,6 Mio. km by the {{w|Deep Space Climate Observatory|Deep Space Climate Observatory (DSCOVR)}} located in a line exactly between Earth and Sun.
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| | + | [Upper right, with a dotted arrow above it pointing up]: '''Total solar eclipse''' |
| | {{comic discussion}} | | {{comic discussion}} |
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| − | [[Category:Scatter plots]]
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| − | [[Category:Rankings]]
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| − | [[Category:Total Solar Eclipse 2017]]
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| − | [[Category:Supermoon]]
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| − | [[Category:Astronomy]]
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| − | [[Category:Solar eclipses]]
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