Wealthy ‘eclipse chasers’ have not been deterred by recent weather predictions that clouds could obscure Monday’s solar eclipse.
Instead, plans for their extravagant eclipse viewing parties and festivals continue apace. Eclipse chasers continue to head south to Texas in search of conditions conducive to viewing them.
On Monday there will be a “total” solar eclipse, which occurs when the moon and sun are perfectly aligned. The moon blocks the sun from the sky and the world is temporarily drowned in shadows.
The last solar eclipse occurred in December 2021 and the last solar eclipse visible in America occurred in August 2017.
Although the recently announced forecasts are ominous, suggesting thunderstorms and cloud cover that could limit visibility, deep-pocketed thrill seekers are not deterred.
The Texas Eclipse Festival in Burnet is drawing thousands of attendees despite bleak weather forecasts; Pictured: Drone footage from the Texas Eclipse Festival
An influx of tourists has caused an increase in traffic patterns in different cities along the path of totality of the eclipse; Pictured: A Texas highway clogged with traffic during the eclipse.
Bill Perkins, founder and managing partner of Skylar Capital, a Houston-based hedge fund, will host 200 people at his lake house in Austin to commemorate the solar phenomenon.
Forecasts of rain and lightning have not deterred the hedge fund manager from hosting his lavish party, which will feature a petting zoo, astronomy lessons and state-of-the-art telescopes.
The private party will also offer attendees live musical performances. Sofi Tukker, Ryan Tedder, the leader of OneRepublic, and Yassin Bey, the rapper formerly known as Mos Def, will perform.
Perkins told the San Francisco newspaper Standard that “he was always looking for a reason to have a party.”
Evoking Carl Sagan, Perkins observed that the eclipse was “one of those things that reminds us that we are on a little blue ball, with a sun, spiraling through space.”
The wealthiest eclipse viewers have thrown lavish parties to commemorate the total solar eclipse
On Monday, the total solar eclipse will be visible along a “path of totality,” starting in Mexico and passing through Texas, where it will travel to New England and end in Canada.
Anywhere along the path of totality, people will see a partial eclipse followed by the total eclipse, and then a partial eclipse again.
Whatever your location along the path of totality, the total eclipse should be visible for about four minutes.
Totality will begin in Dallas around 1:40 pm and last until 1:44 CDT.
Sheel Mohnot, general partner at Better Tomorrow Ventures, a San Francisco-based venture capital firm, told the Standard that he would be watching the eclipse from his friend’s ranch in Dallas. They will be camping and have installed additional bathrooms to accommodate their group of 45 people.
And Joshua Baer, founder of the venture capital firm Capital Factory, is planning an extremely extravagant shindig, in which famous physicists will address a crowd of 200 people.
Baer also arranged for a team of paratroopers, carrying American flags, to jump from the planes at the last moment of totality.
But many eclipse chasers head to Burnet, which is 90 minutes from Austin.
The total path of the eclipse extends from Canada to Mexico
The ‘Texas Eclipse Festival’ will be held in Burnet, an event that has been compared to the burning man.
The festival, which continues through Tuesday, will include concerts, astronaut speeches and art installations.
It will also offer attendees yoga, movement and mindfulness classes.
The festival’s website refers to the event as a “once in a lifetime” and ticket prices start at $249.
Drone footage posted to TikTok revealed how the festival had taken over the town of Burnet. In the video, the tents are packed together in tight rows. The parking lots are full of cars.
The desire to see the eclipse, it seems, has not been harmed by the gloomy weather forecasts.
Another TikToker posted a video in which a Texas highway was clogged with traffic due to the influx of tourists hoping to catch a glimpse of the eclipse.
Within the path of totality, the cities that will receive the most visitors are Austin and Indianapolis followed by Cleveland, Dallas and Montreal.
Most travelers will come from New York City or Mexico City.
The eclipse, which briefly darkens the outside during the day, will be visible to about 32 million people across a narrow strip of North and Central America.
Parts of Texas, including Dallas, face an increased risk of view-obscuring thunderstorms.
And in addition to bad weather, there will also be an increase in traffic to contend with.
The Texas Eclipse Festival runs through Tuesday and will feature uplifting speeches and exciting musical performances; pictured: the parking area at the Eclipse Festival
During the 2017 solar eclipse, there was a significant increase in traffic risks, according to CNN.
But tourists seem undeterred. The next solar eclipse of this magnitude won’t occur again until 2079, making Monday’s event a once-in-a-lifetime experience for many.
Dr Greg Brown, astronomer at Royal Greenwich Observatory, told MailOnline: ‘For observers in North America, this is the best chance of seeing a total solar eclipse this decade.
“Nothing compares to the day turned into night that arises from a total eclipse.”