Three-Day Total Eclipse 2024 Celebration!

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. . . on Monday, April 8, when a total solar eclipse sweeps across Cleveland, you will witness an extraordinary, probably once-in-a-lifetime event like no other.

A total solar eclipse occurs when the moon (orbiting in between the earth and the sun) totally blocks our view of the sun and turns day into night.

Cleveland lies within the path of totality—promising nearly four minutes of darkness in the middle of the afternoon as the moon moves between the Earth and the sun. Cleveland won’t be in the path of totality again until the year 2444.

. . .

The eclipse begins at 1:59 p.m. in Cleveland on April 8, with the totality occurring at 3:15 p.m., and ending at 4:29 p.m. The duration is two hours and 30 minutes, with totality lasting three minutes and 50 seconds.

. . .

According to The Farmers’ Almanac, more than 32 million people are living in the 2024 eclipse’s path of totality. That’s a huge increase from the 12 million people who were in the path of the 2017 eclipse.

Don’t forget, the next total eclipse that can be seen over the continental United States won’t happen until 2044. And it won’t be in our back yard.

NASA in CLE
. . .
2024 Eclipse Countdown Kickoff

On April 8, 2024, Northeast Ohio will be in the path of totality for a total solar eclipse. This is a once-in-a-lifetime occurrence – the last time Ohio saw a total solar eclipse was 1806, and after 2024, Ohio won’t see another total solar eclipse until 2099! To help spread this news, astronauts Frank Rubio and Stephen Bowen sent a special message from the International Space Station.

2024 Eclipse Countdown Kickoff
NASA Glenn Research Center
. . . on April 8, 2024, Northeast Ohio will be in the path of totality for a total solar eclipse. This is a once-in-a-lifetime occurrence – the last time Ohio saw a total solar eclipse was 1806, and after 2024, Ohio won’t see another total solar eclipse until 2099!
To help spread this news, astronauts Frank Rubio and Stephen Bowen sent a special message from the International Space Station.

1806 - 2024 - 2099! The April 8, 2024, total eclipse was a once-in-a-lifetime occurrence for Ohio!!! We want to share here what we and our son, Michael, experienced during the three-day celebration (April 6-8, 2024) leading up to the start of the eclipse at 1:59 pm on the third day, and the amazing total eclipse as it happened at 3:15 pm.

We ended our blog post about the 2017 partial (80%) eclipse with the message "See you in 2024!" and a countdown clock. After waiting seven years, it feels strange that the countdown clock now shows the number of days since the event happened! Total eclipse 2024 is now history! See our blog post:

• Blog Date: September 6, 2017 - A Rare Experience! Solar Eclipse 2017!
  Here is the countdown clock from our 2017 blog post:

  Maximum eclipse in Cleveland (when the moon is closest to the center of the Sun) will be at 3:15 pm on Monday, April 8, 2024.

The moment of the total eclipse was incredible (it really can't be put into words), but we also want to note that the three days of eclipse celebration also featured many of the great organizations that improve the quality of life for those of us who live in the Greater Cleveland area. We hope to capture here not just what we observed during the 2024 total eclipse, but also the spirit of our community at the Cleveland events we attended.

 

 

Saturday, April 6, 2024 - Total Eclipse Fest 2024 - NASA Glenn Research Center at Great Lakes Science Center

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TOTAL ECLIPSE FEST 2024
April 6-8, 2024

Join the premier eclipse viewing celebration in Cleveland - Total Eclipse Fest 2024 at Great Lakes Science Center. The Science Center and its partners NASA’s Glenn Research Center and The Cleveland Orchestra will host a three-day celestial celebration in downtown Cleveland. This free, outdoor, family-friendly science and arts festival will feature free concerts, performances, speakers, and hands-on science activities with community partners.

. . .

At the heart of the festival is “NASA Village,” an immersive experience featuring NASA’s major missions and cutting-edge projects that will advance space exploration and revolutionize air travel. Exhibits will focus on innovations in aeronautics, space, solar and lunar science, and safety. Through virtual and augmented simulations, attendees will have the opportunity to take a supersonic flight, walk on Mars, and visit the International Space Station. Kids and adults can enjoy hands-on activities and talk to NASA scientists and engineers about their ground-breaking work and how to join the NASA team.

