I found a definition for the word, transit, as it applies to astronomy, which says it is “when one astronomical body passes in front of another”. Using that definition, one can call a solar eclipse a special kind of transit. As I write today, we are exactly 3 months away from another solar eclipse, and it just so happens that Perry County (especially East Perry County) is the optimal place to be to view this upcoming celestial event. I will even boldly proclaim that the Lutheran Heritage Center & Museum is the very best place to be when we arrive at the date, April 8, 2024.
I am going to return to some posts that I wrote back in 2017 when Perry County was also in the path of totality for the eclipse that took place on August 21, 2017. I will share those posts in the order in which I wrote them. Apparently, I began pointing out the 2017 eclipse 8 months before it occurred. That post can be read by clicking on the link below.
That was the first post in which I pointed out that a Czech astronomer by the name of Dr. Theodore Egon von Oppolzer produced a map showing future paths of eclipses. Dr. Oppolzer was born in Prague just 2 years after the Gesellschaft arrived in America in 1839, settling in Perry County. Prague, in today’s times, is described as a 2 hour drive from Dresden, where many of the German Lutherans in the Gesellschaft originated. Dr. Oppolzer only lived 45 years and died in 1886. His map, shown below in 2 images, was published in 1887, a year after his death. The 2nd image is an enlargement of an area in the first one showing the intersection of 2 eclipse paths in Perry County. Not only are the prophesied paths on the map, but the exact dates of the two eclipses. You can click the images to enlarge them.
In the 1880’s, Dr. Oppolzer had no computers to assist him in his calculations. Nor any other type of calculating device. He may have had some algorithms devised by other astronomers and mathematicians, but he had to rely on his own wits and the writing utensils of the day. Now, about 137 years later, his predictions will come true. I find this amazing. I was a math major in college. I taught a lot of math over the years. I also did my share of teaching astronomy. I also have access to all kinds of technology that Dr. Oppolzer did not have. And I don’t think I could come close to accomplishing what Dr. Oppolzer did.
Next, another post was published on May 25, 2017 that dealt with the eclipse.
That article emphasized the fact that the 2017 eclipse corresponded with the 500th Anniversary of the Reformation. Also, along with several other examples of previous total eclipses which occurred in America over the years, it pointed out another similar situation to the occurrence of the 2017/2024 pair of eclipses, which occurred in 1831 and 1834. The map below was included in that post. The 1831 path was an annular eclipse, not one that was total. The path swooping up from the southwest toward the northeast is the 1834 total eclipse path.
Below are a pair of photos illustrating the difference between an annular solar eclipse (on the left) and a total solar eclipse (on the right).
The map shown below of the 2017 and 2024 eclipses looks amazing similar to the map of the 1831/1834 map.
The next post published in 2017 about astronomical events was one that appeared on June 15th.
Astronomy Lesson from the Roof
That article discussed the term “transit” more than it discussed eclipses. The bell on top of our museum arrived from Germany aboard a ship that was part of the 1839 Gesellschaft. A date on that bell, 1761, indicates when it was forged. That led me to discover that a transit of Venus occurred in 1761. I also discovered that such transits occur in pairs (about 8 years apart) about once every 115 years or so. By the way, the last Venus transit took place in 2012, and the next one will not happen until 2117.
A transit with a heavenly body passing between the earth and the sun, such as the Venus transit, can only occur involving objects found between the earth and sun. The only such significant objects that qualify are Venus, Mercury, and the Moon. Transits of Mercury happen more often than those of Venus, but they are still relatively rare. The last one occurred in 2019, and the next one will happen in 2032. When the Moon “transits” the sun, we call it an eclipse.
I will also add that back in 1761, two surveyors (and scientists), Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon, observed the Venus transit while aboard a ship located in the Cape of Good Hope. Not long after doing that, these two would establish the boundary line between Pennsylvania and Maryland which became known as the Mason-Dixon Line. The line that now carries that name is also one of the boundaries for the state of Missouri and is located not that far south of Perry County.
On August 11, 2017, ten days before the eclipse, I wrote this “tongue-in-cheek” post about the eclipse.
That post was not meant to educate people, but to get them to laugh, so don’t take it too seriously. I know I had a lot of fun writing that one. I will remind you that in that story, I predicted a “Lutheran Rapture” that was going to take place on April 8, 2024, so if you take that seriously, you have just a short time to become a Lutheran (if you are not one already) and be taken up to heaven.
On the actual day of the eclipse, August 21, 2017, a post was published that described the special event that our museum hosted on the day before.
First Reformation…Then Obscuration
I want to take a bit of time to talk about the fact that it seems to be becoming more common for people to claim that solar eclipses are a proof that God exists…or proof of what is now called Intelligent Design. In order for people on earth to view a total eclipse, the Moon not only has to be a certain size and shape, but it also has to be precisely a certain distance away from the earth…which it is. I am going to put a few links to articles written by other people who describe how unique and amazing God has planned this whole arrangement.
https://smartfaith.net/2019/07/17/the-moon-as-evidence-for-god/
https://scottwendal.com/2017/08/20/solar-eclipse-evidence-of-intelligent-design/
I found this quote from one of the above articles to be an interesting perspective. ”The one place in our solar system where you can see a total solar eclipse is on our planet where people can see it.” And even then, you have to be in a special place at the right time in order to view a total eclipse.
If you want to view the total eclipse in April, you have to find a location along the path of the eclipse. Such a place is Altenburg, and in Altenburg, you will find the Lutheran Heritage Center & Museum. We will be open that day from 10 am – 4 pm (with free admission, I might add). We have to be because we already have 2 Lutheran schools who have decided to visit us because they know this is the perfect place to view this eclipse. By the way, this time “totality” will last over 4 minutes here, which is longer than the last one and one of the longest times of “totality” in the country. We will be hosting over 100 Lutheran school students that day. Altenburg should be buzzing with excitement.
I absolutely have to share with you another resource that you will definitely want to check out. There is a Facebook page called Solar Eclipse Perry County Missouri 2024. One of our museum’s friends, Trish Ertzfeld, runs that site. I call her the “Eclipse Lady”. She is doing amazing work promoting this special event. That page will describe all the activities that are planned for this area.
https://www.facebook.com/solareclipseperryco
Another definition of transit is “the act of passing through”. Make your plans now to transit Perry County, Missouri on April 8th.