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As I stood next to my colleagues watching the total solar eclipse, I was struck by the way curiosity 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 formed friendships on the lawn a short distance from the expanse of Lake Erie as they waited to share a once-in-a-lifetime moment.
Nothing could prepare me for the intense emotions I felt as Baily’s beads and “diamond ring” effect gave way to wholeness. Temperatures dropped and the sun released dancing ribbons of pink light in its corona as a 360-degree sunset fell across a stormy-looking sky.
For four minutes, the fascinated crowd witnessed an event that ancient humanity also experienced. The best part is that we spent those unforgettable moments together.
solar energy update
Speaking of the joy of shared experiences, thank you, dear readers, for sharing your photos and eclipse stories with us!
12-year-old Michael Goldstein of Toronto and his friends Ilan Kagedan, Michael “Misha” Vishnever and Brady Sonshine launched a weather balloon from Vaughan, Ont., before heading to Burlington to catch a glimpse of the totality.
The balloon, carrying two cameras and two trackers, swam 552 miles (888 kilometers) and landed at the Green Hills Preserve in North Conway, New Hampshire, before being rescued on Wednesday, he said.
See Goldstein’s stunning eclipse image in our gallery of Wonder Theory reader images.
Eager to chase the next eclipse? We’ve compiled a list of the next ones that might inspire you to travel for truly spectacular views, and don’t forget to grab your solar eclipse glasses.
fantasy creatures
Parrots are intelligent creatures, and now researchers are testing how deep these cognitive skills go.
Birds have the same level of problem-solving skills as young children. When presented with a balloon popping game on a tablet, the parrots showed signs of mental arousal.
But the game was difficult for the feathered creatures due to their anatomy, and the research could lead to a new design for tablets more suitable for use by intelligent birds.
discoveries
On January 28, 2003, Evelyn Husband and her husband, Rick, celebrated the anniversary of how they met with a video call while he was commander of the space shuttle Columbia. Neither knew that this would be their last conversation, and on reentry on February 1, the shuttle broke apart.
More than 21 years later, family members like Evelyn and her daughter Laura Husband continue their loved one’s legacy.
Evelyn is a board member of a ministry that provides counseling to fatherless boys, and Laura pursues the creative passions she shares with her father.
The Columbia tragedy also changed the way NASA approached spaceflight in the wake of the disaster in five key ways to make exploration safer.
Watch the final two episodes of the CNN Original Series “Space Shuttle Columbia: The Final Flight” on Sunday at 9pm ET/PT.
we are a family
Since the discovery of 5,300-year-old frozen remains in the Tyrolean Alps in 1991, Ötzi the Iceman has attracted the attention of scientists.
The authors of a new study suggest that a single-point piercing tool was likely used to ink the 61 tattoos on his body, and that it’s possible the marks were viewed as an ancient form of healing.
Separately, researchers unearthed an ancient tomb in Argentina in what is now Patagonia that included a person buried with a fox; This suggests that dogs’ canine relatives were once humans’ best friends.
Long time ago
Approximately 1,000 meteorites are found every year in the white and icy desert of Antarctica.
Fragmented space rocks tell a story about the formation of our solar system, helping astronomers piece together the history of this corner of the universe.
However, global warming caused by the climate crisis causes meteorites to sink into melting ice. New research suggests that around 5,000 space rocks may disappear every year.
curious things
Bookmark these stories to share with your friends:
— Archaeologists working in Pompeii in southern Italy have uncovered the remains of a banquet hall decorated with striking frescoes of mythological characters.
– Rangers in Western Australia have captured footage of an incredibly rare, strange-looking blind mole – and it’s the second sighting in six months.
— Rock carvings called petroglyphs found next to dinosaur footprints in the Brazilian state of Paraíba may have been created by prehistoric humans who found the prints meaningful, according to a new study.
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