One of our solar system’s most awe-inspiring events will be on full display for many lucky Americans next week: a total eclipse of the sun. And visitors to Ste. Geneviève National Historical Park will get a front-row seat!
An excerpt of a NASA map shows the path and timing of the eclipse over Missouri. Credit: NASA’s Scientific Visualization Studio
Next Monday April 8, people who live in a broad swath of the U.S. will be able to watch as the moon slowly obscures the sun. The lucky ones, including those in southwestern Missouri, will witness up to a four-minute window of “totality” when the sun is completely covered by the moon’s shadow.
A total eclipse occurs somewhere on Earth only once every one-and-a-half years. The next one to pass over Missouri is predicted for 2045. However, only a tiny portion of the state will be in totality then. So now’s the time to catch it!
The little town of Ste. Geneviève is getting ready for a full day of eclipse events next Monday. Various local groups, including staff from Ste. Genevieve National Historical Park, will host a “viewing event” at the county community center (21390 Highway 32 Ste. Genevieve, MO) from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm. The period of actual totality starts at 1:59 p.m. Event activities include:
Learning about the eclipse from knowledgeable experts, including park rangers.
“Hearing” the eclipse through an innovative LightSound device developed by Harvard astronomers that translates light into sound.
Marveling at the total eclipse with the community of Ste. Genevieve, MO!
Credit: The Planetary Society and NPS
In addition, kids can pick up a solar filter and an Eclipse Explorer Junior Ranger book (after completing the book, they’ll receive a special badge). Fourth graders with a printed voucher can also pick up an Every Kid Outdoors pass.
For more details, check out the park’s solar eclipse page. We hope to see you in Ste. Gen!
A composite image of the October 2023 eclipse over Bryce Canyon National Park. Credit: NPS/Peter Densmore
Do you know a child who can spend hours looking at every plant, insect, and set of tracks they come across outside? What about a budding history buff who wants to know every detail of historical events? Are you a grown-up whose inner child never quite let go of your dream of being a paleontologist or train engineer or marine biologist? Whatever your child’s (or your inner child’s) interest, there is a National Park Service Junior Ranger program for you!
Credit: NPS
The NPS Junior Ranger program is an activity-based program aimed at 5- to 13-year olds that takes place in almost all national parks. Children typically complete a series of activities during a park visit, share their answers with a park ranger, then receive an offical Junior Ranger patch and certificate.
This very popular program got its start more than 90 years ago, beginning as the “Yosemite Junior Nature School” in 1930. The school was held for six weeks every summer from 1930-1954 (with the exception of the years during WWII). Back then, earning an award (the equivalent of becoming a Junior Ranger today), was quite difficult! A child had to attend at least five meetings of the Junior Nature School as well as complete 25 out of the following 26 tests:
Point out and give characteristics of ten trees.
Point out and give characteristics of five shrubs.
Demonstrate the ability to read tree history by means of tree rings.
Tell the principal values of forests.
Identify five birds by means of songs alone.
Point out fifteen different kinds of birds.
Name ten resident birds of Yosemite Valley, five predators, two waders, three wood borers, and fifteen perchers.
Identify the nests of five birds.
Point out the four principal minerals found in granite.
Tell briefly the story of the origin of the Yosemite Valley.
Illustrate the difference between stream-worn and glacial-worn boulders.
Name and identify twenty-five different flowers.
Know the principal parts of the flower.
Explain the function of flowers in plant reproduction.
Name and identify ten Yosemite mammals.
Name and identify five Yosemite reptiles.
Outline the life history of the bear.
Tell four ways of identifying old Indian village sites.
Tell how obsidian arrow points are made.
Tell how the Yosemite [Native Americans] made acorn bread.
Point out fifteen vegetable, ten animal, and three insect sources of food used by the Indians.
Point out forty points of interest around Yosemite Valley.
Identify four kinds of trout.
Tell the methods of fish culture used in the hatchery.
Demonstrate the ability to ‘read the trail-side like a book.’
Identify the following: ant lion, termite, swallow-tail butterfly, grasshopper, wasp, dragon-fly, moth, and ladybird beetle.
Yosemite Junior Nature School, ca. 1935. Credit: NPS
In 1955, the Junior Nature School officially transitioned to the Junior Ranger program, which was much closer to how the program runs today. Now, children (and adults!) can earn a Junior Ranger badge and certificate at over 400 National Park sites across the country by completing activities from that park’s official Junior Ranger booklet. Additionally, there are many national themed booklets available which can be completed at home or at a nearby national park. Some of these themed Junior Ranger programs include Wildland Firefighter, Archeologist, and Underground Railroad Explorer.
An excerpt from the “Junior Ranger- Let’s Go Fishing!” booklet
Each of JNPA’s partner parks participate in the Junior Ranger program, including:
Also, for a limited time, visitors to Gateway Arch National Park will have the opportunity to earn the “Riverboat Explorer” Junior Ranger badge. This program will be offered daily on riverboat cruises at 1:30pm and 3:00pm now through Labor Day.
Credit: NPS
The next time you visit a national park, make sure to check out their Junior Ranger Program. It is completely free, and you never know what new things you may learn! If you want to add to the experience, you can also purchase this Junior Ranger Hat and Junior Ranger Vest to proudly display all of your badges!
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