front row at the eclipse

Bobbie Seligmann gets a front row seat for the April 8 eclipse.

The stars aligned for us on April 8, when mostly-clear skies, perfect spring temperatures and Doug Megenity’s high-powered solar telescope drew more than 120 Hollin Hillers to Recard Lane to watch the 2024 solar eclipse together.  And while we weren’t in the path of full totality, 86% turned out to be pretty cool, and we all watched in awe as the moon made its slow, majestic way across the face of the sun, turning it into a thin sliver of gold through our solar glasses.

Thanks to everyone who came!  It was a real pleasure to share this cosmic event with friends, and a crowd that ranged from newborns to nonagenarians gathered to watch the eclipse unfold.  There were the usual astronomical accoutrements — special solar sunglasses, bowls of “Eclipse” gum, bags of tortilla chips, and of course a gigantic telescope — but it was the people who made the afternoon so memorable.

Doug Megenity stepped cheerfully into the role of Eclipse MC, providing detailed information about the event and helping people view the sun up close through his special Lunt 152 Ha solar telescope.  Everyone who wanted to got a look, and it was breathtaking to see the sun’s details, including sunspots and delicate eruptions from the surface (which, Doug explained, were actually 40,000 to 50,000 miles high).  

It’s easy, in our inward-looking and light-polluted world, to lose sight of how vast and wondrous the universe is, and how infinitesimal we are in it.  But as we gathered together and turned our eyes upwards to the spectacle above, we may have felt some connection — not just to each other, but to the magnificence of universe itself, and the extraordinary fact of our own existence. 

Not a bad way to spend an afternoon. Many thanks to Doug and to Tania Ryan for organizing the event.