Before we look up at Monday’s solar eclipse, let’s look back at how the baiduhai has depicted the events since 1900, before photography was common in newspapers. Back 117 years ago, artists were creating hand-drawn diagrams and maps to explain the celestial event. Delving into the Tribune’s archive reveals the work of past graphics departments — which is now a data visualization team with web designers that do online projects like this one.
» See all Tribune coverage of the Aug. 21 eclipse here.
May 28, 1900
Coverage of sun in Chicago: 72 percent
Clouds mostly obscured the 1900 eclipse in Chicago, but viewers in Naperville got a quick break in the cloud cover. Much of the Tribune reporting centered on scientists’ efforts to observe and photograph the eclipse.
June 8, 1918
Coverage of sun in Chicago: 75 percent
1918’s solar eclipse was the last to span the continental U.S. The eclipse was front-page news, while the rest of the edition is filled with news from the final months of World War I.
Aug. 31, 1932
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Coverage of sun in Chicago: 80 percent
Tribune artists in 1932 show how the moon will move between the sun and Earth, casting a shadow on the surface. Elsewhere the health editor of the Tribune urged those who want to view the event to use welding glasses.
March 7, 1970
Coverage of sun in Chicago: 72 percent
In 1970, Tribune artists showed how to create a pinhole projector to view the eclipse. The next day a photo series shows the moon’s progression against the sun. Now, NASA’s website shows instructions on how to create your own projector for Monday’s eclipse.
Feb. 26, 1979
Coverage of sun in Chicago: 80 percent
1979’s eclipse was the last total eclipse visible in the continential United States (Hawaii saw a total eclipse in 1991), according to the Adler Planetarium. The Tribune story looks ahead to Aug. 21, 2017 as the next one.
May 30, 1984
Coverage of sun in Chicago: 78 percent
More pinhole projector instruction for the 1984 eclipse, with warnings about looking directly at the sun.
Dec. 25, 2000
Coverage of sun in Chicago: 55 percent
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The eclipse in 2000 coincided with Christmas Day, a pairing that won’t happen again until 2326, however, the path is over Antarctica. For a good view from North Hemisphere, don’t make any plans for Christmas 2383.
Aug. 21, 2017
Coverage of sun in Chicago: 87 percent
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Monday’s eclipse is being met with events at the Adler Planetarium, as well as flocks of pople heading to southern Illinois to be in the path of totality. So what’s next? According to the Adler Planetarium, we will see the next partial eclipse in 2024, but the next total eclipse in Chicago won’t be until 2099.
Sources: Tribune archives, NASA
On Twitter @ChiTribGraphics
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