Students and staff members at Queensborough Community College in Bayside took time out of their day to gather at the athletic track to watch the celestial eclipse Monday at around 2:30 p.m.
Those who gathered to watch the eclipse were provided with solar glasses, courtesy of NASA. Some attendees even brought telescopes with solar filters to further take in this momentous event.
Benjamin Wade, Queensborough Community College Executive Vice President of the Student Government Association, oversaw the handing out of the boxes of solar glasses. Wade said the glasses were all given away quickly, even with many attendees bringing their own glasses or sharing with others. “What is unique to me is seeing Queensborough and the surrounding community experience this event together,” Wade said.
Prior to the eclipse, a pre-eclipse lecture was held at the school’s science building. There was a very large turnout among students, faculty and staff for this lecture.
Jillian Bellovary, Ph.D., Queensborough Community College Associate Professor of Physics and Director, M.S in Astrophysics at the CUNY Graduate Center said “Eclipses are really special, they’re some of the few moments where celestial objects affect us on Earth and give us a sense of being part of the greater universe.”
