Comets Take In Eclipse

08.21.2017

There was a stellar scene under the Trellis on Monday, Aug. 21, when the campus community gathered to witness the 2017 solar eclipse.

Equipped with glasses provided by the McDermott Library, Comets took turns glimpsing the cosmic event, and even though North Texas only saw a partial eclipse, it was still quite a sight to see.

The last total solar eclipse in North America was Feb. 26, 1979. Missed this one? Worry not! North Texas will be in the path of a total solar eclipse on April 8, 2024.

(Photos by Sarah Wall)

Grant Barbee used potato chip canisters to create a viewer for the eclipse on Aug. 21. He was assisted by a friend, Hudson Bielstein.

Debate program director Scott Herndon helped his son Liam construct a pinhole projector to view the solar eclipse.

Professor Rod Heelis and his wife viewed the eclipse from Trellis Plaza. Heelis is director of the William B. Hanson Center for Space Sciences.

Marc Hairston, research scientist in the Hanson Center for Space Sciences, answered questions about the eclipse.

Evan Gilbert (seated), a freshman, and Gabriel Sanchez, a sophomore, used a Texas-shaped pinhole projector during the eclipse. Both are students in the Erik Jonsson School of Engineering and Computer Science.

Maryam Ahmadi and Taeho Yoon, both Jindal School of Management freshmen, photographed the eclipse on their phone with special glasses as a filter.

Kenneth Palmer, a freshman from Austin, created his own projector.

From left: Martin David, Bianca Munoz, Victoria Koshevarova and Patrick Nguyen viewed the eclipse from Trellis Plaza.

Comets gathered as the apex of the eclipse approached. Planetary scientist Mary Urquhart told KERA that Dallas would see about 75 percent coverage of the eclipse.

Where did you take in #Eclipse2017? Share your photos in the comments below or on the UT Dallas Facebook page!