Attendees can also walk through the Journey to Tomorrow, a traveling exhibit complete with interactive English and Spanish-language content and an Apollo-era Moon rock. They will see large-scale, inflatable displays of the revolutionary X-59 plane designed to quiet supersonic air travel, the Space Launch System rocket slated to take the first woman and person of color to the Moon, and a Mars habitat concept.

Throughout NASA Village, there will be photo opportunities, including iconic NASA cutouts and displays. NASA will also host astronaut autograph signing sessions as well as special guest meet and greets.

Please click on the following three images to open the three PDF files in a new browser window. The PDF files contain maps and schedules from the Total Eclipse Fest 2024 event:

Open April 6-8 Schedule for Total Eclipse Fest 2024 PDF file (5MB) in new browser window.

Open April 6-8, 2024, What to Expect in NASA Village: Tents and Topics PDF file (3.8MB) in new browser window.

We want to thank the sponsors and Exhibitor Avenue Community Partners listed in this PDF file:

Open
● Saturday, April 6, 2024, Schedule
● Thank You, Sponsors
● Exhibitor Avenue Community Partners
● and more
PDF file (626KB) in new browser window.

In the “NASA Village” we saw exhibits about:

• NASA Aeronautics
• Subsonic Single Aft Engine (SUSAN) Aircraft
• NASA Glenn Graphics & Visualization Lab (GVIS)
• Tires designed for the moon and Mars
• Artemis missions to build a community on the Moon
• Program to go to Mars.
• NASA TV
• Bike tire design - it will never get a flat tire!
• Nuclear power source - KRUSTY Reactor Design (Kilowatt Reactor Using Stirling TechnologY)
• Fission Surface Power - NASA.gov/tdm/fission-surface-power
• NASA Spinoffs - spinoff.nasa.gov (Stuart remembered getting the NASA Spinoff magazine when he was a teen.)
  See articles:
  40 Years of NASA Spinoff
  NASA spin-off technologies

We talked to representatives of the following local organizations at the "Exhibitor Avenue with Science Activities by Community Partners -- Sponsored by Ohio’s 529, College Advantage:"

• moCa Cleveland (Museum of Contemporary Art Cleveland)
  We talked to moCa Cleveland staff about their current #WowManabu exhibition. It is a must-see! Learn more in our blog post: #WowManabu! Manabu Ikeda: USA Debut at moCa Cleveland

• Engineering students from both Cleveland State University and Case Western Reserve University. It was exciting to talk to these students about what they are learning in some very unique programs.

• NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) weather service

• Cleveland Public Library
  The library was giving away FREE books!

• Drink Local, Drink Tap
  We always appreciate Drink Local, Drink Tap's work in Cleveland and Africa! Water is important!

• Destination Cleveland

Here is a video of photos we took of the NASA Village and of the community partners booths. It was exciting that, since NASA Glenn was the only NASA facility in the path of the total eclipse, NASA TV was in Cleveland at the Great Lakes Science Center! See NASA TV videos near the end of this blog post. (Note that Stuart was on NASA TV during a Cleveland NASA Tweetup on March 2, 2012.) Also see in the photos the construction taking place to expand the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame:

We recommend viewing videos in full screen mode.
Please feel free to pause the video to read the interesting historical marker that appears in the slides!

 

Thank you, The City Club of Cleveland, for your presentation: "Boldly Going: The Facts and Fiction Behind Star Trek - A Special City Club Forum at Total Eclipse Fest ft. Dr. Erin Macdonald, Science Advisor for Star Trek." Dr. Macdonald's talk was "fascinating," and we wanted to share the following photos and video clips of her talk:

We recommend viewing videos in full screen mode.

Learn more about Erin Macdonald, Ph.D., at ErinPMacdonald.com and SpacetimeProductions.net, as well as in the following "Highlight Reel" from her YouTube channel. Some of the items she mentioned in the following video were also in her City Club talk at the Total Eclipse Fest:

 

After Dr. Macdonald's City Club Forum, we talked to Great Lakes Science Center President & CEO Kirsten M. Ellenbogen, Ph.D., about how much we enjoyed Dr. Macdonald's presentation and the entire Total Eclipse Fest 2024. We are so fortunate to have the Great Lakes Science Center, which includes the NASA Glenn Visitor Center, in Cleveland!

