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America’s Moment in the (Eclipsed) Sun
CNN One Thing
Apr 7, 2024
Millions of eyes will be on the sky Monday when the last total solar eclipse in the contiguous United States until 2044 arrives. Tourists from all over the country are flocking to the path of totality in hopes of getting the clearest view, but it remains to be seen if the weather will cooperate. In this episode, we answer some common questions about the event and examine whether space phenomena can unite Americans like it did decades ago.
Guest: Kristin Fisher, CNN Space & Defense Correspondent
Episode Transcript
David Rind
00:00:02
How many times have you seen them live?
Brice Loveland
00:00:04
This will be my sixth time.
David Rind
00:00:06
Six. Wow.
Brice Loveland
00:00:07
Yeah.
David Rind
00:00:08
Bryce Loveland is a big fan of the indie rock band Vampire Weekend. So am I. For that matter. But I realize this isn't about me. Anyway, when the 26 year old learned that the band was planning to celebrate the release of their new album with a special outdoor show in Austin, Texas during a solar eclipse, she knew she had to be there.
Brice Loveland
00:00:29
I live in Oklahoma City and it's not that far away from me. And so the moment I saw it, I was like, I think I can go.
David Rind
00:00:36
Bryce says two tickets rent or about 200 bucks, and she had some airline miles to use. So first thing tomorrow morning, Brice and her boyfriend are heading to Texas.
Brice Loveland
00:00:46
Our flight lands in Austin at like nine, and even though the show starts at noon, I didn't realize, like, the threat of potentially being late or the travel situation.
David Rind
00:00:55
Right. Because traffic could be bad.
Brice Loveland
00:00:57
Yeah. And so I'm nervous about that.
David Rind
00:00:59
Now 12 p.m. on a Monday is definitely not a normal time for a vampire weekend show. And because of all the hype around the eclipse, I don't blame Bryce for being a little on edge about her travel plans.
Reporter
00:01:11
More than a million people are expected to come to Texas and witness the total solar eclipse, bringing with them more than $1 billion to our economy.
David Rind
00:01:19
That's a lot of money. Some counties and cities have already declared states of emergency ahead of all the traffic. There's also the chance of bad weather ruining people's view. But Bryce's like a lot of people I've heard about who are planning to travel for the eclipse. They're coming for the experience and for the memories.
Brice Loveland
00:01:37
It's going to be so crazy. I really don't know what to expect, but I'm glad I get to be there. I feel like it'll be a really memorable thing to happen in my life.
David Rind
00:01:45
Now, if you hear a story like that and are still wondering just what all this eclipse hype is about, I get it. But I think we can help. My guest this week is CNN space and defense correspondent Kristen Fischer. We're going to break down what you should know for the big event. No dumb questions here. And whether an eclipse can bring this divided country together, even if it's just for one afternoon from CNN, this is One Thing. I'm David Rind.
David Rind
00:02:21
Hello, Kristin.
Kristin Fisher
00:02:22
Hello.
David Rind
00:02:23
So you cover space for CNN. My space knowledge is somewhat limited to, like, the movies I watch. And I don't think like Alien or The Martian is, like, fully approved in terms of the space specifications. So I thought you would be the perfect person to come and explain, like what we are going to see with this eclipse tomorrow. Do you accept this challenge?
Kristin Fisher
00:02:45
I accept the challenge.
David Rind
00:02:47
Okay. So first of all, like the most basic question possible, what is an eclipse?
Kristin Fisher
00:02:52
So an eclipse happens. A total solar eclipse happens when the moon comes in between the sun and the Earth. And it aligns so perfectly that the moon completely blocks out the sun, except for that little tiny like ring of fire around the sun. And I've never seen a total eclipse. I've only seen a partial eclipse. Yes, so this would be my first one. I am praying for no cloud cover, but what I am told is that the difference between a partial eclipse and a total eclipse is pun intended night and day, right?
David Rind
00:03:28
It's going to get dark, right?
Kristin Fisher
00:03:29
It is going to get so dark that in a matter of seconds you can see the stars outside. You can see planets, sometimes even satellites, nocturnal animals come out. Street lights often come on those automatic street lights, you know, but apparently it's a completely dramatic change, like pitch black. And so total solar eclipse. That's why it's so important to be in that, you know, all important path of totality. Because if you're even just a teeny bit outside of it, you're not going to get that effect right.
David Rind
00:04:03
I was going to ask how much of the country is going to be able to get this full impact.
Kristin Fisher
00:04:07
A pretty wide swath, so to speak. I mean, from starts in Mexico goes all the way up to Maine. It's a much wider. It's about 115 miles wide, the path of totality itself. So, you know, you're talking, you know, at least 30 million people are within that path. But as you know, the big question is, you know, can these people just walk outside and look up and and and see it, or is the cloud cover going to be too intense? Right. And, you know, I'll tell you this. My dad, who is an astronaut, 78 years old, he has been wanting to see a total solar eclipse his entire life. He's gone to to like, made full trips out of it, paid tons of money. It. And he's hasn't seen one. He's hoping for this one. But Cloud Cover is not looking to cooperate either, so it's tough. It's a real, emotional event for people who've invested a lot and don't get to see it.
David Rind
00:05:01
Yeah. And so if it is cloudy, it's just going to look like a cloudy day out there. Basically, you're.
Kristin Fisher
00:05:07
Not going to see anything. I mean, depending on the thickness of the cloud cover. I mean if there's just a little bit yeah, you can see it. But if it's low, heavy clouds, it's pretty much a washout.
David Rind
00:05:18
So here's a question I think I probably know the answer to, but can I stare right at it?
Kristin Fisher
00:05:24
I mean, look, President Donald Trump did, right? He should say it is fine. Remember what he did back in 2017? I mean, that is seared into my brain. The same saying what not to do. But, you know, you can imagine I think that's why it really is so important. If you have kids and you want to take them to see the eclipse with you, you have to really burn it into their brain that like, if you look at this without your, you know, really cool looking eclipse glasses, you could seriously damage your eyes. So you got to wear those glasses. Unless during the moment of totality, during those roughly four minutes when the sun is completely blacked out, you can take off your glasses and just look at it. But any other time you got to wear.
David Rind
00:06:05
And these glasses, they have to be eclipse glasses. Like my sunglasses won't cut it.
Kristin Fisher
00:06:09
Not going to cut it. They've got to be like certified eclipse glasses. And this year there's actually some counterfeits that have hit the market. So you got to be you got to buy from a reputable seller. And the big test is you want to like, hold them up and like, if you can see if you're inside and you hold them up and you look at a light, if you can see any light whatsoever. Those are not eclipse glasses. No.
David Rind
00:06:38
Beyond it being something cool to look at and just like a moment to kind of experience. Are there wider implications up in space or here on the ground, like like how big of a deal is this?
Kristin Fisher
00:06:48
From a scientific standpoint, you know, astrophysicists in particular use a solar eclipse to study the sun, the sun's corona. And one of the neat things about this eclipse is the fact that it is coinciding with a particularly active period, a peak cycle of activity on the sun. So it's really going to allow astrophysicists to study some of those coronal mass ejections and solar flares that you can really only see when the moon is blocking out the sun. But, I think it's one of those like, rare moments where, you know, people can kind of come together and marvel at the power of Mother Nature when it's not doing something destructive, like a tornado or tsunami. It's just doing something really cool. And one of the things I love about it is that this is something that humans have been experiencing since, you know, the dawn of humanity, right? And kind of wondering, what in the world is this, you know?
David Rind
00:07:43
Right. I can't imagine what it was like for those first people that saw this happening. They must have thought like they were being sent straight to hell or something.
Kristin Fisher
00:07:51
Right? Well, so I actually just interviewed some folks from the Navajo Nation.
Kristin Fisher
00:07:55
I guess. What do the Navajo people believe is happening with the sun and the moon and the Earth during an eclipse?
Evelyn T. Bahe
00:08:02
It's a time when, the moon and the sun, you know, that there's different stories, you know, like they come back together to, to meet each other and.
