Live updates: What North Jersey reporters experienced during Monday's eclipse
Happy eclipse day!
The historic near-total solar eclipse has come and gone for North Jersey, with the moon taking its last bite of the sun around 4:30 p.m. North Jersey wasn't in the path of totality for the best view in the country, but it still got an awe-inspiring sky show (which mostly shone through the day's clouds).
Thousands turned out across the state to watch a display that won't occur again in the U.S. until 2044. It'll be even longer, 2079, until the next total solar eclipse is visible from New Jersey.
Our staff brought it all to you, from local watch parties, to weather, visuals and more.
Check out the latest here:
At Paterson Great Falls, 'like something out of a movie'
Ayo Babas missed the total solar eclipse in August 2017, and he was not about to miss it again.
The freelance photographer and his wife visited Paterson Great Falls National Historical Park on McBride Avenue for a clear view of the celestial phenomenon that will not reappear for two decades. The couple was among hundreds who gathered on the observation deck Monday afternoon, taking in the sight as a 77-foot waterfall crashed down behind them.
Babas, of North Bergen, said he and his wife, Rara Babas, considered driving more than five hours to Rochester, New York, which was in the so-called path of totality. But they opted for the much shorter trip.
“It’s pretty cool,” Babas said as he lowered his camera for a moment. “It’s like something out of a movie.”
Meanwhile, Tammi Hajbi pulled her children out of school to enjoy the spectacle. Her two sons are Cub Scouts, she said, and going to the national park to witness the eclipse earned them special badges.
“It means a lot to do something as a family,” said the Woodland Park mom. “It’s a lot better than watching it on TV.”
National park guides set up a table to distribute pinhole viewers to children who did not have eclipse safety glasses. At a second table, the youngsters colored the optical devices with washable markers and decorated them with decals. The public library gave away eclipse-related books and mini dictionaries.
Emma St. John, a national park guide, shouted into a megaphone to narrate the eclipse: “One minute till maximum coverage,” she announced. “Everyone, look up!”
The largest group of skygazers came from Community Charter School of Paterson. Students in fifth through eighth grades walked three blocks from Spruce Street to the foot of the waterfall as part of an afterschool program.
Erica Plaza, the site coordinator for the charter school, said the students appreciated the eclipse by seeing it for themselves. “This is how they learn,” she said. “For them, they need to see it to learn it. I try to do as much as possible for them to see things.”
— Philip DeVencentis
Jersey City man dressed the part for 'perfect' eclipse
Back at Liberty Science Center, there was a countdown from 10 to one as the eclipse reached its greatest extent at 3:25. The day grew a little darker and colder. Once the peak passed, people began filing out quickly. Jonas Guerrero, who lives in Jersey City, said he had been counting down to this moment for the past two years. Knowing the event was coming, he had designed a pair of sneakers for Ewing Athletics called the Eclipse. It was released Monday and Guerrero wore a pair while he watched the real thing up above.
“This was a once-in-a-lifetime event,” he said. “It was an amazing experience. It won’t happen again until 2044 when I am in my sixties. It was the perfect time.”
— Ricardo Kaulessar
'It's disappearing!' Middle school holds DIY watch party
At Rockaway Valley School in Boonton Township, kids watched the eclipse with a donated telescope but also spent the morning creating DIY viewers. "Don’t look directly at the sun, and have fun!" fifth-grader Josie Chen offered sagely. Sixth-grader Ryan Andican had both a pair of eclipse glasses and a viewer made from an old Cherrio’s box.
“It’s disappearing," the kids shouted as the eclipse reached its peak. "So cool!”
The remaining piece of the blacked-out sun was “like a crescent moon,” said Chen. “Super bright.”
To fifth-grade student Beatrix Hittenger, it was “really amazing. Something you don’t get to see every day.”
— William Westhoven
Almost 500 in Hasbrouck Heights for 'smiley face' in the sky
As the sky darkened in Hasbrouck Heights at 3:25 p.m., the height of the eclipse, the crowd at the Free Public Library grew to around 450 people as students from local schools came to watch.Some members of the crowd counted down and yelled "there it is!" as they pointed to the sky. Others watched in a silent awe.
Eight-year-old Sophia Telesca said she learned about the eclipse earlier in school and watched National Geographic to understand more. She was excited to see the sun "looked like a smiley face" right after the peak eclipse time.
Mayor Ron Kistner was also on hand and commended Library Director Mimi Hui for creating a space where everyone could celebrate together. Cindy Capozzi, a librarian at Lincoln Elementary School, said she had given teachers books to teach about the eclipse, while classes livestreamed NASA footage in preparation for the big moment.
"It's going to give them something to talk about tomorrow," she said. The eclipse’s peak was the highlight of a watch party that also featured arts and crafts, writing letters to astronauts, temporary tattoos and a bounce house.
