The total solar eclipse may be over, but a pair of viewing glasses made by a Cayuga County woman still casts a tall shadow.
Samantha Busch, of the village of Cayuga, has created what she believes are the largest eclipse viewing glasses in New York state.
Measuring 21.5 feet and weighing 350 pounds, the metal glasses are on display at the corner of Genesee and Court streets in the village.Â
"It's been really fun to see people take photos with them," Busch told Ë®¹ûÅÉAV. "The total eclipse was a celestial party, and what's a party without some oversized accessories?"
Busch, who loves welding in her spare time, said she made the glasses "just for fun." The process took her about two weeks.
She started by researching the Guinness World Record for the largest glasses, which is a pair at American Paper Optics, of Memphis, measuring 32 feet long by 3 feet high. Instead of chasing that record, Busch decided to make glasses larger than the oversized ones commonly used by museums and municipalities to give large groups a shared viewing experience. Those measure about 8 feet long.
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Though she was confident she could make frames bigger than that, Busch also needed to make big enough lenses from the ISO 12312-2 material necessary to view solar eclipses safely. She credited her former welding teacher, Cal Manning of Haun Welding Supply in Syracuse, with helping her conceive the lenses. She credited Finger Lakes Recycling in Geneva for helping with the project as well.
Busch ended up buying four rolls of ISO 12312-2 and holding them in place with window tint material at the seams. The lenses measure 102 inches and the sides each 78 for a total of 258, or 21.5 feet.Â
With the eclipse over, Busch said the glasses will likely provide metal for future welding projects unless someone wants them — perhaps someone in the path of totality of the next total solar eclipse.
After much anticipation, the first total solar eclipse to touch Cayuga County in 99 years arrived Monday afternoon — and dressed for the occas…
Gallery: Total solar eclipse thrills viewers in Fair Haven despite clouds

Autumn Costner traveled with friends from Brooklyn to Fair Haven to watch the total solar eclipse.

Eclipse watchers pass the time while waiting for the celestial event to begin at Fair Haven Beach State Park.

Eclipse watchers pass the time while waiting for the celestial event to begin at Fair Haven Beach State Park on Monday.

Waiting for the solar eclipse on the beach at Fair Haven Beach State Park.

Amy Lavelle and her boyfriend, Ken Rogers, snap a selfie before the start of the total solar eclipse at Fair Haven Beach State Park. Both are from the Syracuse area.

Jerry Soltes, of North Hampton, Pennsylvania, tries to find the solar eclipse through cloudy skies at Fair Haven Beach State Park.

The total solar eclipse makes a brief appearance through dense cloud cover over Fair Haven Beach State Park.

Amy Lavelle and her boyfriend, Ken Rogers, watch the solar eclipse at Fair Haven Beach State Park.

Families watch the total solar eclipse on the beach at Fair Haven Beach State Park.

Eclipse watchers take in the celestial event at Fair Haven Beach State Park.

Eclipse watchers take in the celestial event at Fair Haven Beach State Park.

Eclipse watchers take in the celestial event at Fair Haven Beach State Park.

Eclipse watchers take in the celestial event at Fair Haven Beach State Park.

The total solar eclipse makes a brief appearance through dense cloud cover over Fair Haven Beach State Park on April 8.

The solar eclipse makes a brief appearance through dense cloud cover over Fair Haven Beach State Park.

The solar eclipse makes a brief appearance through dense cloud cover over Fair Haven Beach State Park.

The solar eclipse peaks through the dense cloud cover before turning day into night at Fair Haven Beach State Park.

People snap photos as the total solar eclipse turns daylight into night on the beach at Fair Haven Beach State Park.

Traffic backs up along Route 38 in Victory with travelers leaving Fair Haven State Beach Park after the total solar eclipse.

Avery Jane Atherton, 8, waits for customers at her eclipse lemonade stand in front of her home along Route 38 in Victory.

Avery Jane Atherton, 8, sells lemonade to people stuck in a traffic jam along Route 38 in Victory. Traffic was backed up for miles with travelers leaving Fair Haven Beach State Park after the total solar eclipse.