“Turn Around, Bright Eyes”

Monday brings  Solar Eclipse

​Yes by all means turn around Monday in the early afternoon hours when the eclipse of the sun (not the heart) spans across the continent. If you haven’t heard the warnings against looking at the eclipse even very briefly for pity’s sake “DON’T LOOK AT THE ECLIPSE ... EVEN VERY BRIEFLY! ”
That is unless you have the special glasses and then please ensure they are the correct ones.

An eclipse is a very cool thing. This one has received more hype than the Mayweather/ McGregor  fight and you can watch  the eclipse without having to fork out for Pay Per-View.

There have been over a dozen movies with an eclipse in them including one titled, cleverly enough, The Eclipse.  Eclipse had a  part in The Mummy, Angela’s Ashes,and  a few dystopian types along with a couple vampire flicks.. Mark Twain included a  solar eclipse in A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court and a lunar variety was part of the plot when Sir H. Rider Haggard penned King Solomon’s Mines.  We’ve seen eclipses pass through our TV screens in a multitude episodes from shows as diverse as  Power Rangers, CSI Miami and Mad Men.

And Carly Simon said to the unnamed You’re So Vain” guy ‘You flew your Lear Jet to Nova Scotia for the total eclipse of the sun’  a seemingly  innocuous line until you listen the venom she injects into it.

Yeah, it’s a pretty awesome astronomical experience the whole eclipse thing and it's not like it comes around every year like the Super Bowl or every four years like the Olympics or a Cher Farewell Tour (Joke. Seriously, I love Cher.  no need to send me hate mail).

There are four more totals worldwide in the coming years but each takes place in a rather deep portion of the southern hemisphere. In fact the next one of the total  variety in a place one could reasonably drive to from here is April 8, 2024 which, coincidentally or not, will be the 5oth anniversary of Hank Aaron breaking Babe Ruth's record
But you probably knew that.
The main trunkline of the  ‘24 version will be a couple hundred miles south of us so plan  on booking a room in Akron or Indy.

But back to Monday’s event.
It won’t be total here but close to 80% a higher mark than I ever got in Science class and it should last a good couple three hours starting around 1pm and maxing out around 2:20pm.
So where to go for this show featuring two of our biggest skyward celebrities? Back yard? Park? Rooftop?

Well the folks at the Stephen F Wessling Observatory including the facility’s namesake are going to be on hand for the Solar Eclipse Party being held Monday August 21 from 12:30-3:30PM. Admission is $ 5.00 for adults and $2.00 for children ages five to seventeen. The special solar viewing glasses come with the price of admission while they last. And there will be special solar telescopes set up for viewing the eclipse in white and hydrogen alpha wavelengths.

Oh and those glasses you need in case you don’t get to the observatory Monday afternoon?
And I mean truly, truly need because we don’t want need you damaging those precious vision orbs, right?
You can get them  at the Conservation District Office for $2 a pair on a first come first serve basis.
And please.
Not even a quick peek without them.