“We thought this would be a really great way to connect with the community,” said Hui. “For some of them, this is a once-in-a-lifetime event.”
The library provided attendees with special eclipse glasses, while their stock lasted, and had a shaded area for people to watch the sky. For those who didn’t have glasses or did not want to look at the sun directly, the library rented a truck outfitted with three screens streaming live NASA footage.
Eleven-year-old resident Caitlyn Dejuana was one of the many children who wrote a letter to an astronaut, asking if they'd ever seen an eclipse from space. Nine-year-old ReginaMaria Trujillo of Bogota excitedly pointed to the sky when she put on her glasses and took a look at the eclipse for the first time.
"I think it's really cool because I've never seen the solar eclipse before," she said. "I have these cool glasses and I can just look up and I can see half the sun is just cut off."
Her mother, Regina Trujillo, was happy to bring her family to the event she said they would always remember.
"It really brings the community together and it's very family friendly," said Regina. "It's really nice to see everyone loving science."
— Stephanie Noda
Reporter travels to the path of totality
Three hours later and it would be too late…to pack, find a dog sitter, decide to miss school and leave town. But after a weekend of hand-wringing over missing a celestial high, my husband and daughter bought into my madness. On Sunday at 5 p.m., we decided to drive from New Jersey to Erie, Pennsylvania, to catch the eclipse in its totality, a once-in-a-lifetime chance to see the glowing edges of the sun around the moon’s shadow.
We drove through the night, reaching our hotel at 5:45 a.m. — only to find that a 94% cloud cover meant we wouldn’t see the corona! After much bickering and amateur research on every weather, cloud and NASA spin-off website, we decided to graduate from eclipse watchers to eclipse chasers. A couple at breakfast said they were headed to Cleveland where the clouds were expected to clear.
We were 15 minutes down I-90 W towards Cleveland when the sky began to clear and sunny, blue skies appeared.
All along I-90 W approaching Cleveland, people were setting up telescopes, parking at rest areas and taking out picnic tables, cameras, and lawn chairs. Eclipse fever was as high as the sun (which we could finally see) in the sky!
“I think these clouds will clear," my husband mused.
“We don’t know enough about clouds to make that decision,” my daughter said.
We stopped at a watch party in Willoughby, Ohio, on the grounds of a park along Lake Erie. At 2:39 the sun was blocked half way. The DJ began playing ‘The Final Countdown’. The clouds heard us, and made an exit.
— Mary Ann Koruth
Zoo animals react
"It looks like someone took a bite out of the sun," Rachel Miranda, who was visiting the Bergen County Zoo in Paramus, told her 4-year-old, Asher Polisson.
As skies dimmed, two red wolves frolicked in their enclosure − a bit unusual, zookeepers said, as the animals are usually active only at dusk or nighttime. The wolf brothers were running around by 2:45 p.m. as the eclipse advanced.Zoo director Marianne Vella said the 2017 eclipse was uneventful for the animals. But as a precaution Monday, zookeepers performed extra wellness checks on the animals throughout the day. During last week’s earthquake, the snow owl was the only animal that was upset; it flapped its wings and cried, Vella said.
“But, the animals aren’t afraid of the dark,” she added. “Maybe the prairie dogs will stay out or the wolves will howl.” The zoo hosts night events, so seeing people at the park during the dark won’t be a surprise for them, Vella said.
The zoo’s bison were put away on Monday, but not because of the eclipse. Rather, it was the first day zookeepers introduced a new female elk into the environment, so they wanted her to be comfortable and acclimate to the new surroundings.
— Kristie Cattafi
'A once-in-a-lifetime event'
At the Liberty Science Center, there was a countdown from 10 to 1 to when the eclipse reached its peak at 3:25 p.m. The day grew a little darker and colder. Once the crowd saw the peak, they filed out quickly.
Jonas Guerrero, who lives in Jersey City, said he has been counting down to seeing the eclipse for the past two years. He designed a pair of sneakers back then for Ewing Athletics called the Eclipse that was released Monday and wore them while he saw the real eclipse.
“This was a once-in-a-lifetime event," Guerrero said. "It was an amazing moment to experience. It won’t happen again until 2044 when I am in my sixties. It was the perfect time."
Eclipse glasses sell out
In Denville, Indian Lake sold out of the 50 or so pairs of eclipse glasses in about 12 minutes, said Jaclyn Hilty. The proceeds from the glasses, sold at $3 each, will help fund festivities for the lake's centennial this year.
— Ashley Balcerzak
Liberty Science Center hosts thousands
So many thousands of people packed Liberty Science Center in Jersey City on Monday afternoon to watch the eclipse from its garden that officials had to direct cars to a New Jersey Transit lot. A line to get in stretched for several blocks.
