European eclipse foreshadows millennium frenzy

August 15, 1999

LA BAULE, France -- "A Magic Moment," that's how the French daily Le Figaro encapsulated the solar eclipse which shadowed Europe and the Middle East. The celestial event provided the backdrop for revelry, tomfoolery, and the usual apocopilic predictions all which seem to foreshadow a dry run for the millennium year 2000.

For France, the episode was only the second total eclipse this century--the last was in 1961, the next shall be in 2081 and thus presumably out of sight for most of us. So France and indeed most of Europe threw a party to celebrate the magical celestial moment when the moon covers the sun, and the land becomes every so briefly cool, dark, and suspended in time.

For the proverbial perfect eclipse--100 percent coverage of the sun one had to travel to parts of France--Reims in the Champagne country or Strassboug in Alsace were among the best; Paris had 99 percent coverage. I settled for a mere 96 percent on the coast of Brittany. Yet those true afficinados who ventured to Reims were treated to two minutes of total darkness. All rather exciting and a reason to open the bubbly.

Naturally there a science fiction spin to all of this- For the champagne and caviar set there was a flight on the Concorde which flew along with the sun, but unlike Icarus, provided passengers with a full eight minutes of total darkness. Others followed the event on the Internet and viewed the spectacle without having to don the rather silly but necessary spectacles which we bought to take glimpses of the sun.

Naturally in the ancient times such event foretold disaster or major events--in 431 BC the Athenian leader Pericles attacked the Peloponesse. In 1453 during the siege of Constantinople, the Ottoman Turks took advantage of a lunar eclipse to capture the city.

The 1999 eclipse--we are religiously reminded the last one of the millennium-- evolved like New Year's Eve with radio following the progress of event by the split second as the sun tracked across the sky.

The celestial show started about an hour before the main event. Bathers on La Baule, the most beautiful beach in Europe, first seemed unaffected by the initial minutes--the tiny sliver of the sun being blocked out. About fifteen minutes later the crescent was noticeable with the special glasses, and after forty minutes there was a very noticeable blockage of the sun. More interesting was the cool and almost creepy rush of cold air over the beach at midday.

About fifteen minutes after Noon the main event was shrouded in total silence; even among ubiquitous smokers, nobody seemed smoking. Truly a major event! Despite 96 percent coverage, the sky still was dimly bright owing to the spectacular power of the sun.

Contrary to lore and legend, I did not seen any birds flying upside down or funny animal antics although my young daughter spotted a dog sitting on a fence like a cat.

After the ellipse passed eastern France at 12:30 just prior to the sacred lunch hour, the sun arched across Europe--Stuttgart Germany, Salzburg Austria and later Bucharest Romania, and then over the minarets of Istanbul Turkey before arching over the Middle East. I followed the movement with a touch of New Years Eve in the air.

Across Europe the other news was the more regular partial eclipse of the EURO currency as well as yet another total eclipse of a Premier in the Kremlin.

The spectacle went from the sublime to the ridiculous--Paco Rabane the fashion designer predicted the end of the world, or at the very least the Russian MIR space station hitting Paris. Rabane ensconced himself in his villa in Brittany to wait out the apocalypse.

Across Europe the other news was the more regular eclipse of the EURO currency as well as yet a another total eclipse of a Premier in the Kremlin

As I'm usually not a big follower of such events, my main concession to the media hype was purchasing a special pair of European Union inspected and French Astronomical Society approved eclipse glasses for five Francs. As a honorific gesture to the occasion, I likewise greeted people that day with a vibrant Bon Eclipse instead of the everyday Bon Jour!

John J. Metzler is a U.N. correspondent covering diplomatic and defense issues who writes weekly for World Tribune.com.