Monday, August 21, 2017 is the first day of classes and the first total solar eclipse in Nebraska since 1918! A solar eclipse is a lineup of the Sun, the Moon, and the Earth. The moon directly between the sun and earth casts a shadow on the earth. In Lincoln there will be a total eclipse at 1:02 pm and it will last for 1 minute 24 seconds. The partial eclipse will begin at 11:37 am. Total eclipses are very rare. The last total eclipse that one could see in Nebraska was in 1918 and that was only in several counties in Southwest Nebraska.
The Department of Physics and Astronomy is working on a series of activities around the solar eclipse. Watch for details. If you teach Monday at 12:30 pm you might want to consider if there is a way to allow for students to watch this event since for most individuals it is a once in a lifetime opportunity.