UTD - The University of Texas at Dallas

04/12/2024 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 04/12/2024 07:43

Total Solar Eclipse Becomes Communal Comet Experience

  • Comets' eyes were on the skies above Margaret McDermott Trellis Plaza for the total solar eclipse on April 8. Check out some of the eclipse reactions on Instagram.
  • Eclipse glasses were a hot commodity during the April 8 event. Volunteers distributed them at various campus locations.
  • Before the eclipse, a discussion featuring KRLD-AM chief meteorologist Dan Brounoff (left), Dr. Eileen Stansbery of the NASA Johnson Space Center and UTD physics professor Dr. Mustapha Ishak-Boushaki was held in the Edith O'Donnell Arts and Technology Building Lecture Hall.
  • Physics doctoral student Isaac Wright BS'22 (left), a Eugene McDermott Graduate Fellow, and associate professor of physics Dr. Fabiano Rodrigues conducted an experiment during the eclipse. The researchers hoped to learn more about the effects of eclipses on the ionosphere.
  • On the University Roundabout, the UTD community basked in the total solar eclipse experience as the moon begins its journey over the sun.
  • Near the beginning of totality, a jewel in the sky appeared as the final rays of sunlight passed through the valleys on the moon creating a diamond-ring effect.
  • The Sciences Building courtyard was home to a stellar scene with crowds getting glimpses of the eclipse. (Photo credit: Mathew Rios)
  • Alumni and families were among those who visited campus to enjoy the eclipse experience.
  • Students, faculty, staff and visitors celebrated the rare celestial event at the Sciences Building.
  • A composite of images showed the progression of the solar eclipse above UT Dallas before totality.
  • The solar eclipse reached totality. A total solar eclipse will not occur again in North Texas until 2317.

A gray morning over The University of Texas at Dallas campus gave way to just enough breaks in the clouds around midday for throngs of Comets to experience the total eclipse of the sun that captivated millions of onlookers across North America on April 8.

Visitors joined faculty, staff and students for the "No Comets Left Inside" campus celebration of the once-in-a-generation cosmic event. Viewers flocked to open green areas, parking lots, garage rooftops, the Margaret McDermott Mall and Chess Plaza, where free eclipse glasses and commemorative T-shirts were hot commodities.

Physics senior Seth Rippentrop volunteered to show a live telescopic projection of the solar eclipse in progress to passersby during the campus event.

Telescope projections and other indirect viewing methods, set up by faculty, and music drew hundreds to areas such as the courtyard of the Sciences Building and the south end of the mall near - and in the middle of - the University Roundabout. Researchers with the William B. Hanson Center for Space Sciences conducted an experiment in which they measured a dip in the density of electrons in the ionosphere during the eclipse. Dr. Frederick Turner, professor emeritus of literature and creative writing, wrote a poem inspired by the eclipse.

A forecast calling for afternoon rain didn't dampen the excitement of the expectant crowds. Donning protective glasses to view the initial partial phase of the eclipse, which began at 12:23 p.m., Comets trained their eyes skyward until the big event at 1:41 p.m. - totality - when the glasses came off and cheers rang out across campus. During totality, the moon completely blocked out the disk of the sun, leaving behind an apparent black hole in the sky surrounded by the sun's glowing corona and blanketing the region in an eerie darkness for 3 minutes, 38 seconds.

Visit the UT Dallas eclipse website for an archive of eclipse-related stories, news coverage, photos and other UTD-related information.

The shadow of the moon began to engulf the south side of campus at the University Roundabout during the total solar eclipse. Students, faculty, staff and visitors reveled in the spectacle's darkness as day turned into night for more than three minutes. Check out a time lapse video of the eclipse on Instagram.