Seneca Park Zoo
Eclipse Weekend

Are you ready for Total Eclipse 2024?
Join us for Eclipse Weekend at Seneca Park Zoo April 6th and 7th.

Eclipse Weekend will feature a range of on-site activities, all included with Zoo admission!

Eclipse Weekend also coincides with some of our Spring Break Week animal programming which you can see the full schedule of here!

Saturday, April 6

9:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.

Pinhole Camera Workshop

9:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.

Animal Experiences

9:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.

Nature Cart with Zoo Naturalist

12:00 p.m.

NASA and the Eclipse, a talk with NASA Heliophysicist Skyler Kleinschmidt

2:00 p.m.

NASA and the Eclipse, a talk with NASA Heliophysicist Skyler Kleinschmidt




Sunday, April 7

9:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.

Pinhole Camera Workshop

9:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.

Animal Experiences

9:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.

Nature Cart with Zoo Naturalist

12:00 p.m.

Emily Rice, Astrophysicist and former Seneca Park ZooTeen

2:00 p.m.

Emily Rice, Astrophysicist and former Seneca Park ZooTeen




Monday, April 8

9:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.

Pinhole Camera Workshop

9:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.

Nature Cart with Zoo Naturalist

10:00 a.m.

NASA and the Eclipse, a talk with NASA Heliophysicist Skyler Kleinschmidt

1:00 p.m.

NASA and the Eclipse, a talk with NASA Heliophysicist Skyler Kleinschmidt


2:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.

NASA Heliophysicist Sykler Kleinschmidt narrates the total solar eclipse as it happens

Eclipse Weekend: Saturday, April 6 - Sunday, April 7

All activities free with admission

  • Zoo Programming
    A Seneca Park Zoo fan-favorite, the Nature Cart, will feature Zoo Naturalist stations focusing on all things animal behavior and the eclipse. Topics covered include the hyperspectral audio study the Zoo is leading in partnership with RIT’s College of Imaging Science. The study will research the effects of a total solar eclipse on animal behavior. Learn more at senecaparkzoo.org/audiomoth-eclipse. Guests will also be provided materials and instructions to craft a pinhole camera.

  • Talk and Meet and Greet with Skyler Kleinschmidt, NASA Heliophysicist
    NASA Heliophysicist, Skyler Kleinschmidt, will join us Saturday, April 6 and Monday, April 8 to talk to guests about the science NASA is doing during the eclipse and highlight some of the NASA missions studying the sun and its impact on the solar system. The Science Mission Directorate Heliophysics Division at NASA studies the nature of the Sun, and how it influences the very nature of space, the atmospheres of planets like the earth, and the technology that exists there.

  • Talk and Meet and Greet with Astrophysicist Emily Rice
    Former ZooTeen and current Astrophysicist Emily Rice will join us Sunday, April 7 to answer your eclipse questions and teaches guests how to properly view an eclipse.
  • Animal Experiences
    Eclipse Weekend coincides with the Zoo’s Spring Break Animal Experiences, featuring unique animal experiences all day long including snow leopard, polar bear, red panda, giraffe, penguin, sea lion, river otter and rhino programs. View the full schedule of programming here.

FREE FOR MEMBERS, NO TICKETS NEEDED

Free eclipse glasses with admission.
NASA/Scientific Visualization Studio/Michala Garrison; Eclipse Calculations By Ernie Wright, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
Emily Rice, Astrophysicist


Eclipse Day: April 8

All activities free with admission

On Eclipse Day (April 8th), experience the eclipse in a unique environment at the Zoo. Guests are invited to participate as citizen scientists by collecting data on animal behavior leading up to, during, and after the eclipse, with results to be shared with community sites and the Zoo’s media channels.

Nature Cart Station
The Nature Cart will be out with opportunities for guests to learn about the eclipse and build their own pinhole cameras. Guests will also receive free eclipse viewing glasses, while supplies last.

Narrated Total Solar Eclipse Experience
NASA Heliophisicist Skyler Kleinschmidt will live narrate the eclipse as it happens. Heliophysicists study the effects of the sun on earth and other planets and Skyler’s expertise provides guests a “behind-the-scenes” look at the science of eclipses and the sun.

The Zoo is proud to be a scientific organization devoted to leading and participating in studies to further scientific understanding of animal species. You won’t want to miss this out-of-this-world opportunity!

 

FREE FOR MEMBERS, NO TICKETS NEEDED


Otter & Polar Bear Habitat Livestream

Stay Updated

Keep in touch with your friends at Seneca Park Zoo on this event and more! There’s always something happening at the Zoo.