First, a small disclaimer: By the time these lines are published, the following tip may be completely out of date. Everything is happening too fast right now, the demand is too high. But, dear readers, maybe you are lucky. The Motel 6 in the small town of Russellville in the US state of Ohio looks forward to welcoming you as a guest from April 7th to 9th, 2024. The key data: Around 1,100 euros for a double room; according to guest reviews, there is no coffee and no comfortable pillows; and yes, in general the facility is “just a little bit run down”. But as is often the case, please consider things in context.
There will be a total solar eclipse on April 8th. And you can’t see them everywhere, not at all in mainland Europe, and only in parts in Mexico, Canada and the USA. And in hardly any other area – the experts agree – will you be able to have such a wonderful view of this astronomical event as in Russellville, Ohio. Therefore 1,100 euros for a double room.
There are still five months until the moon moves completely in front of the sun for the next time after 2017 – but the scene for astronomy friends has been preparing for months eclipse chaser, as it calls itself in English-speaking countries, on April 8th. The New York Times recently analyzedthat for next year’s “blockbuster solar eclipse” hotel prices have increased fivefold, and in some cases tenfold, where the sky is supposed to be clearest and the view is most beautiful. Requests for accommodation are shared and events are organized in Facebook groups and specialist portals.
On the website Astronomy.com, on the other hand, is accurate to the second, when the eclipse will begin and end over which Texas ranch. It is said about Russellville that the view from nearby Mount Nebo (410 meters high) is particularly beautiful. Anyone planning an eclipse trip can also use the site to consider, for example, whether they would rather drive State Route 72 to Jackson for four extra seconds of darkness or whether they would stay on the banks of the Mississippi and deal with the 246 seconds casual Variant is sufficient.
Workshops and lectures have long been planned elsewhere; one panel is entitled: “Inspiring the nation to look up!” As if this wouldn’t happen on its own. They were sworn in in the USA on October 14th at the latest, when there was a partial solar eclipse. But what’s that compared to a total?
From a European perspective, it’s easy to laugh at this, putting four or five minutes of shade behind this theater. It would be advisable to first take a look at the bridge of your own nose, on which the solar eclipse glasses that you purchased at a much too expensive price were sitting on 24 years ago. Back then, on August 11, 1999, the last total solar eclipse could be seen over Germany.
The part of the population inclined towards mysticism was made nervous at the time by Adalbert Stifter, who wrote in 1842 about the previously witnessed solar eclipse: “Never in my entire life was I as shaken as in those two minutes – it was no different than If God had suddenly spoken a clear word and I would have understood it.” Nostradamus was also brought out, who in the 16th century formulated a prophecy that was either frightening or ridiculously concrete, depending on how it was written: “In the year 1999, in the seventh month, the great terror king will come from heaven.” This is also why people bought glasses and took protective measures in a panic; some people avoided looking at the sky, others didn’t even leave the house. When the moon moved in front of the sun, the land stood still for a few moments. Traffic jams for miles. Stiff neck. Strained eyes.
If all of this doesn’t put you off, you should book a hotel room in Russellville soon. The next total solar eclipse in southern Germany will not be for 58 years, on September 3rd, 2081. Northern Germans will have to wait until October 7th, 2135.