Solar eclipse in NYC: Meet the people behind the telescope

NEW YORK CITY (PIX11) – As New Yorkers rush upstate to see the total solar eclipse on Monday, beloved amateur astronomer Joe Delfausse will stay planted behind his telescope in Brooklyn. 

The Park Slope local, who went viral in September when his telescope brought a city street to a complete stop, has already seen a total solar eclipse, so this year he’ll stay to educate the masses on what he does year-round.

“There are all kinds of people [who] look through the telescope,” Delfausse said. “It’s a unique opportunity to sort of teach them some of the basic stuff.”

The solar eclipse can be enjoyed with or without a telescope – the equipment will only enhance an already great view for those using just protective glasses, making sun flares and spots visible.

Although New York City is not in the path of totality, amateur astronomers agree it will still be a special moment for unity and wonder as the sky dims and the temperature shifts when the eclipse hits the city beginning around 2:10 p.m. 

For Delfausse, taking his telescope out is a way to connect with people. Some people, like teenagers, are wholly unimpressed, but many step up to the lens and find their lives forever changed, Delfausse said. 

Recently, a woman told Delfausse her son is studying astronomy at Harvard University because he was so taken by Delfausse’s telescope. 

“That makes me happy – to see the reactions,” Delfausse said. “Connecting with people is really important.”

For the eclipse, Delfausse will be stationed at Green-Wood Cemetery, where thousands of people will watch the celestial event through safety glasses, a handful of telescopes and a local and NASA livestream.

Rockaway native Peter Lipschutz has been dotting all the I’s and crossing T’s for the Green-Wood Cemetery event, checking the telescopes’ filters and setting up the streams. Now, everyone’s just hoping for good weather. 

Lipschutz stayed in New York City for the eclipse in 2017 and he’s staying once again, inspired by a duty to his fellow New Yorkers and his newborn grandchild, he said. 

On a day like the solar eclipse, Lipschutz is hoping to recreate that priceless moment at the telescope, usually soundtracked by oohs and aahs. 

“You really get to see your place in at least the local part of the universe…It’s an epiphany for some people,” Lipschutz said. “This is an opportunity to capture the little scientists.” 

Lipschutz has been taking his telescope out and helping people reconnect with their inner stargazer since college. 

“We’re all born little scientists,” Lipschutz said. “And then we blow it.”

Greenwich Village native Rori Baldari, who co-chairs the association’s Observing Committee, will travel into the path of totality for this year’s solar eclipse after sticking around in 2017. 

But she still thinks New Yorkers should go out of their way to see the eclipse. 

“You should pull out all the stops,” she said. “It’s going to be an amazing spectacle. It will well be worth it.”