Many have enjoyed the total solar eclipse here in southern Illinois, but some SIU students decided to do a little more.
A group of SIU students used sun funnels attached to a telescope to not only view the eclipse, but Kallie Heavrin, an alumni in the group, says they also captured an image of it.
"We actually captured a picture of totality on the sun funnel which, I guess, had never been done before. So, that made NASA go crazy" Heavrin said.
However, this was not the first time the group had viewed an eclipse. A few years ago, Heavrin and the rest of the team studied abroad in Australia to do a similar experiment.
"In Australia the totality was only about 50 seconds so it was really quick there. So the four minutes here still flew by really fast but it gave everybody the opportunity to take it in for a longer amount of time than just a quick pass by" Heavrin said.
Even though the next eclipse in the U.S. won't be for another few decades, she says she won't want to miss another experience like this.
"It's really amazing. This has been a great opportunity. The next one is not for another 20 years, I think it's in North Dakota. I'm down to go to North Dakota and see it again" Heavrin said.
To learn more about the recent solar eclipse, click here.
