On June 30, 1973, the Concorde supersonic aircraft achieved a historic feat by chasing the Moon’s shadow during a total solar eclipse. The plane took off from Las Palmas, Gran Canaria, Spain and flew at a speed of 2,200 km/h (Mach 2) along the path of totality to extend the observation time of the eclipse from just over 7 minutes on the ground to an impressive 74 minutes. This flight remains the longest in human history and is considered legendary among eclipse enthusiasts.
In recent years, JSX Airlines offered a flight to view a solar eclipse over Dallas on April 8, with both United Airlines and Delta selling out tickets for flights across the total spectrum from Texas to Northeast. However, no aircraft can quite match the feat of Concorde 001 on June 30, 1973. The Concorde was specifically modified for research purposes and included observers from France, Britain, and the United States on board.
The small windows on later eclipse viewing flights made it difficult for passengers to observe the eclipse for more than a short period of time. Nevertheless, on July 2, 2019, another successful eclipse viewing flight took place by doubling the observation time from just over 4 minutes and 32 seconds to nearly 9 minutes. This remarkable achievement is a testament to the ingenuity and dedication of scientists and engineers who continue to push boundaries in our understanding of our universe.
