"Join NASA's Citizen CATE Project to Photograph and Study the 2024 Solar Eclipse"
Citizen scientists, including recent Indiana University alumna Rachael Weir, are participating in the Citizen Continental-America Telescope Eclipse project (Citizen CATE) to photograph the sun's corona during the April 8 solar eclipse at 35 sites across the U.S. Co-sponsored by the National Science Foundation and NASA, the project aims to capture a 60-minute continuous video of the sun's corona, potentially leading to new scientific discoveries. This citizen science initiative involves volunteers using special polarized camera gear to document the sun's corona, providing a rare opportunity to study the sun's outermost layer and gain new understandings of solar flares, magnetic fields, and solar weather. Additionally, the project aims to inspire future astronomers by involving high school students and underrepresented communities in scientific discovery.