Professor of Astronomy Joliet Junior College, Joliet, IL Joliet, Illinois, United States
Abstract: Joliet Junior College, a community college in Joliet, Illinois, held free viewing events for the public for the annular solar eclipse of October 14, 2023 and the total solar eclipse of April 8, 2024. We had previously organized viewing for everyone for the August 21, 2017 total solar eclipse, though it was partial from Joliet. The Moon occluded 88% of the Sun's disk at maximum eclipse that day. Over 1500 people attended the 2017 viewing event. Due to the success of the 2017 event, we were very keen to engage as many people as possible with the October 14, 2023 and April 8, 2024 solar eclipses through public viewing events, even though both eclipses were partial from Joliet. The Sun's disk was 44% obscured by the Moon at maximum eclipse during the October 14, 2023 eclipse, and 94% during the April 8, 2024 eclipse. Unfortunately, we were unable to see the October 14, 2023 eclipse because of rain and thick clouds. However, thanks to clear skies on April 8, 2024, over 1300 people viewed this solar eclipse from Joliet Junior College. Attendees at both events were given free custom eclipse viewers. In this presentation, we will describe how the college prepared for both viewing events, how we coped with inclement weather during the October 14, 2023 eclipse and how thrilling it was to see the April 8, 2024 eclipse from Joliet. We will also discuss the lessons learned from organizing these events, so that others can also host successful solar eclipse viewing events similar to ours in the future.
