This week’s Independent thinker Pictures of kids and dogs make people pick up papers. This kid’s story, though, made us think way too hard. Ezrah “The Shark” Dormon, lives in Show me the love – People in Basin Park gathered at 12:15 in front of the bandshell for the Diversity Weekend Public Display Panama or Honolulu. of Affection. See more Diversity in the Park photos on page 13. He’s twelve. Back when he PHOTO BY JEREMIAH ALVARADO was a little kid of 11 or so, he saw his mother get a tattoo. He was PIC IS A SELFIE BY EZRAH enchanted with the process, and when asked if he would Epic solar eclipse coming our way help fill in some ink, he did. NICKY BOYETTE of the sun obscured by the moon. Kansas City will be on Then all of the sudden he’s an apprentice and has Astronomer Michael E. Dakich proclaimed the total the southern edge of the path of totality and St. Louis on the already tattooed more than 20 people. solar eclipse that will cross the United States in an arc northern edge. The story of knowing at 12 you want to be an artist, and from Oregon to South Carolina on August 21 might be the Idaho Falls, Idaho, is expecting so many visitors the making it happen, is okay with us. But not with everyone. most-viewed eclipse ever. He based his estimate on media Chamber of Commerce is concerned that restaurants will Apparently the big question is, should a 12-year-old be coverage, weather patterns in mid-August, and the number not be able to feed everyone. Other towns along the path allowed to draw and design tattoos for those older and, of population centers near its path. are becoming boomtowns as eclipse-watchers make plans umm, more worldly? What everyone will see is the Earth, moon and sun to gather for the best view. And all we can answer is, Huh? lining up with the moon directly between the sun and Earth The location with the lengthiest view of the totality at the exact distance to block out the sun. Since the moon’s will be Giant City State Park, less than ten miles south Inside the ESI orbit around Earth is slightly tilted and the Earth and moon of Carbondale, Ill. Folks there will see the sun blotted ADA 3 have slightly elliptical orbits and travel at different distances out for two minutes and 40 seconds, but if the weather Agriculture Ed 4 from the sun and each other, the phenomenon we’ll see accommodates, everyone in the continental United States Cup of Love 4 has not happened since Feb. 26, 1979, and the path of that will be able to see the moon covering at least 48 percent of Electrosmog 5 eclipse crossed over only five states in the northwest. the sun. Independent Mail 8 The shadow of the eclipse lands on our planet over The countdown for the event for those in Fayetteville, Independent Editorial 9 the North Pacific Ocean where astronomers say the sun Ark., begins at 11:43 a.m. with the maximum eclipse Constables on Patrol 10 will actually rise from that spot while totally eclipsed, a occurring at 1:12 p.m. The prediction is for 92 percent of phenomenon seldom seen even by experienced eclipse the sun to be obscured for Northwest Arkansas with only a The Nature of Eureka 11 chasers. crescent-shaped sliver of the sun remaining visible below Departures 12 The shadow makes landfall just north of Newport, Ore., the moon. Things get back to normal in our area around 2:45 Astrology 14 at 10:15 a.m. PDT, and the path continues its dark journey p.m. Indy Soul 16 across 14 states before leaving behind Key Bay, S. Carolina, There are also partial solar eclipses, annual solar Dropping A Line 17 at 2:39 p.m. EDT, and heading over the Atlantic. eclipses and lunar eclipses during the year, all of which are Crossword 17 People in Portland, Seattle, Denver, Indianapolis, predictable and catalogued online. This focus is primarily Classifieds 18 Cincinnati, Memphis and Atlanta will see at least 90 percent ECLIPSE continued on page 2 Copyright 2017 ECLIPSE continued from page 1 Einstein’s theory of general relativity, which on total solar eclipses. describes gravity as warping of space-time.” It is estimated that in 600 million years Legends or so, the moon will have inched just far To understand an event as disruptive and enough away from Earth that total solar enormous as an eclipse, when the very sun eclipses will no longer be possible, so enjoy we depend on partially or totally disappears them while you can. on an otherwise clear day, civilizations have Don’t look! But look! conjured a variety of mythical explanations The Internet is awash with information through history. Often, natives will interpret about the eclipse, and all