Western Pennsylvanians enjoy once-in-a-lifetime total solar eclipse

PITTSBURGH — A once-in-a-lifetime solar eclipse plunged Pittsburgh into partial darkness for a few minutes just after 3:15 p.m. Monday.

We took a look at how people around the area enjoyed the solar eclipse.

Downtown Pittsburgh hotel hosts watch party on rooftop bar

Dozens of Pittsburghers took in the solar eclipse at a sold-out watch party downtown.

About 100 people got to experience the rare event on Hotel Monaco’s rooftop.

“I thought it was amazing. Everybody was cheering for the moon and the sun. I thought it was a really cool human experience to come here and just be around all these people, really excited to see the moon eclipse the sun,” Erin McCrosky of Duquesne said.

Organizers say demand was high. Tickets sold out within only a few days.

“A 10. It’s been amazing. I’m with people I love, and we’re having a great time,” said Kim Bakaj, who attended the party with her niece and sister.

Guests were given complementary glasses, access to a solar-themed photo booth and a specialty cocktail dubbed “The Eclipse” or “Everything the Light Touches.”

“We were inspired to call it that by The Lion King, the scene where Simba and his dad are looking over the whole horizon, and the sun is going down and he was talking about everything the light touches is your kingdom and the dark place, you should never go there. So since everything’s going dark, that’s just kind of like what clicked in my head,” said Aidan Leyland, beverage coordinator at Hotel Monaco.

Guests who spoke with Channel 11 said they had a great time and were impressed by the party. Many of them gave a nod to the solar-themed playlist, which included songs like the Beatles’ Here Comes the Sun and Bonnie Tyler’s Total Eclipse of the Heart.

Thousands of people watch eclipse from Carnegie Science Center

Thousands of people watch eclipse from Carnegie Science Center

More than 4,000 people were in attendance excited to see the big show and the clouds cleared just in time.

Visitors crowded into the science center starting at 10 a.m. waiting for the main event.

Outside, kids got the chance to participate in activities and decorate their own solar eclipse glasses.

Astronomy club students view the eclipse at Penn Trafford High School

Astronomy club students view the eclipse at Penn Trafford High School

Penn Trafford High School’s Astronomy Club students have been preparing for the solar eclipse for months.

“I’ve been looking forward to it for a while,” said Olivia Johnson, a senior.

Channel 11′s Andrew Havranek spoke with her just as the eclipse started.

“What are your initial thoughts?” Havranek asked.

“It kind of looks like the moon when it’s in its phases, except it’s the sun,” Johnson replied, looking through her eclipse glasses at the sun.

Several dozen people – students, parents, and teachers – came out to Penn Trafford High School for the astronomy club’s eclipse watch party, which was open to the public.

Gianna Enick, a seventh-grade student, was at the party with her mom.

“I think it’s kind of cool, it just sort of looks like a crescent moon right now,” Enick said.

The club had eclipse glasses for those who didn’t already have them.

They also had something that many other people watching today likely didn’t have access to - a solar telescope was set up for people to get a more unique look at the cosmic event.

“Oh, it’s so red! Oh my goodness!” said one woman who looked through the telescope at the sun.

Charles Gates, a science teacher at the high school, explained to Channel 11 how it worked.

“As the sun goes through, it’s filtered through a double stacked filter, then we can safely view it through a telescope, which you should never do unless you know what you’re doing,” he said.

There was a lot of concern that the cloud cover wasn’t going to be clear enough, especially before the eclipse reached near-totality, which in Penn Township, was a little more than 96%.

“It suddenly covered up just before totality, or as much as we get, and then it suddenly parted again,” Gates said. “We got a lot of good looks at the sun.”

As the eclipse reached near totality, Havranek went back to Johnson to get her reaction.

“It’s really cool,” she said. “It’s also cold. I should have brought my jacket with me!”

The next time we will see a total solar eclipse in the U.S. will be in 2044.

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