 

In the evening, it was fun to see ourselves at the beginning of the WKYC Channel 3 news report about the Total Eclipse Fest. At 15 seconds in, you will see the three of us eating lunch while sitting at a table we were sharing with a mother and her young child:

 

 

Sunday, April 7, 2024 - Total Eclipse Fest 2024 - Great Lakes Science Center FREE Admission Day

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Join Great Lakes Science Center, and its partner NASA Glenn Research, from April 6-8 for the Total Eclipse Fest 2024, a three-day celestial celebration at North Coast Harbor in downtown Cleveland.

. . .

The Science Center will offer free admission to its regular indoor exhibits on Sunday, April 7 to celebrate The Cleveland Orchestra's performance.

. . .

Cleveland Orchestra - A free, family concert will be at 1:30 p.m. on Sunday, April 7. The Orchestra will perform an “Out of this World” concert program of galactic proportions featuring Mozart’s Fourth Movement from Symphony No. 41 (“Jupiter”), Missy Mazzoli's Sinfonia (for Orbiting Spheres), Debussy's Clair de lune from Suite Bergamasque (orchestrated by André Caplet) and Beethoven's First Movement from Symphony No. 5. No tickets required.

. . .

Cleveland International Film Festival 48

Great Lakes Science Center will host special screenings and panels of the films "MAESTRA" . . . Sunday, April 7 at 11 a.m.
Runtime: 88 minutes
Description: Women make up only about three percent of all symphony conductors. Luckily, the La Maestra competition at the Philharmonie de Paris concert hall hopes to boost this statistic. Meet five female conductors from all corners of the globe as they train and compete for fame, individuality, and recognition in a male-dominated world. After the film, there will be a Q&A with the film's director, Maggie Contreras.

We want to thank the sponsors and Exhibitor Avenue Community Partners listed in this PDF file:

Open
● Sunday, April 7, 2024, Schedule
● Thank You, Sponsors
● Exhibitor Avenue Community Partners
● and more
PDF file (626KB) in new browser window.

Stuart returned to Total Eclipse Fest 2024 on Sunday by himself for the special day which included FREE admission to the Great Lakes Science Center, a film from Cleveland International Film Festival 48, and a Cleveland Orchestra concert. Julie could not join him on day two, since she was performing in a concert with the University Heights Symphonic Band.

Here are Stuart's photos from his day at the Great Lakes Science Center and of the construction taking place to expand the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame:

We recommend viewing videos in full screen mode.

 

The Cleveland Orchestra concert at Total Eclipse Fest 2024:

We recommend viewing videos in full screen mode.

 

A two-location experience of Andrea Bowers: Exist, Flourish, Evolve, located at moCa and the Great Lakes Science Center

Near the end of the day, Stuart talked to two moCA Cleveland staff members to find out the location of artist Andrea Bowers's Exist, Flourish & Naturally Evolve neon sign that is at the Great Lakes Science Center. "Bowers created this artistic campaign with the Museum of Contemporary Art (moCa) Cleveland . . . " Stuart had first learned about this neon sign when attending the February 2, 2024, moCa Cleveland Opening Night Celebration (see Stuart's blog post about the evening). Please learn more by reading the #LakeErieNeon information that follows, that was posted at the Great Lakes Science Center:

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Total Eclipse Day!
Monday, April 8, 2024 - "Total on the Oval" Eclipse Watch Party - Cleveland Museum of Natural History, University Circle

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The astronomers Cleveland Museum of Natural History (CMNH) are eagerly awaiting this phenomenal event, and perhaps know better than most what a total eclipse means and its effects.

“There is something to be said about experiencing a celestial event like this with a big crowd,” says Nick Anderson, senior astronomer with CMNH. “It’s something to celebrate and it’s incredible to see all the different reactions. It impacts everyone differently, but it will have an impact on you,” CMNH astronomer Monica Marshall agrees that reactions will vary among all of us. Marshall says she believes that seeing totality—complete coverage— “turns scientists into artists and artists into scientists.”

The eclipse will affect all of us—adults, children, some plants, and animals—in one way or another.

. . .

The museum is offering eclipse-themed educational exhibits, programs and celebrations. It is also partnering with University Circle Inc.’s Total on the Oval event on April 8, where one of those large, public crowds—the kind astronomer Anderson appreciates—will gather.

