Solarpalooza is a two-day event surrounding the total solar eclipse Monday. The event will feature speakers, music, food trucks and free solar eclipse glasses.
According to USI’s Solarpalooza web page, the solar eclipse will pass directly over Evansville, Indiana, with a totality of three minutes and five seconds.
Kent Scheller, professor of physics and chair of the Solarpolooza committee, said the festival will begin at 7 p.m. Sunday in the Screaming Eagles Arena with keynote speaker Joan Higginbotham, a former astronaut.
David Bower, vice president for Development and Alumni Engagement and president of the USI Foundation, said Higginbotham is part of the Innovative Speaker Series.
Bower said a big crowd is expected to hear Higginbotham speak.
“I think it’s a matter of because she was in space, and I think it should be very interesting for students of all ages,” Bower said.
Scheller said Monday will begin with an Interdisciplinary Clinical Colloquium given by the College of Liberal Arts. There will be presentations, performances and art displays surrounding an eclipse theme.
The 16th annual interdisciplinary colloquium will be from 8 a.m. – 12:10 p.m., with academic presentations in Carter Hall. Performance pieces will be hosted from 12:30 – 1:30 p.m. in the Liberal Arts Center’s Mallette Studio Theatre.
Scheller said attendees can park in any of the parking spots on campus, and students living on campus are expected to walk or take the bus.
“I’d say the earlier, the better because of traffic,” Scheller said. “But even if you are here early, there’s plenty to do, so you won’t be bored.”
Scheller said there will also be a Screagles showcase, an activity fun fair in the Screaming Eagles Arena from 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. Attendees of all ages can do hands-on activities from different organizations on campus
He said there will be food trucks, a petting zoo hosted by Mesker Park Zoo and music on The Quad with a band and DJ.
“There’s just a lot going on all day, and of course, at two o’clock to 2:02 p.m., we’ll have the eclipse, and that’ll last for about three minutes,” Scheller said. “So our idea was to have something that people had something to do all day, up to the big hour, and then, of course, everybody’s gonna get free glasses, and we hope to have a good time.”
To close the two-day event, Sara Zwart, NASA nutritionist, will discuss the relation of nutrition in space flight on Zoom in the Health Professions Center from 3-4 p.m. Monday.
Scheller said the committee for Solarpolooza was formed in September 2021.
He said they have been planning for Solarpolooza with a lot of coordination for two years and eight months.
“Obviously, we want everybody to be safe, so we’ve coordinated with state and local law enforcement agencies,” Scheller said. “We’ve secured the services of first responder personnel, so if there’s any health events. We ordered 25,000 glasses for people so that they can all view safely.”
Scheller said the name for Solarpalooza is a “take-off” from Lollapalooza, the music festival.
“We wanted to have that music vibe where people could walk around, listen to music, eat, do activities, all day long up to the eclipse,” he said.
Scheller said the university has planned to accommodate up to 20,000 people on campus, and the event will be open to both “university family” and the public.
“We have the room and we would like to show off our campus,” he said. “We have a good place. One, a good place to be as a student, and a good place to view an eclipse.”
Scheller said if it rains, the food trucks will be moved to the front of the Screaming Eagles Arena, the band will play inside the arena and the eclipse will be broadcast live from NASA on the jumbotron.
“Just know that if people are coming out here that they will be welcomed, and hospitality and safety is all we care about,” Scheller said. “We want people to have a good time.”
