Eclipse chasers descend on Indianapolis to view Monday's Total Solar Eclipse
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. (CBS 58) -- CBS 58 Morning Meteorologist Justin Thompson-Gee and photojournalist Jon Jenkins have safely arrived in Indianapolis to view Monday's total solar eclipse from the path of totality! Traffic was not too bad with rain in Wisconsin and Illinois but some sun already starting peek out in Indiana which eclipse chasers hope will stick around for Monday's celestial event.
Rest stops were full of travelers hoping to get a good view of the three minutes and fifty seconds of near darkness they will experience Monday afternoon. Traffic is expected to get crazy on Monday when hundreds of thousands of people are expected to descend on the city nicknamed the Crossroads of America. The State of Indiana is under a State of Emergency to prepare for the massive crowds and jammed roads, but it's a trip many families want to take.
We talked to one dad from Iowa who spoke about how special it is to view the eclipse as a family, "It's an event that's not every common. I saw [the] eclipse when I was a kid and I read that the next one is 2o years in the future so it's a chance for us to see it as a family," said Andre Wagner.
Our CBS 58 team will be at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway to view the event which is one of the locations NASA has chosen to broadcast the eclipse from. The timing lines up nicely between Indianapolis and Milwaukee with maximum totality in Indy at 3:08 PM eastern time and 2:08 PM central time for the 90% coverage in Milwaukee.
White River State Park is also one of the spots in Indy where people will be coming out to view the eclipse tomorrow. A lot of people have been checking out their spots to view Monday's eclipse. Our team spoke with eclipse chasers from California to Florida and every place in between. One 10-year-old from Atlanta is very excited for the event, "We're hoping; well obviously it's going to look cool no matter what but we're really hoping there's not too much cloud cover because we want to be able to see it," said Lane Blackstone.
Indianapolis is also becoming a hot location for people making last minute trips, "We've seen a huge influx in last minute interest. We knew this was coming. Pay attention to the weather forecast because a lot of people will wait until the last minute to make their travel plans," said Morgan Snyder, Senior Director of Public Relations and Flim at Visit Indy.
Fuel up. Arrive early. Stay put. Leave late. That's the message from officials in Indianapolis. Many people were waiting on the cloud forecast to decided what city to go to for the eclipse and Indianapolis is looking pretty good!
Our CBS 58 crews will be live from the Path of Totality starting at 5 AM Monday morning on the CBS 58 Morning News and then all throughout the day!
Back in Wisconsin, here's when you will have a chance to see the eclipse: