Concorde eclipse

Chasing a Shadow at Supersonic Speed

On June 30, 1973, a historic scientific mission took flight. A group of astronomers and scientists boarded a French-crewed Concorde 001 supersonic jet with a single, ambitious goal: to chase a solar eclipse. The challenge was to fly fast enough and high enough to extend the precious moments of totality—the time when the moon completely blocks the sun, revealing its outer corona.

The eclipse's path of totality crossed over Africa, and the Concorde took off from Las Palmas. By flying at Mach 2—twice the speed of sound—the jet was able to maintain its position within the moon's shadow. The crew successfully prolonged the viewing time from a fleeting 7 minutes to an incredible 74 minutes, an unprecedented feat that would be impossible from the ground.

This innovative mission provided scientists with a rare and extended opportunity to study the sun's outer atmosphere. The data collected from onboard instruments offered invaluable insights into the solar corona, a region of the sun that is still not fully understood. It remains a testament to human ingenuity and the pursuit of knowledge, turning a transient natural phenomenon into a prolonged scientific observation.

"The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." - Lao Tzu

The supersonic jet racing the eclipse's shadow