LAMPASAS, Texas — In a joint experiment with scientists from the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute, NASA came to Lampasas for the big day and they brought modified telescopes with them.
”What we have made special for this experiment is, we have a filter built here that has four color filters," said Astrophysicist with NASA, Nelson Reginald.
"It just basically takes images of the corona through those four color filters."
This allows them to collect vital data on solar winds and temperatures coming from the corona, or the sun’s atmosphere.
”There’s this question about why the sun’s atmosphere is hotter than the sun’s surface,” Reginald said.
“The surface is around 6,000 degrees, and the corona is like one million degrees.”
They are also measuring the solar winds, because unlike on Earth where winds are held down by gravity — solar winds escape.
These are all things that Enrique Mejia, who traveled from Florida to see the eclipse, didn’t know.
”The importance of these tests and how they are going to help us to save money and be safer actually,” Mejia said.
“How the sun affects our electricity.”
One family traveled all the way from Idaho for the once in a lifetime event, and said that NASA being here makes it even better.
”It’s been cool to listen to the guys from NASA and be like 'Oh, corona, they know that word',” said Kathy Call, mother from Idaho.
“They know some of these things like solar flares they’re talking about and it’s familiar to them.”
NASA scientists say they are conducting a similar experiment from the International Space Station in September, where they are re-creating their own eclipse.
