Ginger Zee stood in front of the iconic New Year’s Eve ball and said she could see 2021 in the distance as she did the weather report for Good Morning America . The chief meteorologist for the morning news series was steps away from GMA’s indoor studios located in the middle of Times Square. She stood in a place many people do not get to experience, the top of One Times Square, where the glittering ball will fall and usher in a new year.
Ginger stood with an umbrella over her head for shelter from the rainy New York City weather. She wore a gray fedora atop her blondish-brown curly tresses. She added a gray trench coat, black gloves, and knee boots. In the snap, she waited for her shot to begin as she looked up toward the sky. The candid moment was captured by Samantha Wnek, a meteorologist and weather producer for the morning show.
GMA viewers loved the hopeful essence of the snap.
“Channeling your inner Ginger Rogers, Singing in the Rain ?” wrote one follower.
“You look like Ginger Poppins,” penned a second fan.
“Are you channeling Carmen Sandiego? I hope so! You look gorgeous as always! Please take this look into 2021,” exclaimed a third Instagram user of the children’s cartoon star of a series of American educational mystery video games that spawned an edutainment franchise of the same name.
“Fantastic photo. You are looking up, hopeful. That is what this new year means to me, hopeful for good health, restored compassion in our world!” remarked a fourth follower.
One Times Square has remained a major focal point of the area due to the ball drop. It is where millions of revelers have gathered for years since the first festivities in 1907 when the ball made its maiden descent from the flagpole on the building, a tradition that has carried on for the past 113 years.
The first New Year’s Eve ball was made of iron and wood. It was just 5 feet in diameter and weighed 700 pounds. The structure was built by a man named Jacob Starr, and his company, Artkraft Strauss, lowered it each year during the annual celebration reported the official Times Square website . Today’s permanent fixture weighs nearly 6 tons and is 12 feet in diameter, according to the site. The 2,688 Waterford Crystal triangles are illuminated by 32,256 Philips Luxeon LEDs.
The Times Square celebration will be different this year as the throngs of crowds that usually descend upon the crossroads of the world will not be allowed to participate in the event due to social distancing restrictions set forth due to the coronavirus pandemic.