Kristin Fisher
00:08:12
They describe it a total solar eclipse as a moment of intimate relations between the sun and the moon.
Evelyn T. Bahe
00:08:21
The sun is, pretty much like a male. And that the the moon is like a female.
Kristin Fisher
00:08:27
And, it's a moment when they become perfectly aligned, so to speak. One goes inside the other, and they actually like to give the sun and the moon their privacy while they have this perfect alignment. And so that's why in Navajo culture, they all go inside and meditate and kind of pray and have moments of real introspection.
Evelyn T. Bahe
00:08:49
During the eclipse. We have to get back into our dwelling, close the curtains, make it really quiet. Everybody has their place. During this time, we cannot eat, we cannot sleep, we cannot drink water.
Kristin Fisher
00:09:07
They stop everything. No schools, nothing. They just want people to, observe the intimate relations and the spirituality of the moment.
David Rind
00:09:15
But this is what I kind of wanted to ask, because you cover space and space travel, space exploration. And whenever I hear about something that can, like bring the country together in these divided times, standing arm in arm, like my eyes roll pretty hard. Like I work in news. Yeah, but.
Judy Woodruff
00:09:32
The year was 1969. It was a year when the world was riveted by the sight of a man taking a walk. A walk that left the first footprints on the moon.
David Rind
00:09:43
I have been told for years that, you know, during the 60s and 70s, space travel did bring people together.
Reporter
00:09:50
The reaction on Earth was overwhelming.
Radio
00:09:53
For one priceless moment in the whole history of man, all the people on this earth are truly one.
David Rind
00:10:01
And now I realize there may be some revisionist history in that retelling. That was a pretty turbulent time for our country. But in 2024, is space and the cosmos capable of kind of bringing us together in a way that is meaningful beyond like a few hours on a Monday afternoon?
Kristin Fisher
00:10:18
I mean, I sure think so, because, I mean, look, I used to cover politics and was a jaded skeptic like yourself. And then I jumped to the SpaceX beat and, you know, that's the thing I love about it the most is that it fills me with a real hope for humanity. Everybody that I've talked to who has seen a total solar eclipse says it's a life changing moment. It's one of those moments, maybe not life changing, but it's a moment that's like seared into your consciousness, something you never forget. And it really bonds you with the people that you experience it with. And I also think it has the ability to put humans in their place in terms of their level of importance in the cosmos. Which in this day and age, I don't think is, too bad of a thing.
David Rind
00:11:05
Wait, I wanted to ask about your dad. So he's an astronaut? Yeah. Has he been to space?
Kristin Fisher
00:11:09
Yeah. He went to space in the 1980s on a space shuttle. And, he cares about space.
David Rind
00:11:16
So he's literally been to space, but he still wants to see this total solar eclipse. Wouldn't that, like, be a little low rent compared to what he saw out there?
Kristin Fisher
00:11:25
He's desperate to see a total solar eclipse. He has been planning this trip for over two years now. He's had flights, rental car, hotels, book begging me. My whole family to come. Because I think there's something about that moment when day turns to night like that. That even here, somebody who has seen, you know, our planet from space. It's one of the unique things in life that he has always wanted to experience, and he hasn't had a chance to. So at 78, he's like, this is it.
David Rind
00:11:58
Well, I hope he gets to. And I hope you have a good view as well. Kristen. Thank you.
Kristin Fisher
00:12:03
Of course. Thanks.
David Rind
00:12:15
One thing is a production of CNN Audio. This episode was produced by Paola Ortiz and me, David Rind. Our senior producer is Faiz Jamil. Our supervising producer is Greg Peppers. Matt Dempsey is our production manager. Dan Dzula is our technical director. And Steve Lickteig is the executive producer of CNN Audio. We get support from Haley Thomas, Alex Manasseri, Robert Mathers, John Dianora, Lenni Steinhart, Jamus Andrest, Nichole Pesaru, and Lisa Namerow. Special thanks to Ross Levitt and Katie Hinman. Just a reminder, you can check out coverage of the eclipse on CNN and CNN.com tomorrow afternoon, and we will be back next week. Talk to you then.
