Chasing the Sun
In August 2017 millions of people traveled from around the world to locations across the United States to watch a total solar eclipse of the sun. Many landed in central Idaho including a team of students from Montana State University who led a national effort, the Eclipse Ballooning Project, to film the eclipse from high-altitude balloons.
High-altitude balloons take flight during a test launch Wednesday, June 22, 2017 near Rexburg, Idaho.
Montana State University students track high-altitude balloons after a test launch Wednesday, June 22, 2017 near Rexburg, Idaho.
The State of Idaho spent years preparing for millions of estimated visitors to the region for the eclipse.
A Montana State University engineering student prepares a camera array that would analyze polarization of the sky during the total solar eclipse.
Members of the MSU team work into the night on final preparations for the launch of high-altitude balloons at the Camas National Refuge on the eve of the eclipse.
As the sun rises over the MSU team's launch site, team members Katherine Lee, left, and Darci Collins prepare a camera system they designed to capture images of the sun's atmosphere during the eclipse.
Members of MSU's balloon launch team watch the sun through solar scopes.
A latex balloon undulates and lifts off the ground as the MSU team fills it with helium. The team launched three balloons in roughly an hour before the eclipse so that cameras and other equipment they carried would reach the desired altitude during totality.
An image captured through a telephoto lens reveals solar eclipse features known as Bailey's Beads and the Diamond Ring effect.
Members of a team from the University of Brasilia react to the moment of eclipse totality.