75Grand @ posthaven

video caption: total lunar eclipse, opening scene - Santa Olaya, PR, closing scene - Narranjito, PR [note small file size and low resolution to accomodate dialup mode for upload]   IT'S REALLY ABOUT THE SOUND, SO TRY TO LISTEN WITH HEADPHONES, OR GOOD SPEAKERS.

March 25, 1996
Vieques, Puerto Rico

The primary reason we walked to the inn was to stand at the half-way point on the dirt road leading to the inn, in the middle of an open field with a nearly 360 degree view of the night sky. Our goal was to view the comet Hyakutake. According to the local newspaper, the comet was to be visible to the naked eye beginning March 19 through March 27. The closest approach to the earth was March 26th when the comet would be at it's brightest. The diagram in the newspaper showed the comet as viewed in the southern hemisphere, starting in the proximity of Libra and tracing a line, in the northeastern sky, night by night, until it connects with the north (polar) star. That night, the 24th, the comet was suppossed to be found just below the third star in the handle of Ursa Major (the big dipper). The sky was slightly overcast, but the dipper was easy to find. Not knowing exactly what to look for, the best we could see was a bright but fuzzy star near the handle. Not certain if we had seen the comet or not, we went to the inn, had salads and rum and cokes, then started our walk back home just as it began to rain.

This morning, on our way to the beach, we met another couple who asked if we had seen the comet last night. They said they went to a secluded part of the bay last night, to snorkle and to watch for the comet. They described it as a bright fuzzy star and said that the tail was visible if you looked indirectly at the comet, from the corner of your eye. That sounded like an odd way to view a comet and I realized that for me, looking peripherally required that I look beyond the lens of my glasses. I'm nearly blind without my glasses, so I was sure that this technique would do me no good, though I did consider holding my glasses to the side of my head. It seems that we did see the comet, without fully realizing it, but we definitely did not see the tail.

Tonight, standing again, in the middle of the field we are looking up at the night sky. Again we see the soft, fuzzy bright star. This time it is even closer to the stars of the dipper's handle. As our eyes adjust to the darkness and accomodate to the starry sky, we can begin to make out the tail of the comet. Suddenly it comes into full view. The tail is enormous. It spans fully one third of the sky overhead. The tail goes up from the body of the comet at about a 30 degree angle. The more we look, the brighter the comet becomes.

Transfixed, we don't immediately notice that we have been joined by James, one of the owners of the inn. On his way down from the resturant, James told his staff to turn off the lights in the parking lot, so as he approached, we were suddenly plunged into total darkness. The comet emerges dramatically. The head and tail pulse with increasing brilliance. The head seems to cycle through a change of colors. No one speaks for a few minutes, then James begins to ask questions about the comet. Lillian had translated the spanish news article for me, so I had a number of facts at hand. James immediately picked up on the name, and in his best southern drawl, Kentucky bourbon in hand, says: "HiyoufromKentucky?" That became his running joke for the rest of the night.