Locals marvel at eclipse throughout Capital Region

At an eclipse viewing party at the Museum of Innovation and Science (miSci) in Schenectady, local students and science buffs gathered to watch the eclipse outdoors, aided by safety glasses and telescopes.

During Monday’s partial eclipse, 97% of the sun was covered by the face of the moon in Schenectady, outside of the path of totality experienced in the North Country and in Western New York, where the sun was completely covered by the moon.

The partial eclipse began in Schenectady at 2:12 p.m., with the moon covering approximately 30% of the sun before cloud cover began to obscure the view for residents. As the totality of the eclipse began at 3:24, the clouds parted outside the miSci building, affording visitors a clear view of the 97% eclipse, with a crescent sliver of the sun visible.

Attendees also watched the eclipse in orbit through video feeds broadcasting footage from across the country.

Residents at the Schenectady watch party said they wanted to catch a glimpse of the eclipse on Monday, as the next total solar eclipse in parts of the U.S. is not expected to arrive until 2044, according to NASA.

The previous eclipse visible in the county took place in 2017.

Kurt Beecher, vice president of exhibit development at miSci, guided visitors through the planetarium’s eclipse broadcast, with Beecher noting that the next eclipse of magnitude that locals saw on Monday will not be visible until long after 2044.

“This isn’t going to happen again,” Beecher said on Monday. “You’ll hear some people say it’s 20 years until the next eclipse, but the deepest it’s going to get is about 50% here in this area of the country. A total solar eclipse crossing this area of the country will not happen for several hundred years. So this is a big deal.”

With tens of thousands of travelers trekking to the Adirondacks and into Vermont on Monday afternoon to view the eclipse in its path of totality, traffic was backed up on the Adirondack Northway during the morning and slowed on I-87 South after the event as travelers made their way downstate.

Scott Cook, public information specialist for the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT), said the state agency expected further delays throughout the evening on Monday.

“The Northway experienced moderate to heavy volumes during the pre-eclipse hours on Monday and traffic was further impacted by a crash in the northbound lanes near Exit 8 around 2:30 p.m.,” Cook noted in a statement. “The New York State Department of Transportation is monitoring traffic conditions and our staff and resources — including drones for real-time condition monitoring, extra HELP trucks and pre-deployed tow trucks on state roads in the North Country — are fully engaged to help ensure that New Yorkers have as safe and enjoyable an experience as possible during this event.”

According to NASA, a solar eclipse occurs when the moon passes between the sun and Earth, blocking a portion of the sun and casting a shadow on Earth.

Visitors to the miSci event were urged to view the eclipse through protective glasses, as the song “Blinded by the Light” by Manfred Mann’s Earth Band rang out through the museum as a precautionary tale warning attendees not to look directly at the sun.

Resident Stephen Brown brought his young children to the miSci event to take advantage of the Schenectady City School District’s day off for local students to have an opportunity to view the eclipse.

“We came here because we figured it’s a nice thing to bring the kids to,” Brown said.

Meteorologist Stephen DiRienzo of the National Weather Service Albany said the cloudy conditions that obscured the view for some in the Capital Region were expected in Monday’s forecast.

“The expected cloud cover was about 61% and it got a little thick at times, it was probably a little more than that,” DiRienzo said on Monday. “It was just a very narrow band of very high clouds, but they were thick. There was a warm front approaching us and a low pressure system developed on the warm front near Buffalo today and brought the clouds as far east as us.”

DiRienzo said that the Lake Placid region in the Adirondacks enjoyed clearer skies for Monday’s eclipse.

All the rage on the rooftop

In Saratoga Springs, Cantina’s rooftop bar was packed on Monday afternoon with people hoping to catch a glimpse of the eclipse — with a margarita in hand — from the Spa City.

“It’s a great excuse for everybody to take off from work,” said Julie O’Callaghan, who came to Cantina after a busy morning at the Country Corner Cafe, which she owns with her husband Mark.

The Broadway restaurant, which serves up Southwest dishes and margaritas, among other cocktails, opened its rooftop bar shortly before the eclipse started and the place was at capacity well before the peak.

Dozens milled about sipping margaritas and beers, their eyes mainly on the sky.

The view in Amsterdam

Streetlights came on several hours early in Amsterdam on the Mohawk Valley Gateway Overlook Pedestrian Bridge as the solar eclipse neared its peak.

“It was cool. It got dark at daytime, we’ve never seen that,” said Lilianna, 9, of Scotia.

She and her family were among the dozens of area locals gathered at the MVGO Bridge in Amsterdam to watch the eclipse despite cloudy conditions on Monday afternoon.

As the clouds shifted, families would periodically exclaim, “you can see a little orange now” and other similar phrases of excitement as they peered into the sky through eclipse glasses.

Family travels to northern Vermont

The Bays family of Niskayuna traveled all the way to northern Vermont, following the cloud forecast for the best chance at the best celestial show.

They were not disappointed.

Daily Gazette online editor Steven Cook, doing the same thing with his family, ran into them at Lake Carmi State Park as everyone settled in for the eclipse.

“We were just looking for anywhere, it was the New York Times map least cloudy places to be and we looked around 7 this morning,” mother Pamela Bays said.

She and her husband Stephan saw the 2017 partial eclipse from their backyard locally, when she was pregnant with their son Lukas.

The place they chose to view this eclipse — the total variety — was a small state park with a lake, lawn public area and a clear view of the sky.

They traveled with friend Wayne Hoerning, of Greenwich.

Totality came, darkening the skies and leaving only the sun’s corona and stars. For more than three minutes.

As the sun reemerged, cheers echoed from those present.

“I thought it was spectacular, it was absolutely worth the drive,” Pamela Bays said afterward.

There was some skepticism, she said, “but in the end, that was amazing.”

“People describing it couldn’t do it justice,” she added.

And how about those three minutes?

“It was unbelievable how dark it was,” Pamela Bays said.

Hoerning reflected on experiencing the eclipse.

“That’s part of what makes it so special, right?” Hoerning said. “It’s only here for a minute. it’s amazing.”

The Schenectady science museum sold out of the 350 tickets that the organization sold for $25 each, with attendance capped after the museum received unexpectedly large crowds at its prior eclipse watch party in 2017.

MiSci held weekend workshops in advance of the eclipse informing residents about how eclipses occur and safety tips for how to view them.

MiSci President Dr. Gina Gould said on Monday that the eclipse had triggered a wave of enthusiasm for science locally.

“It’s a celebration of science,” Gould said. “The fact that people find this really cool means that they have an interest in science and that means a lot, because science explains everything in our world.”

Assemblyman Angelo Santabarbara, D-Rotterdam, handed out protective eclipse glasses outside the Karen B. Johnson Library on Monday morning before heading to the miSci event. Santabarbara and county officials recently brokered a deal to keep the museum in Schenectady for at least five more years.

“I think everybody’s excited about this and it’s been long anticipated,” Santabarbara said on Monday. “The fact that it’s happening here at miSci, with our journey to ensure that miSci can be part of our community, speaks to all of your work too. There’s people in the museum exploring and they’re not just here for the eclipse.”

Resident Julie McDonnell said she wanted to support miSci by attending Monday’s eclipse viewing event.

“They’re a great organization and I want them to succeed,” she said. “I think this is a good place to be (for the eclipse) because you have some scientists and equipment. We wanted to be with other people.”