FreeLists / az-observing / [AZ-Observing] CAS Eclipse Party Brings 'em Out

[BillFerris@xxxxxxx]

The Sun may have been hiding but several hundred people showed up for 
tonight's eclipse party, hosted by the Coconino Astronomical Society. The 
observing stations included a 10-inch Newtonian, 4-inch refractor, Questar 
90, several small refractors projecting the solar disk and even a few pinhole 
projectors.

About 20 curious early birds were there from the beginning, which happened 
right on schedule with the first visible bite being taken at 5:19 p.m. The 
crowd grew steadily until about 6:15 p.m. when at least 100 people were 
excitedly moving from station to station watching the Moon devour the Sun.

The local TV station--yes, Flagstaff has only one affiliate--set up for a 
live remote during the 6:00 newscast. I was interviewed by their field 
reporter at 6:20. The best part of that segment was 7 year-old Devon 
demonstrating the pinhole projector he and his younger sister had made. 
Afterward, I ran into two families who said they'd decided to come out after 
watching the news coverage.

The crowd started thinning about 6:45 p.m. and by 7:15, we were back to more 
club members than visitors. The last hint of eclipse faded just a few minutes 
later and the curtain came down.

I'm terrible at estimating crowd sizes, but given the peak of ~100 which 
lasted some 30-minutes, the gradual build toward that peak and the gradual 
decline following, I would guesstimate 300 for total attendance.

I can't think of a better way to spend a Monday evening.

Regards,

Bill Ferris
"Cosmic Voyage: The Online Resource for Amateur Astronomers"
URL: http://www.cosmic-voyage.net
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