Citizen scientists prepare for eclipse

Val Germann has been looking forward to Monday’s solar eclipse for the past 30 years.

“Twenty years ago we actually had T-shirts made for this,” he said. “So we have been looking forward to this day for a long time.”

Germann is on the board of directors for the Central Missouri Astronomical Association. He’s been a member for almost 40 years. He said his love for astronomy started when he was 14 years old when Comet Ikeya-Seki passed over the Midwest.

“My brother and I decided we would see this comet, so that required that we buy a telescope,” he said. “We started looking at the planets and I’ve never stopped.”

Germann went on to teach astronomy at Columbia College for 20 years. He’s since retired, but still keeps a collection of seven telescopes handy.

On Monday, Germann plans to have those telescopes set up in his backyard to view and record the eclipse. The type of telescope he is using to see the eclipse will show the best view of the sun, including its atmosphere, the corona, he explained.

He said the eclipse will be ranked at the top of his list of things he’s viewed in the sky.

“This has a lot of scientific interest, but it is one of the most beautiful natural events that there is,” he said. “One of the rarest and one of the most spectacular.”

Germann’s message for people on Monday is simple:

“Do not miss this eclipse. You will remember it your entire life,” he said. “And people will ask you later in life, ‘Did you see the eclipse?’ And if you say ‘No’ that’s not a good thing.”