Once inside, patrons received a pair of eclipse glasses in what is billed as “New Jersey's Largest Astronomy Party.” They quickly made their way out to the center’s expansive garden where they had clear views of the moon slowly blocking out the sun.
— Scott Fallon
Jeffrey Peyser came from Montclair with his two kids, Nina, 10, and Noah, 8, to the Liberty Science Center to catch the eclipse. Peyser said, “The kids got off from school. We got our glasses. They love following astronomy.” Nina added, “It’s exciting. It doesn’t happen often. This is going to be a cool sighting.”
Little Ferry resident Karina Munoz came with her mom, Maribel, and their friend Mario Lisboa, who lives in Jersey City. Lisboa and Maribel Munoz were seeing an eclipse for the first time; Karina saw the previous eclipse in 2017 and did not want to miss this one since it was not happening again for another 20 years.
“It’s just a natural phenomenon, so it will be exciting to witness," she said. "The next one is not for another 20 years, so who knows what tomorrow holds."
Lisboa added, “I am excited to see this one. I’m like ‘Wow! I can’t wait.’”
— Ricardo Kaulessar
On the menu in New York: weiners and wonder
In Rochester, New York, another city in the zone of totality, thousands have descended on the downtown, including hotdog haven Dogtown. The line at the restaurant, "where the best hot dogs live," stretched more than 37 people before noon on Monday. A line of cars blocked traffic, and emotions on the patio and inside were ebullient, according to the Rochester Democrat & Chronicle. "This is going to be the greatest day in Dogtown history," a cashier said. "Probably. At least for a Monday!"
It's here. The eclipse enters North Jersey territory
Eclipse 2024 has started in the Garden State. Astronomical predictions put the beginning of the celestial sky show at 2:10 p.m. in our area, with its peak around 3:24 p.m. You can calculate the exact time for your ZIP code with this USA Today graphic.
The eclipse has arrived in the Lone Star State
The eclipse is already underway in the southern U.S., where the moon began gobbling up the sun in the path of totality that starts in Texas. According to the Austin American-Statesman, 12,000 people registered to watch from the lawn Long Center from the Performing Arts in downtown Austin, though only 5,000 could get in. Thousands more were expected to spill out along Ladybird Lake and bridges connecting the downtown area. The sun keeps peeking in and out of the light cloud cover over Texas' capital as the show begins. Follow the American-Statesman's live coverage here.
School is out for some North Jersey districts
As soon as lunchtime began, some parents across North Jersey began picking up their children early from school to view the eclipse at home or elsewhere. Many were headed to Liberty Science Center, which was holding “New Jersey's Largest Astronomy Party” on Monday where staff will have eight to 10 telescopes available for viewing, among other activities.
See a list of North Jersey school districts with early dismissals here.
− Scott Fallon
Don't wear eclipse glasses while driving
Eclipse glasses will help you see the eclipse itself, but make things far too dark for much else. NJ Transit police warned people not to drive while wearing eclipse glasses. Don't drive distracted for a view even if you're not wearing the eclipse glasses.
Be in the moment
Leave your phone alone during the eclipse. Don't worry about selfies or Instagram, Bill Nye the Science Guy said."Be in the moment for these four minutes. Just settle in and enjoy it. It's spectacular,” the CEO of the non-profit space exploration organization, The Planetary Society, told the Austin American-Statesman.
Will we see the eclipse in North Jersey or will it be hidden by clouds?
There may be some "high clouds" Monday afternoon but it's not predicted to be completely overcast at eclipse time, according to the National Weather Service of New York. The National Weather Service of Mount Holly, which covers northwest Jersey, painted a less rosy picture with "increasing clouds" Monday afternoon and no guarantee of a break for the eclipse.
Read more about the forecast here.
There's still time to make your own eclipse viewer
Eclipse glasses are hard to find if you don't have one by Monday. But there are ways to make your own. USA TODAY compiled a guide on how to do it yourself!
Big crowds expected to see the eclipse at Paterson Great Falls
The Paterson Great Falls figures to be a popular spot to view the eclipse. So much so, the National Park Service encouraged people to consider other options.
"On the day of the eclipse, we expect the park to be extremely busy with out-of-town visitors," NPS stated on its website. "For many local residents the 'best seat in the house' may be nearest to home. We encourage people to view the eclipse from open spaces closer to home if possible."
For those who do go to the Paterson site, expect traffic, scarce parking and be patient, NPS stated.
How to see the eclipse from North Jersey
We've compiled a full viewing guide for North Jersey with tips on how to stream it online, how it'll look locally and some watch parties in the area. Check it out here.
What time is the eclipse today in North Jersey?
The eclipse starts at about 2:10 p.m. with the peak at 3:25 p.m. and ends at 4:36 p.m., per the National Weather Service.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Solar eclipse 2024 in North Jersey: live updates
