Dripping Springs sets up huge solar eclipse glasses

Whether traveling from out of town or venturing to the highest point you can find, there is more than one way to view the annular solar eclipse on Saturday, October 14. The City of Dripping Springs prefers to watch the eclipse behind a set of larger-than-life glasses erected in honor of the city’s front row seat to two back-to-back solar events, according to a City of Dripping Springs news release.

The art installation set up in Veterans Memorial Park, located near the intersection of US Highway 290 and Ranch Road 12, features out of this world graphics and is lined with information on how to safely view the eclipse, according to the news release.

“We wanted to do something fun and different, that not many cities would have,” said Lisa Sullivan, director of communications for the City of Dripping Springs.

The test of the installation’s educational power will come on Saturday, when the “ring of fire” takes place. During this time, those in the area will experience 89% sun coverage with only the outer edge of the sun visible. The partial eclipse is set to take place at 10:23 a.m. and wrap up at 1:32 p.m. The maximum sun coverage is scheduled to occur at 11:53 a.m., according to the release.

In addition, Dripping Springs is hosting a small eclipse event on Saturday in the park from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. While there, attendees can learn more about the eclipse at the city’s informational booth, take photos with the art display, purchase eclipse merchandise, and pick up a free pair of eclipse glasses, according to the release.

The display acts as a pre-cursor to the main eclipse event happening on April 8, 2024, when the sun will be totally eclipsed.