---
title: "Partial Eclipse, Full Attention"
date: 2024-04-09T05:30:00-04:00
author: University of Maryland
canonical_url: "https://today.umd.edu/partial-eclipse-full-attention"
section: Articles
---
# Partial Eclipse, Full Attention

*April 9, 2024* — by [Sala Levin ’10](/author/sala-levin-10)


> Thousands Flock Outside to Celebrate Celestial Spectacle

*Solar Eclipse 04082024 SC 0019 1920x1080 — The eclipse-watching crowds Monday afternoon on McKeldin Mall rivaled that of a typical Maryland Day, as Terps paused to look up.*

Protective paper shades perched on their noses, faces tilted toward the sky, thousands of students, faculty and staff clapped and cheered at the peak moment of Monday’s solar eclipse.

At a viewing party hosted by the College of Computer, Mathematical, and Natural Sciences and the Department of Astronomy outside Glenn L. Martin Hall, and all across McKeldin Mall, the atmosphere was festive: Students blew bubbles, posed for selfies in their eclipse gear, savored scoops of Maryland Dairy ice cream, tossed footballs and even did a little homework as they waited for the darkness—well, dimness—to descend.


*solar eclipse*


*students watch eclipse — Raquel Bowman '26, left, and Hadiya Grier '26 watch the eclipse.*



**Sidebar note:**

Terps keeping tabs on the eclipse wasn't just an on-campus activity. Managers of the Maryland [Mesonet](https://today.umd.edu/umd-state-officials-turn-on-first-tower-of-statewide-weather-warning-system), a UMD-led weather monitoring collaboration with the state of Maryland, reprogrammed the nine weather towers in its growing network to track the eclipse.

Instead of just providing information on potential hazardous weather or crop conditions like it does on normal days, the system took measurements of solar radiation, temperature and other variables affected by the eclipse every three seconds; the data will be made freely available to scientists studying the impact of the rare event, said project leader Sumant Nigam, chair of the Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Science.





**Topics:** [Campus & Community](https://today.umd.edu/tags/campus-community)


**Tags:** [Astronomy](https://today.umd.edu/topic/astronomy), [Student Experience](https://today.umd.edu/topic/student-experience)


**Units:** [College of Computer, Mathematical, and Natural Sciences](https://today.umd.edu/topic/college-computer-mathematical-and-natural-sciences)