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Alongside my colleagues as we watched the Total solar eclipseI was struck by how this wonder unites us all.
We were some of the more than 16,000 people gathered at the Great Lakes Science Center in Cleveland to observe the celestial spectacle.
People made friends on the lawn, just a short distance from the expanse of Lake Erie, as they looked forward to sharing a once-in-a-lifetime moment.
Nothing prepared me for the intense emotions I felt as Baily’s beads and the “diamond ring” effect gave way to totality. Temperatures dropped as a 360-degree sunset fell across a stormy-looking sky, and the sun released pink ribbons of light that danced across its crown.
For four minutes, the fascinated crowd witnessed an event that ancient humanity had also experienced. And the best of all is that we spent unforgettable moments together.
Solar update
Speaking of the joy of shared experiences, thank you, dear readers, for sharing your eclipse photos and stories with us!
Michael Goldstein, 12, of Toronto and his friends Ilan Kagedan, Michael “Misha” Vishnever and Brady Sonshine launched a weather balloon from Vaughan, Ontario, before traveling to Burlington to catch a glimpse of totality.
The balloon, carrying two cameras and two trackers, floated 552 miles (888 kilometers) and landed at the Green Hills Reservation in North Conway, New Hampshire, before being recovered on Wednesday, he said.
See Goldstein’s stunning eclipse image in the Theory of Wonders reader’s image gallery.
Excited to chase the next eclipse? We’ve put together a list of upcoming ones, which can inspire you to travel for truly stellar views – and don’t forget to hold your eclipse glasses.
Fantastic creatures
Parrots are intelligent creatures and now researchers are testing the depth of these cognitive abilities.
Birds have problem-solving skills similar to those of young children. When presented with a balloon-popping game on a tablet, the parrots showed signs of mental stimulation.
But the game was difficult for the feathered creatures because of their anatomy – and the research could lead to a new design for pills more aimed at use by intelligent birds.
Explorations
On January 28, 2003, Evelyn Husband and her spouse, Rick, celebrated their anniversary by holding a video call while he was commander of the space shuttle Columbia. Neither of them knew it would be their final conversation, and the shuttle broke down on re-entry that February 1st.
More than 21 years later, family members like Evelyn and her daughter, Laura Husband, continue the legacy of your loved ones.
Evelyn is a board member of a ministry that offers mentorship to fatherless boys, and Laura is pursuing the creative passions she shared with her father.
The Columbia tragedy also changed the way NASA approached spaceflight in five key ways after the disaster to make exploration safer after the disaster.
Watch the final two episodes of the CNN original series “Space Shuttle Columbia: The Final Flight” at 9pm ET/PT on Sunday.
We are family
Since the discovery in 1991 of his 5,300-year-old frozen remains in the Tyrolean Alps, Ötzi the Iceman has intrigued scientists.
The authors of a new study suggest that a single-point puncture tool was likely used to make the 61 tattoos on his body, and it’s possible that the marks were considered an ancient form of healing.
Separately, researchers discovered an ancient tomb in what is now Patagonia, Argentina, including a person buried with a foxsuggesting that dogs’ canine relatives were once humans’ best friends.
A long time ago
About 1,000 meteorites are found in the icy white desert of Antarctica each year.
Fragmented space rocks tell a story about the formation of our solar system, helping astronomers piece together the story of this corner of the universe.
But global warming due to the climate crisis is causing meteorites to sink into the melting ice. About 5,000 of the space rocks could disappear each year, new research suggests.
Curiosities
Bookmark these stories to share with your friends:
— Archaeologists working in Pompeii, southern Italy, have discovered the remains of a banquet hall decorated with impressive frescoes of mythological characters.
—Rangers in Western Australia have captured an image of an incredibly rare and bizarre-looking blind mole – and it is the second sighting in six months.
— Rock carvings called Cave paintings found alongside dinosaur footprints in Brazil’s Paraíba state, they were likely created by prehistoric humans who may have found the footprints significant, according to a new study.
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