The Swellesley Report

More than you really want to know about Wellesley, Mass.

Wellesley solar eclipse day in pictures, video

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Whitin Observatory at Wellesley College was definitely the place to be in town for Eclipse Day, as telescopes, solar eclipse glasses, drums with black tape over them, and every other sort of gadget you could imagine was available for sharing and viewing. Plus it was a great place to take pictures with all this stuff on their faces and heads…

Whitin Observatory Wellesley Eclipse Whitin Observatory Wellesley Eclipse

 

Whitin Observatory Wellesley Eclipse

 

Wellesley Eclipse Wellesley Eclipse Wellesley Eclipse

 

The Wellesley Fire Rescue Department was ready for Eclipse action, per firefighter Michael Leach:
Wellesley Fire eclipse

 

Wellesley Fire Department eclipse
Photo via WFRD

 

Meanwhile, CrepeBerry on Washington Street in Wellesley celebrated with Eclipse cookies and was sharing Eclipse glasses with patrons and passersby.

 

We swung the Morse Institute Library over the border in Natick, where an Eclipse-crazy crowd packed the front lawn:

Morse Institute Library Natick, Eclipse Morse Institute Library Natick, Eclipse Morse Institute Library Natick, Eclipse

We left it to NASA for photos of the actual solar eclipse:

We also visited Whitin observatory at Wellesley College ahead of the solar eclipse and there wasn’t much doing, but there were still some photo opps:

 

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Solar eclipse coming to Wellesley (and elsewhere in U.S.)

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eclipse nasaThe first total solar eclipse to be seen across the contiguous United States will take place on Monday, Aug. 21, and Wellesley is getting ready for it even though we’ll only be treated to a partial eclipse in these parts (the total eclipse path stretches from Oregon to South Carolina). It’s been 38 years since a total eclipse was visible in North America, and a total eclipse across the country hasn’t been visible since 1918.

Wellesley Free Library will feature a program called Eclipses: A Weird History on Wednesday, Aug. 9 from 4:30-5:30pm featuring Meg Thacher from Smith College. The program is open to families with children of all ages, but is best for kids ages 8 and up. No registration required.

Know of other eclipse-related activities taking place in town? Let us know:  [email protected]

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Astronaut visits Wellesley; Dana Hall students encouraged to space out

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NASA's Sunita Williams, Maria Sedunova '19 and Saaniya Desai '19
Capt. Sunita Williams with Dana Hall students Maria Sedunova and Saaniya Desai, both from the class of ’19

 

NASA astronaut — and Needham High grad — Sunita Williams visited Dana Hall School in Wellesley on Monday to discuss her career and encourage students to explore science opportunities, too.

Williams, a Captain in the U.S. Navy, discussed her training and her missions, and gave a peek into where the space program is heading.  She encouraged everyone to visit NASA, either in Cape Canaveral or Houston, and told students to “be confident, but be competent,” reminding them not to cut corners as they pursue new endeavors.

An astronaut since 1998, Williams has been on two space missions, including one on which she ran the Boston Marathon.  She is currently part of a team training to fly America’s first commercially-built spacecraft,  the Boeing CST-100 Starliner and SpaceX Dragon, that will take passengers to the International Space Station as soon as this year.

Williams spoke as part of the Wannamaker Series of lectures at Dana Hall.

MORE: Mars astronaut hopeful stationed on planet Wellesley for now

 

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