April brought the rare event of a ninety-five percent solar eclipse to the city of Novi. Dozens of students and staff gathered around to watch outside the high school’s new wing.
“It’s like we’re in Skyrim,” one student said as totality approached.
Street lamps turned on as the sun crept into obscurity, leaving behind an eerie grayscale landscape many likened to a video game.
“Someone turned the graphics settings down. This is awesome.”
Similar choruses of awe rippled through the group, punctuated only by the occasional cry of “The apocalypse is now!” and responding giggles.
In the center of the throng of students was Astronomy club leader Ethan Chen. From the end of the school day until totality, Chen photographed the eclipse with a customized camera setup and tripod, a smile on his face the whole time. Others in the crowd lent a hand.
“I didn’t expect such a crowd to form, but it was amazing to see,” Chen said. “The eclipse was super exciting to me because it was the first to be visible here since 2017. I got a great timelapse of the event and had a lot of fun.”
The streaks of low flying jets cut through the young sky as the eclipse receded, a surreal moment capping off the otherworldly magic of the event. The next total solar eclipse to happen in the United States will be in 2044 to be enjoyed by another generation of kids and avid astronomers like Chen.
