A bustling crowd of astronomy enthusiasts and curious onlookers gathered on the WVU Mountainlair lawn Monday afternoon to witness the rare celestial event that has captivated North America for weeks — a solar eclipse that achieved 95% totality in Morgantown between 2-4:30 p.m.
The eclipse viewing party officially kicked off at 1:30 p.m., but at 1, the Mountainlair Green was already bustling with hundreds of students taking respite from a busy day of classes, families with young children enjoying the pleasant weather and WVU staff adorning the green with lawn chairs and picnic blankets. Those from the WVU Planetarium distributed eclipse glasses and music filled the air as attendees engaged in card games, basketball matches, laptop work sessions, all while eagerly scanning the sky through eclipse glasses in anticipation of the main event.
At around 2, as predicted, the first phase of the eclipse began: first contact, the moment where the moon seemingly “touches” the sun, creating the beginning of a crescent shape — or, as one viewer exclaimed, resembled a bite taken out of a cookie.
Between moments of watching the moon appear to eat away at the sun, attendees explored various educational activities provided by the WVU Planetarium, offering opportunities to view the eclipse through telescopes equipped with solar filters, discuss the science behind the astronomical phenomena by speaking with experts, watch hands-on physics demonstrations and peruse educational posters created by undergraduate students. These posters covered topics ranging from the historical significance of solar eclipses in ancient cultures to the modern marketing of such events.
“I love seeing people interested in the field,” said WVU Planetarium teaching assistant and Ph.D. physics and astronomy student Jackson Taylor. “I’ve been getting so many good questions; people are really engaging with the science of astronomy.”
While the WVU Planetarium performed educational outreach in Morgantown, a group of graduate students from WVU’s Physics and Astronomy department, along with students from Morgantown High School, Trinity Christian High School and Glenville State University, conducted similar activities at Waterford Elementary School in Waterford, Pa. The group traveled to an area within the eclipse’s path of totality for the launch of a high-altitude balloon system designed for atmospheric data collection. The balloon ascended at 1:30 p.m., allowing students, families and the surrounding community to witness a NASA-affiliated scientific experiment firsthand. The device collected data on temperature, humidity pressure and UV irradiance profiles before, during and after the eclipse, aiming to study how the sudden reduction in heating affects the atmospheric layers. High school students involved in the project will now analyze the data and develop a research paper based on their findings.
As the clock struck 3, the anticipated time for maximum coverage of the sun arrived. The star was a mere crescent, and the lawn was fuller than ever. A cacophony of disappointment broke out across the lawn as a cloud slid across the eclipse’s near-totality, but cheers rang out as the sky cleared once more, revealing the thin sliver of sun left visible. Attendees marveled at the sudden darkening of the sky and cooling of the air as the eclipse reached the 95% peak of West Virginia’s partial coverage.
Although West Virginia viewers were not within the path to witness second contact, or the moment of totality when the sun is completely covered by the moon, third contact began around 4 p.m. as the moon crept away from the sun. Many spectators slowly returned to their day’s activities with sun-kissed faces and awed grins, while others lingered until fourth contact was achieved, the moment at which the sun was fully revealed once more, and the eclipse officially drew to a close. The event is estimated to have attracted thousands of attendees.
Although celestial events as strikingly observable as a solar eclipse are not common — the next total solar eclipse in Morgantown will occur in 2099 — there are always fascinating phenomena occurring in the cosmos, many of which are highlighted by the WVU Planetarium.
For over three decades, the planetarium has served thousands of visitors a year with a variety of events, including educational demonstrations, trivia nights, science activities, space-themed musical performances, film screenings, eclipse observations, and more. Public shows of 45-60 minutes cover various topics and are held every other Friday, with children’s shows typically starting around 7-8 p.m. and advanced shows around 8-9, often followed by rooftop telescope observations. Free registrations can be made on the planetarium’s website.
“After a planetarium show we have the observatory open with a really nice, almost research-grade telescope,” said Taylor. “You can see stars, Jupiter, Saturn, Jupiter’s moons, and you can see our moon in great detail.”
Private shows for classes or large groups can be scheduled at the planetarium free of charge.
Visit planetarium.wvu.edu for more information.
