Canadian astronaut experiences lifetime first in N.B.

Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield prepared to watch the total solar eclipse the way he’d  prepare for any outer-space endeavour. He practised.

“Exactly 24 hours before the eclipse, I went outside to the place I’m going to be, and I stood and I used my glasses,” he said. “I tried out my camera, and I chose a good place and thought about it, so that I don’t have to be nervous.”

Speaking in the western New Brunswick community of Florenceville-Bristol on Monday, Hadfield said he’s gone around the world, in space, more than 2,600 times.

He’s seen the Earth block the sun from space, but he’s never seen a full solar eclipse like the one going across North America now.

This experience is valuable to him both personally and scientifically.

“I’m really curious to what exactly it looks like and how the sound changes and how the atmosphere changes,” he said. “I think there’s also a mediate link with people 1,000 years ago, standing here on the shores of the St. John River and what it must have felt like for them.”

A solar eclipse occurs when the moon passes in front of the sun. And when the moon completely covers the sun, it is considered a total solar eclipse.

Carleton North, Woodstock, Fredericton and Miramichi are among the areas of New Brunswick on the path of totality. 

Thousands of people converged on these areas Monday to experience the rare phenomenon. Some will also be able to attend a talk by Hadfield at Carleton North Civic Centre on Monday night.

Personal and scientific importance

Hadfield grew up on a corn farm in southern Ontario. He said Florenceville-Bristol, with its houses along the river and its rolling hills, reminds him of home.

“As someone who’s been to 100 countries, and lived on board a spaceship, there’s a tremendous feeling of home,” he said.

“That makes seeing a rare celestial event even more significant. That I’m not just seeing it by myself, that I’m seeing it feeling like I’m back in a place where I’m truly from.”

On the scientific side, Hadfield said a total eclipse brings an opportunity to study the sun in ways that are not always possible.

Electromagnetic energy from the sun can impact Earth’s magnetic field, satellites and energy grids.

Hadfield said that energy comes from the ring of gasses around the sun, called the corona, which is hard to see because the sun is so bright. But during an eclipse, when the main part of the sun is obscured by the moon, scientists can observe that corona more closely.

“You can see the science of the sun like almost never,” he said.

Hadfield said visiting the local high school and sharing his experiences with the students, speaking at the community centre and experiencing the eclipse in perfect weather make for a day he won’t forget.

“A day I’m going to think about for a long time.”