2017 Physics Day

Monday August 21: The first day of the semester UNM Campus Observatory successfully hosted an eclipse viewing party. Close to 1000 people came by the campus observatory to view the Moon blocking parts of the Sun for a few hours Monday morning. Despite a dense cloud coverage in the morning, the sky cleared up and presented us with a direct view of this relatively rare event. We also followed the path of totality via the NASA live stream.

A small contingent of UNM professors also travelled to Fort Laramie, Wyoming to view and photograph the total eclipse.

Mesmerized by a natural event, students and visitors peer at the sun through eclipse-viewing glasses. The UNM campus observatory was open Students, professors, alumni, and staff joined visitors in this fantastic public outreach event � at UNM Campus Observatory. Periodic clouds obscured the eclipse. Grad students and the public chatted as they waited for the clouds to part. Dr. Deutsch, right, joins visitors in observing the first total solar eclipse to cross the US since 1918 Visitors were thrilled to see the solar eclipse in Albuquerque at UNM Campus Observatory. UNM Physics and Astronomy ordered 2000+ solar viewing glasses. Associate Professor Ylva Pihlstr�m speaks with a camera operator from KRQE News 13 Crowds gathered at the Observatory and in the parking lot. There was no special event parking for the event, so many came on foot and by bicycle Partly cloudy on the first day of classes for the Fall 2017 semester did not prevent 300+ visitors gathering to share in this cosmic event The partial eclipse breaks through the clouds briefly, a half hour before the point of greatest coverage Visitors lined up to see the eclipse on the screens inside the UNM Campus observatory UNM Professors Jayce and Jess Dowell, Greg Taylor, and Helene and John Dickel in Fort Laramie, Wyoming. Photo courtesy Greg Taylor. Moment of Totality. Photo by Jayce and Jess Dowell in Fort Laramie, Wyoming. Photo montage by Jayce and Jess Dowell of the total eclipse in Fort Laramie, Wyoming.