2017 Eclipse Watch Party at Mid-America Science Museum
The event in this article has already occurred and you can find other great happenings on our events page.
Editor’s note: The event featured in this article occurred in 2017, but you’ll find other great happenings on our Events page.
August 21 stands out this month as the first time since the late 1970s that a total solar eclipse will occur in the U.S.
According to a press release sent by Jim Miller of Mid-America Science Museum in Hot Springs, a ‘solar eclipse is a celestial event in which the moon passes between the Earth and the sun. The entire event will last about three hours, but the longest period when the moon completely blocks the sun from any given location along the path of totality will be about 2 minutes and 40 seconds. The eclipse will be visible from Hot Springs and will occur at approximately 1:15 PM at 85.6% of totality.’
Central Arkansas travel writer Katherine Stewart has written an interesting article on the eclipse and where you can view it across Arkansas. Here is a link to that piece.
According to the article, ‘it’s been nearly a hundred years since one of this magnitude was visible in Arkansas.’
In honor of the day, Mid-America Science Museum, which is Arkansas’ oldest and largest science center, is hosting an eclipse watch party and offering free admission to the museum between noon and 2 p.m. that day.
According to the release, ‘although Hot Springs will not be in direct path of the full eclipse, guests can view the event from the museum’s unique vantage points on the Bob Wheeler Science Skywalk and other locations on the museum campus. It is important to note that sun-gazers must not look directly into the sun when watching the eclipse. To ensure safety of our guests, the museum will provide complimentary solar eclipse viewing glasses while supplies last. Guests can also make pin-hole viewers in the Alliance Rubber Company Tinkering Studio to use during the eclipse.’
The event provides an opportunity to learn about astronomy and customized eclipse shows will be shown at the Oaklawn Foundation Digital Dome Theater onsite at the museum. The free shows will be held at 2 p.m. and 4 p.m.