Columbus technically saw about 86 percent of Monday's total solar eclipse, but most people in town just saw clouds. That didn't prevent the crowds from coming out in force to the various eclipse-watching parties, though.
COSI didn't have a total headcount, but said at least several hundred people came out to watch the solar eclipse at their event.
Looking from the United States, the moon crossed before the sun from 1:15 to 2:49 Eastern, creating a line of total darkness in 11 states from Oregon to South Carolina. In Columbus, peak coverage hit at 2:33 p.m.
While Columbus skies were overcast, Tracy Linebarger is happy she came out to COSI.
“It's actually a little bit majestic," Linebarger says. "I wasn't expecting, I'm a little slow-to-get-on-the-board person, but it actually was worth the time to get here and stand in line.”
She says she hung out at COSI for a few hours.
“For me it's like, I saw the shuttle explosion and then I saw Haley's Comet, and it's like, now I've seen an actual eclipse and it's nice, it really is," Linebarger says.
Others like Jude Dugan and Mekenzi Maick got to COSI around 2:15 p.m., just in time to watch.
“The traffic was crazy getting down here," Maick says. "We tried going to Easton to get the free glasses. So packed, Blendon Woods, they were like not letting anyone in,."
They also tried to get into Land Grant Brewing, but finally settled on COSI. Dugan and Maick say seeing the eclipse was worth rushing around the city.
“We pretty much walked straight through here, got the glasses and relaxed. It was nice,” Dugan says.
Various branches of the Columbus library and Columbus Metro Parks also hosted viewing parties, and Ohio State University celebrated its first day of classes with plenty of eclipse glasses.
Hundreds of students, faculty and staff gathered on the Oval this afternoon to catch a glimpse of the #eclipse. 🌝🌚 pic.twitter.com/ZSFZa5fnOo
— Ohio State (@OhioState) August 21, 2017
