Thousands watch eclipse in Gainesville

Nine-year-old Ian Sousa was so excited to see the solar eclipse Monday he puked the night before.

“It was super cool,” he said, adding he wants to be a scientist when he grows up.

Sousa was one of about a thousand people who visited the UF Campus Teaching Observatory just south of the Reitz Union on Sweetwater Drive to take a glance at the sky as the moon passed between the sun and the Earth. The partial solar eclipse took place from 1:15 p.m. to 4:11 p.m. The last solar eclipse seen from the U.S. was 38 years ago; the next event is in 2024, according to CNN.

The UF Department of Astronomy stocked the observatory with 60 pairs of eclipse glasses and four telescopes with proper solar filters to protect viewers eyes from the sun’s harmful rays.

Andrea Miranda got to the observatory at 10 a.m. and stood in line for about three hours. The UF international relations graduate student was disappointed when she found out she couldn’t keep the glasses.

“I think they should’ve gotten more glasses, but I also understand they didn’t have the resources — this is practically a shed,” the 22-year-old said about the observatory.

Simon Lambert, a UF civil engineering freshman, panicked when he found out a week ago about the eclipse because he didn’t own eclipse glasses. He tried Walmart and Lowe’s, but they were sold out. He tried Amazon, but he only found some selling for $119.

But when the 18-year-old discovered a College of Engineering advisor was giving away pairs at Weil Hall on Monday morning, he rushed out of his dorm and got his pair to use at the observatory.

“This is a pretty monumental day for me,” Lambert said. “First day of college and first eclipse.”

UF applied physiology and kinesiology junior Danielle Diaz said UF should have canceled classes for the event or at least prepared better for it. She said she wishes the university would have made more places available to watch the eclipse and bought more glasses for students.

The 20-year-old said she wished UF would have organized a large pep rally at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium and given everyone glasses.

“We could’ve experienced it all together,” Diaz said.

Kelly Gallagher, a UF exploratory sophomore, said she doesn’t think UF should have canceled classes.

“It’s not like it’s a national holiday,” the 19-year-old said. “It’s great that they’re doing (this event at the observatory).”

Across the street from campus, at The Swamp Restaurant, located at 1642 W University Ave., Brittany Avery, a 28-year-old Gainesville resident, was one of 100 people who ordered a Blue Moon beer at The Swamp’s Solar Eclipse Viewing Soiree.

“It’s a great spot to look up, just wait and eat food and have a drink,” she said.

The event attracted about 500 people, which caused the keepsake pint glasses to run out three hours after The Swamp opened at 11 a.m., said Branam Cohn, the restaurant’s director of operations. The eclipse glasses disappeared even faster, running out five minutes into the event. The Swamp also ran food and drink specials all day including $3 draft beers, $6.50 rum cocktails called old fashioneds and $9 chicken tender baskets.

“We care about the community, and we want to provide a fun, safe place to get legitimate glasses and view a partial solar eclipse,” Cohn said. “It was really a no-brainer for us.”

Despite an overcast sky, the patio of The Swamp was overflowing with people looking up at the solar anomaly. Some people, like UF biology senior Erick Boldt, expected the sky to be darker at 2:47 p.m., the peak of the partial solar eclipse.

The 21-year-old had just finished his first day of class when he decided to head across the street to The Swamp to catch the eclipse. Although he wasn’t able to score a pair of free viewing glasses from the event, it didn’t stop him from stealing a look at the sky while munching on “Macho Nachos.”

“I did peek and look at the sun with my eyes,” he said. “I’m not blind yet.”

A group of UF students observes the eclipse near the New Physics Building. The eclipse lasted from 1:15 p.m. to 4:11 p.m.

Nine-year-old Ian Sousa looks up at the eclipse with solar eclipse glasses. He was one of thousands who attended a viewing at UF Campus Teaching Observatory.