Glens Falls Chronicle Serving the Glens Falls/Lake George region; Warren, Washington and northern Saratoga counties since 1980
By Cathy DeDe, Chronicle Managing Editor
On Monday, April 8, portions of the Adirondacks to our north will be in the path of “The Totality,” a total solar eclipse.
“It’s one of the= rarest and most arresting astronomical sights that human beings can see. You don’t see a total solar eclipse, you experience it,” Dr. Mindy Townsend, an astronomer from the Dudley Observatory at Siena College, told a crowd last October at Crandall Public Library.
The Wild Center in Tupper Lake promotes the eclipse saying, “It will be the first time the Adirondacks have ever been in the direct
path of totality.”
The last total solar eclipse in New York State was January 24, 1925, “more than 99 years ago!,” notes the St. Lawrence Chamber of Commerce. “The next total solar eclipse in New York State will be on October 26, 2144, more than 120 years from now!”
“After 2024 the United States will not see another total solar eclipse for over 20 years,” adds the Wild Center.
The path of what’s called the Great North American Eclipse crosses 13 U.S. states, Mexico and Canada.
In New York, “The path of Totality will traverse 29 counties,” said a press release issued by Governor Kathy Hochul.
The path is a 100-mile wide swath centered on a line roughly curving through Buffalo, over Lake Ontario to Watertown, and passing just south of Plattsburgh on the way out of the state into Vermont.
Viewing parties, solar festivals and events will include “Totality in Tupper Lake,” centered on a free day at the Wild Center, and events in Ticonderoga, Newcomb, Lake Placid, Saranac Lake, Crown Point and at the Adirondack Experience in Blue Mountain Lake, among others.
The rest of New York, including the lower Adirondacks, Lake George and Glens Falls, will experience 88 to 99 percent coverage, said Gov. Hochul’s release — “still quite the celestial spectacle.”
Over a period of less than 15 minutes, from about 3:15 to 3:30 p.m., the moon will pass between the earth and sun, “turning day into night for 1½ to 3½ minutes,” said I Love NY.
Dr. Townsend said in her talk, “The temperature drops. Insects and birds are singing and then it’s total silence. Animal behavior changes. It feels like dusk.”
The entire event will last about 2½ hours, from a little after 2 p.m. when the sun is first obstructed, to the last moments when the moon passes by the sun.
“I dare you not to feel something,” said Dr. Townsend, describing the one experience she had viewing a total eclipse as a young PhD candidate. “To experience what our ancestors felt, the horror and hope, calamity and community. No matter how jaded you are, you can’t help feel that there’s a universe out there, and it’s bigger, it doesn’t care for you.”
“Do this for you,” Dr. Townsend urged.
Gathered from several sources.
- Protect your eyes with specialized solar viewing glasses. Sunglasses are not enough. Shade 14 or higher welding glasses are recommended.
- You can also make a pinhole projector — literally a piece of paper with a small hole in it; don’t look through it but rather watch the ground where it casts a shadow of the developing eclipse. (You can also get this effect with a kitchen collander, or by making a loose lattice of your fingers.)
- You are safe to take the glasses off at the moment of Totality.
- If planning to travel, make reservations early. Even in the Adironcacks, prepare for possible crowds. Dr. Townsend advised in her talk last October, “If you haven’t started making your plans you should start making them yesterday.”
- Dress for the weather.
A good starting place is the Regional Office of Sustainable Tourism (ROOST), out of Lake Placid: 2024-eclipse.com.
I Love NY has numerous guides and blogs, including links to regional events. Do a search from the main website, or try this long address: iloveny.com/blog/ post/best-2024-total-solar-eclipse-viewing- spots-in-the-adirondacks.
Adirondack Sky Center and Observatory in Tupper Lake: adirondackskycenter.
org/TotalityInTupper.
Also in Tupper: wildcenter.org.
St. Lawrence Chamber of Commerce: visitstlc.com/totality-2024/.
Also see the American Astronomical Association: aaa.org.
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