See full FreshWater Cleveland article:
Entering totality: CMNH astronomers celebrate the solar eclipse

We arrived early at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History in University Circle for the “Total on the Oval” community watch party for the 2024 total solar eclipse. Since we were there before the crowds arrived, we were fortunate to spend time talking to Astronaut Mike Foreman. We also met Cleveland Museum of Natural History's astronomers Monica Marshall and Destiny Thomas as they were setting up special telescopes for the day.

We watched as Kenny Crumpton from FOX 8 News Cleveland interviewed Astronaut Mike Foreman and CMNH Astronomer Monica Marshall. It was very interesting to learn from the interview of Ms. Marshall that 7 years ago, when we had our last eclipse in Cleveland in 2017, that it was an 80% partial eclipse. (See our 2017 photos in our blog post: A Rare Experience! Solar Eclipse 2017!) We recommend watching both Kenny Crumpton's Facebook live post (you can see us briefly in the video) that he shared first, followed by his full video of the Astronaut Mike Foreman interview:

We recommend viewing Kenny Crumpton's Facebook video in full screen mode.

 

 

As we were writing this blog post, we found the following video from earlier in the morning when Kenny Crumpton interviewed CMNH Astronomer Destiny Thomas about all the activities planned for the "Total on the Oval" eclipse watch party:

 

As the "Total on the Oval" event started, it was great talking to an alumnus and a student of the Cleveland Institute of Art, and a staff member of moCa Cleveland (Museum of Contemporary Art Cleveland). We learned about the upcoming Cleveland Institute of Art 2024 Spring Show. The moCa Cleveland staff person, Community Education Coordinator Bobbi Reagins, who helped Stuart locate the Andrea Bowers neon sign at the Great Lakes Science Center the day before, was at the moCa booth in University Circle on this Monday morning. Bobbi Reagins works with the youth program at moCa Cleveland. As we were talking to her, we were surprised when she told us that she remembered meeting us when we wrote about the PechaKucha talk she and her brother, Theadis Reagins, gave at moCa Cleveland. We wrote about PechaKucha Night Cleveland, and the FRONT International and CAN Triennial exhibitions in University Circle in our blog post:

• Blog Date: September 18, 2022 - FRONT International Days & PechaKucha Night Cleveland - University Circle
  See the section of the blog post: Friday, July 29, 2022 - PechaKucha Night Cleveland in CWRU’s Toby’s Plaza

We are members of the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, and often enjoy seeing the exhibits, the Perkins Wildlife Center & Woods Garden, and the planetarium. Here are our photos from the "Total on the Oval" event showing the community organizations' booths we visited and the museum's ambassador animals:

We recommend viewing videos in full screen mode.
Please feel free to pause the video to read the interesting facts that are in some of the slides!!

 

It was absolutely amazing to experience the total solar eclipse. Julie said it "took her breath away!" Even though we were told what to expect, it was startling and felt surreal. It was so beautiful -- we can't stop talking about it, but it is almost hard to find the right words to describe it.

Here are our photos and videos from the final exciting hour leading up to totality and beyond. The video features Cleveland Museum of Natural History Senior Astronomer Nicholas Anderson and Astronaut Mike Foreman:

We recommend viewing videos in full screen mode.

At the conclusion of the day's activities, we told CMNH Senior Astronomer Nicholas Anderson that the CMNH astronomers did a great job with the day. We later joked with astronomers Monica Marshall and Destiny Thomas that they should have an event like this more often.

 

 

Total Eclipse Day!
Monday, April 8, 2024 - Total Solar Eclipse: Through the Eyes of NASA

2024 Total Solar Eclipse: Through the Eyes of NASA (Official Broadcast)
NASA TV Transcript:

10:41 >> HELLO! AND WELCOME TO LIVE COVERAGE OF THE CELESTIAL EVENT OF THE YEAR,

10:52 WILL FOLLOW THE MOON'S SHADOW AS IT RACES ACROSS NORTH AMERICA. ANCHORING OUR COVERAGE IN THE DOWNTOWN OF CLEVELAND, OHIO DOWN

10:59 THE ROAD FROM NASA GLENN RESEARCH CENTER, ONLY CENTER IN TODAY'S PAST OF TOTALITY.

