Starstruck: amateur astronomer says a total eclipse is 'an absolute wonder'

Terry Parish, who writes Dark Skies of West Norfolk for T & A, talks rare phenomenons and childhood memories

The first question I ask is when Terry’s interest in astronomy began.

“From a child really. I got a book for Christmas one year called, ‘The Boys Book of Space’, by Patrick Moore, he did more for astronomy for the public than anybody else on the planet I think, I’ve got it in front of me now this book - that was the start of it really.”

He grew up in the West Midlands, moving to Heacham more than 10 years ago. The reason for his move? The sky.

“I came to this part of Norfolk originally because there were some dark skies, I come from the Midlands, Wolverhampton, and the skies there aren’t particularly dark.

“When I first came to Heacham, in the winter, you could guarantee several weeks of nights of clear skies, where you could have a good look.”

He recounts some memorable sightings which sparked his interest further as a young person.

“In 1962 there was a satellite called Telstar that was launched - telecommunications - and it was a bright spot in the sky, a big balloon really, and all they did was bounce radio signals off it, and I went out, I lived in Birmingham then, you could see this thing go across the sky.”

America, 2017

He goes on to talk about a trip to America with his son, Oliver, in 2017 - to see a total solar eclipse, it was dubbed the 'Great American Eclipse' - the first to span coast-to-coast in 99 years.  In places onlookers experienced over 2 minutes of complete darkness, which he describes as an ‘absolute wonder.’

“We saw the total eclipse on August 21st in Casper, Wyoming and drove on to several national parks including Yellowstone and the Rockies.

“We arrived at one site the night before, sharing a motel with dozens of others like minded from across the states and the world. We observed the eclipse from beginning to end and went to a rodeo in the afternoon.

“Everyone should witness a clear total eclipse of the Sun, a few minutes of absolute wonder.”

Terry’s also enthusiastic about planets Venus and Mercury passing directly between the Earth and the Sun, a rare phenomenon known as a transit.

“Mercury transit crossing the Sun is a fairly regular event, in your life time you’ve got a good chance of seeing it. Whereas the Venus one, is every 100 odd years.”

In fact the last one was 2012 - and Terry wasn’t going to miss it.

“I’d seen the Venus one when I was on holiday in Switzerland. People in other hobbies collect badges, or birders go barmy about a bird that hasn’t appeared in England for ages.

“I do attempt to see these things that are rare events, a comet that’s not going to come back for a thousand years, or the transits, an event that’s historically significant to me anyway, it’s like most things - if you get a chance to see something, why not?”

Venus transit

And he’s got some advice for complete novices, like me.

“Meteor showers are the things, because there are regular ones. The best dark skies are in the winter, so wrap up warm, you need to get your eyes accustomed, your eyes take about a quarter of an hour to acclimatise to the darkness.

“You need to have a seat in the garden, especially if you’re my age!  Be patient, and start looking at the sky.”

He ends by saying, “If I had my way I’d have a big switch, and every time there was a clear night, I’d use the switch and all the street lights would vanish.”

Terry's latest article for the March edition of T&A, is on page 50: https://townandaround.net/prev...