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The entire state of Illinois was able to witness Monday’s solar
eclipse, but many made the trip to see totality.
The path of totality went through Carbondale and northeast to
Indiana. Fifteen thousand people packed Saluki Stadium at
Southern Illinois University, including SIU President Dan Mahony.
“I want to invite all of you to be a part of the SIU family on
this special day as we come together in this shared human
experience and witness over four minutes of totality,” Mahony
said.
Jennifer Ross, one of the organizers of the eclipse events at
SIU, said during the school’s eclipse live stream that the area
was inundated with eclipse watchers.
“I have been able to get outside the stadium, there are
thousands of people out there as well on the SIU campus and
throughout the region,” Ross said.
In Carbondale, the first contact when the moon moved in front of
the sun took place at 12:43 p.m., and totality occurred at 1:59
p.m.
Hotel rooms near the totality path were booked, and any room
that was available reportedly went for a premium price.
With parts of Illinois and Missouri lying in the path of
totality, both sides of the river were bracing for significant
eclipse-related traffic. Billboards were put in place warning
drivers of potential safety issues on the congested roads.
The next total solar eclipse won’t be visible from the
contiguous United States until August 22, 2044, but totality
will only occur over North Dakota and Montana.
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