sites warn us not to the event as something eating the sun. An look directly at the event or we risk permanent early Chinese word for eclipse meant “to eye damage. However, sunglasses sufficient eat,” and for them it was a dragon eating to protect the viewer are available from the sun. For ancient Vikings, it was a pair of many websites and retail outlets. Carroll wolves. For folks in Vietnam, it was a frog. and Madison Library cardholders can get In Korea, it was fire dogs. a pair free at the Carnegie Library while People of the Togo and Benin area of supplies last. Astronomy Magazine stated an West Africa interpret an eclipse as the sun appropriate pair of sunglasses for viewing and moon fighting, and people on Earth the eclipse would be equivalent to 13 pairs can stop the battle by coming together to of regular sunglasses. resolve their own differences. The Navajo Mreclipse.com, the site of retired also see an eclipse as a call to pause and astronomer Fred Espanek, explains an reflect on our place in the scheme of things. eclipse has two components. The path of the and return to their nests. An observer in disappeared, soldiers interpreted the event as Navajo families would stay inside and sing inner shadow of totality is called the umbra, Zimbabwe noted hippos took to the water a signal from the gods for peace and they put special songs but avoided eating, drinking or usually about 100 miles wide but possibly during totality as they usually do when dusk down their weapons. sleeping to maintain a natural balance in the 10,000 miles long. Outside that path is the settles, but “showed nervousness for the rest In 840, deeply religious Louis the world. penumbra, or the partial eclipse shadow. of the afternoon.” Bees retreated to the hive Pious, third son of Charlemagne and heir Ethnologists went to Suriname in Espanek says, “The path of a total during the dark and refused to leave when to his father’s empire, saw a solar eclipse as 1973 to monitor the Kalina who still eclipse can cross any part of Earth. Even the sun reappeared. a sign of impending punishment from God carry out another eclipse tradition found the North and South Poles get a total eclipse A researcher in Mexico reported and reportedly died of fright. around the world. They see the sun and sooner or later.” However, the paths are spiders took down their webs during totality. Christopher Columbus sailed for his moon as brothers who occasionally fight. predictable, and the average wait-time for a Others reported frogs and crickets began fourth voyage to the New World in 1502. These fights threaten the entire world, so total eclipse to follow the same pathway is their nightsinging and bats and owls became Legend holds that after a year of exploring during the eclipse the Kalina do their part about 375 years. active. Central America, worms began eating to stop the fighting by yelling at the sun Total eclipses usually last two or three During a 1984 eclipse, an observer holes in his ship and he was forced to find and moon and banging on pots or drums minutes at most, but the Space Facts website saw captive female chimpanzees with refuge in Jamaica. The warm welcome to make as much noise as possible to get predicts there will be one June 13, 2132, their young gather at the top of a climbing for the sailors waned after a year, and the their attention. lasting 7.5 minutes. structure. Eventually the other chimps joined indigenous people stopped offering food for Dr. Marek Kukula is the Public Eclipses in history them, and one juvenile pointed toward the Columbus’s men. Columbus learned from an Astronomer at the British Observatory Eclipses have proved to be powerful sun and moon. almanac he carried that a lunar eclipse was Greenwich, and wrote that he organized events for Earth’s inhabitants. Just before an Since eclipses are silent, pets are nigh. According to the story, Columbus told an eclipse tour to a remote spot deep in the eclipse, temperatures drop, darkness prevails probably affected more by how their humans the locals because they had stopped feeding Libyan desert for his first total solar eclipse in the middle of the day, and planets and behave, and some animals do not seem to his men, the gods were unhappy and would experience. He was well organized and bright stars can be visible in the sky. There is notice at all. turn the moon bloody red. Sure enough, a totally prepared to explain the science of an odd shimmering in the air we do not see According to History.com, a total solar lunar eclipse turned the moon red, and the what his participants would see.