This year, on April 8, Carterville High School students got  to take the day off of school to watch the solar eclipse. Many students were able to enjoy that time given to them, while some of the students chose to work instead.

A solar eclipse is the rare occurrence of the moon perfectly covering the sun. A solar eclipse can last anywhere from 10 seconds to 7 and a half minutes. This event is pretty but you have to make sure to wear your glasses or you can suffer the risks behind it. 

The last time some of the students had seen the eclipse they were in 4th-7th in 2017, and the majority of the students then fell asleep or just did not care at the moment due to their age. However, this year, more students were able to watch the eclipse and collect many photos of themselves and their families. 

There were a lot of precautions that needed to be taken before watching the eclipse. For example, looking at this beautiful site without proper eye protection, gave viewers a chance of going blind. This is because of the sun rays that are coming out from the sun. With that, there was a chance of long-term damage and never seeing again. Sophomore Alexis McClellan said she almost looked at the eclipse without her glasses, “When watching the eclipse, I almost looked at it because my glasses had fallen off and it was the scariest thing ever.” 

During the 2017 eclipse, the best local viewing area for the eclipse was in a small town in Herod, Illinois called “Garden of the Gods.” Garden of the Gods is a popular hiking area that was filled with people last year during the fall time.

This year the best place to see it is in Makanda, Illinois. Makanda is a small town with multiple small shops but many tourist attractions. “I had actually got to be in the middle of the line last [time] from what my parents tell me” said sophomore Kash Compton.

Hopefully, everyone had a good time, if there are any photos send them to our Instagram and watch them go online with families and friends.