Total Solar Eclipse Watch Party FAQs

Monday, April 8 | 1-4:30 p.m. | Doyt L. Perry Stadium

(Gates open at noon for BGSU students, faculty and staff and 1 p.m. for general public)

No, the event is free and open to the public. No registration is needed to attend this event.  

Parking will be available at Doyt L. Perry Stadium (1610 Stadium Dr., Bowling Green, OH). Please see the map below for traffic flow and parking on the day of the event. Parking lots at Doyt L. Perry Stadium will open at 10:30 a.m. on Monday, April 8. Follow posted signs and directions from parking staff when you arrive.

Overnight RV parking for the Total Solar Eclipse Watch Party is available at the Wood County Fairgrounds (13800 W. Poe Rd., Bowling Green, OH 43402). Please book your stay at the fairgrounds prior to the event.  

Total Solar Eclipse Watch Party Parking Map

No, parking at Bowling Green State University is free for the Total Solar Eclipse Watch Party.

Solar eclipse glasses will be provided free of charge to all Watch Party attendees. You will receive the glasses when you enter the gates of the stadium. Solar eclipse glasses will also be available for BGSU students, faculty and staff at the information desks in the Bowen-Thompson Student Union, Jerome Library, Student Recreation Center, and all residence halls the week prior to the eclipse.

Solar eclipse glasses must be worn when looking at the sun during the partial phases before and after the total solar eclipse. Staring up at even a sliver of the sun's light is too bright and can damage your eyes. For the three minutes of totality (between 3:11-3:14 p.m. in Bowling Green), it is safe to look directly at the sun without your solar eclipse glasses.

Food will be available for purchase from concession stands inside the stadium and food trucks on-site. Food vendors scheduled to be on-site include Los Pollo Loco, Detroit Mini Donuts, Loaded Gastro, Deets BBQ, Susie Lemonade, Big Mama, Kona Ice, BGSU Dining Services and AVI Foodsytems, Inc (Stadium Concessionaire).

Yes, restroom facilities in and around the stadium will be available.

The BGSU Total Solar Eclipse Watch Party is a family-friendly event that will include a variety of fun and educational activities. Some planned activities and demonstrations include make-your-own clay celestial body, eclipse drawing and coloring activities, eclipses through history posters, a rainbow spectrum box, inflatables and giant board games, and more! Attendees will also have the opportunity to view the sky through telescopes on the field.

NASA footage of the total solar eclipse as it travels across the U.S. will be livestreamed on the video board in the stadium. Entertainment includes live performances by the Falcon Marching Band and music composed specifically for the Total Solar Eclipse by BGSU College of Musical Arts students.

We encourage you to come early and stay late, as heavy traffic is expected along I-75. Please note that the anticipated crowd size may make cellular and wi-fi service unreliable.

You can take photos, but you need a protective filter for your cell phone and/or camera lens. If the sun is too bright for your eyes, it is too bright for your cell phone and camera lenses. Taking direct photos of the eclipse without using a protective filter during the partial phases before and after the total solar eclipse can damage your camera and/or cell phone.

Yes, the stadium is accessible for individuals with disabilities. Also, we will have several LightSound devices for the blind and low vision community, as well as others, to experience the eclipse through sonification.

If you need special services, assistance or appropriate modifications to fully participate in this event, please contact Accessibility Services at access@bgsu.edu or 419-372-8495. Please notify us prior to the event.

There are no bag restrictions at the stadium for the Total Solar Eclipse Watch Party. 

Solar eclipse glasses can't be recycled because they are a mix of cardboard and plastic, but they can be reused! There will be collection bins at the exit gates to drop off your used solar eclipse glasses. We are collecting them and then sending them on to Chile and Argentina for use at their upcoming eclipses.  

BGSU is not offering official tours on the day of the eclipse. We encourage attendees to explore the BGSU campus using the self-guided campus tour map.

K-12 school field trips that are well-chaperoned are welcome to attend. We plan to have a bus drop-off area near the stadium and a bus parking area, as well as a section of bleachers in the stadium designated for field trip students. If you are interested in bringing a school group to the Watch Party, please contact the Department of Physics and Astronomy at physics@bgsu.edu prior to the event.

Check out the BGSU Weather Station to view the current and predicted weather conditions at Doyt L. Perry Stadium at BGSU.

If you have additional questions regarding the BGSU Total Solar Eclipse Watch Party, please contact eclipse@bgsu.edu.

Updated: 04/04/2024 10:25AM