A solar eclipse once rallied Americans around science

Science journalist David Baron tells the story of the 1878 total eclipse of the sun, visible over the American Wild West. It drew astronomers, scientists and a famous young inventor to witness the event.
"Thomas Edison, age 31, right after he invented the phonograph and immediately before he invented the incandescent lamp, went to Wyoming to see a total eclipse," says Baron.
And so did thousands of others.
Baron's new book, "American Eclipse," makes the case that, like the landing of Apollo 11 on the moon, the eclipse of July 29, 1878, dominated newspaper headlines and inspired people in the United States to look at science differently.

 A solar eclipse once rallied Americans around science -- could it happen again?