11:11 LAKES SCIENCE CENTER IS HOSTING THIS FREE OUTDOOR EVENT FOR THE COMMUNITY TO EXPERIENCE THE TOTAL SOLAR ECLIPSE TOGETHER.

While we were not at the Great Lakes Science Center during the total eclipse, we wanted to end this blog post with the official NASA TV broadcast and the official NASA Glenn Research Center Total Eclipse Fest 2024 photos. It is so incredible that the focus of this broadcast was at our Cleveland science center! Cleveland's NASA Glenn was the only NASA facility that was in the path of the 2024 total eclipse.

 

 

Once the NASA Total Eclipse Fest 2024 slideshow loads, please click on the right arrow to view the slideshow of all the photos:

 

Once the "A solar eclipse is seen from Cleveland, Ohio, on Monday, April 8" by NASA Glenn Research Center loads, please click on the right arrow to view the slideshow of all the photos:

 

 

Related Blog Posts

We always like to include in our blog posts a list of related posts that may be of interest to the readers of this blog post.

See these two "Astronomy" blog posts:

• Blog Date: September 6, 2017 - A Rare Experience! Solar Eclipse 2017!
  "On August 21, 2017, the first total solar eclipse in the continental United States since February 26, 1979, occurred. It was also the first total solar eclipse to cross the entire country (from Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic Ocean) since June 8, 1918! We knew this would be a special day!!! Stuart used his last available vacation day to fully experience the phenomenon, and our son Kevin joined us as well."

  See the photos from the September 6, 2017, blog post on the flickr album: August 21, 2017 - Solar Eclipse 2017
  

• Blog Date: March 31, 2021 - Rockin' Hocking Hills
  See the section of the blog post: Tuesday, March 23, 2021 - John Glenn Astronomy Park

 

At the “NASA Village,” we saw exhibits about NASA Aeronautics, NASA Glenn Graphics & Visualization Lab (GVIS), and many other projects happening right here in Cleveland at NASA Glenn Research Center. We have 16 past "NASA" blog posts which we invite you to read, but we want to highlight the following three that relate directly to what we saw at the Great Lakes Science Center's Total Eclipse Fest 2024:

• Blog Date: September 21, 2023 - A Passion for the Future: NASA Aeronautics

• Blog Date: December 8, 2019 - The 30th Anniversary of the NASA Glenn Graphics & Visualization Lab (GVIS)
  "A special thank-you to NASA Glenn Research Center Computer Scientist Herb Schilling for this invitation-only event. Thank you, Tom Kunsman, for arranging an additional private tour of the NASA Glenn Library."

• Blog Date: July 18, 2016 - NASA Glenn Research Center 75th Anniversary Open House

  Photos on flickr: May 21, 2016 - Day 1: NASA Glenn Research Center Celebrates 75 Years With an Open House
  

  Photos on flickr: May 22, 2016 - Day 2: NASA Glenn Research Center Celebrates 75 Years With an Open House
  

 

Blog posts mentioned earlier in this blog post:

• Blog Date: April 2, 2024 - #WowManabu! Manabu Ikeda: USA Debut at moCa Cleveland

• Blog Date: September 18, 2022 - FRONT International Days & PechaKucha Night Cleveland - University Circle
  See the section of the blog post: Friday, July 29, 2022 - PechaKucha Night Cleveland in CWRU’s Toby’s Plaza

• Blog Date: March 9, 2012 - Cleveland NASA Tweetup
  The first full blog post we wrote when we started blogging in 2012 was at the NASA Tweetup that took place at NASA Glenn Research Center and at the Great Lakes Science Center. Stuart was on NASA TV when he and other bloggers asked questions of astronauts.

  The photos from the event are in the flickr album: March 3, 2012 Cleveland NASA TweetUp
  

 

In addition to the "NASA" tag, the following subject tags will take you to our blog posts where you can learn more about the organizations featured in this blog post:

• The City Club

• Cleveland Museum of Natural History

• Science Center

• University Circle

 

The total eclipse 2024 is over, but the sprit of our community will continue year in and year out in Greater Cleveland. We hope that you discovered ongoing activities of interest in this blog post, in addition to joining us in celebrating the total eclipse "Cleveland Style." Please visit our blog and join us in exploring more in future years.