Photo courtesy of Choate Flickr
By Ellie Porter ’25
A partial solar eclipse darkened the skies of Connecticut on April 8 between 2:12 p.m. and 4:37 p.m. as the moon blocked a portion of the sun. In honor of this rare astronomical event, Physics teacher Mr. Jon Gadoua organized a viewing party for the Choate community to witness the eclipse, an event that will not recur in Connecticut for another 20 years.
To accommodate the timing of the eclipse, the typical 30-minute Monday conference period was removed to allocate time before afternoon activities for students to enjoy the eclipse and learn about the science behind the phenomenon.
Hundreds of students flooded the Great Lawn outside of Colony Hall, where special eclipse glasses and trays of food awaited them. Although the moon only partially blocked the sun, solar eclipses are still harmful to the eye when stared at directly. Thus, Choate purchased eclipse glasses for students and faculty to wear.
Many students set up blankets in the grass to watch the eclipse, while space-themed music, such as Elton John’s “Rocket Man” and Bonnie Tyler’s “Total Eclipse of the Heart,” played in the background. SAGE Dining Services also offered an array of eclipse-themed desserts at the event, such as sun and moon-shaped cookies and orange slices.
Biology teacher Mr. Chris Aguiar thought the event encouraged educational exploration. “It was fun to see the community come together around science,” he said. Dana Tan ’25 found the event to be very informative and relevant to her own classes. “Even though I’ve seen a solar eclipse before, this one was very special to me because I could do it with all my friends in front of the science building, which helped me put science in action and apply what I’ve learned in my environmental science class in real life,” she said.
