A stray cloud at the wrong moment can ruin months and even years of eclipse planning.
A total solar eclipse is a very precise phenomenon. For hundreds of years into the future, astronomers can predict exactly what time an eclipse will occur, down to the tenth of a second, and exactly where the Moon’s shadow will touch the surface of the Earth, down to the foot. Without this data, nobody would know when and where solar eclipses would happen. But there’s one aspect of solar eclipse planning that is woefully unpredictable. And it’s one that can impact your chances of even seeing an eclipse at all.
I’m talking, of course, about the weather. No matter what you do to plan for a successful eclipse viewing, there’s no telling what might actually happen on eclipse day. Ask any veteran eclipse chaser about their adventures and they’ll tell you that they’ve had at least one eclipse viewing spoiled by clouds or bad weather. Indeed, with the period of totality lasting, at most, no more than a few minutes, even a stray cloud at the wrong moment can ruin months and even years of planning.
Fortunately, there are steps you can take to at least mitigate this risk. The first step is to plan your eclipse trip well in advance, researching the regions and areas where the weather experts say the best chances for cloud-free skies will be during the time of year when the eclipse will take place. For the April 8 total solar eclipse, meteorologists believe the path of totality in Texas offers the best day-of weather prospects in the U.S. Locating yourself in Texas, or somewhere else along the path of totality with favorable weather odds, is step one. But positioning yourself where the weather should be good is an obvious strategy.
Beyond that, the most important thing you can do to prevent major disappointment on April 8 is to remain vigilant and plan to stay mobile. If you arrive at your eclipse viewing destination a couple of days before the big day, you can begin monitoring short-term weather forecasts for the region. If the chances for cloud-free skies on the day and at the time of the eclipse don’t look good, then it’s time to initiate Plan B and move to another location.
Fortunately, Plan B isn’t as hard as you might think. During the historic total solar eclipse that so many people saw on August 21, 2017, many people found clear skies only a short drive away from their original clouded-out locations. Switching locations at the figurative last minute doesn’t have to be as drastic as jumping on a plane and changing hotels. It can be as easy as hopping in a car and driving a couple of hours away from the clouds.
Here’s my personal story. In 2017, I made plans far in advance to view the total solar eclipse in Charleston, South Carolina. True, Charleston didn’t promise the best weather odds for August 21. Most weather experts agreed that certain parts of the western U.S. offered the best chances for cloudless skies during that time of the year. Why did I choose Charleston? Some eclipse chasers will try to convince you that you must locate yourself exactly where the weather odds are best. Of course, there’s certainly nothing wrong with doing that, but many people will want to factor other considerations into their trip planning. For me, I chose Charleston because it was closer to where I live and, frankly, it’s just a nice city to visit. Weather prospects are always an important factor to consider when planning an eclipse trip, but for most people there are many other variables to evaluate too.
Unfortunately, things didn’t work out in Charleston. On eclipse day, the storm clouds started rolling in and the chances for a successful viewing decreased dramatically. But since I was monitoring short-term weather forecasts for the region and since I planned on staying mobile (I didn’t fly to Charleston; I drove there), that morning I was able to drive about 100 miles northwest to the Columbia, South Carolina, area where the skies were forecast to be clear at the time of totality. As a result, I was able to view the eclipse in beautiful and virtually cloud-free skies.
The majesty of a total solar eclipse (in cloud-free skies).
Granted, staying mobile might not be possible or even desirable for everybody. In that case, it will still get dark if clouds obscure an eclipse, so that’s at least something. But die-hard eclipse chasers know they need to remain vigilant and be prepared to move quickly to another location if necessary. For many people, the extra planning and effort is worth it. They know it means the difference between fully experiencing the majesty of a total solar eclipse or merely settling for the darkness of a cloudy day.
Visit NationalEclipse.com for more about eclipses, including information on the April 8, 2024, total solar eclipse.
An annular solar eclipse as seen through a camera using a safe solar filter.
We’re now less than one month away from the next solar eclipse in America. On October 14, 2023, an annular, or “ring of fire,” solar eclipse will cross over eight U.S. states. This eclipse can serve as a “dry run” of sorts for the highly anticipated total solar eclipse that will occur less than six months later on April 8, 2024. But what exactly is an annular solar eclipse and how is it different from a total solar eclipse?
An annular solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes directly between the Earth and the Sun but the Moon is too far away from the Earth to completely obscure the Sun. This happens because the Moon’s distance from the Earth varies during its monthly elliptical orbit around our planet. Sometimes it’s closer to the Earth in its orbit and sometimes it’s farther away. If a solar eclipse happens to occur when the Moon is at or near its farthest point from the Earth, called apogee, we get an annular solar eclipse instead of a total solar eclipse.
Unlike during a total solar eclipse, when the Moon obscures the entire bright surface of the Sun, the outer edge of the solar disc remains visible during an annular solar eclipse. Instead of the “totality” of a total solar eclipse, when the day turns dark and only the pearlescent outer atmosphere of the Sun remains visible, an annular solar eclipse results in what looks like a “ring of fire” in the sky.
In fact, that’s where this type of eclipse gets its name. Although some people mistakenly refer to an annular solar eclipse as an annual solar eclipse, the correct word annular is derived from the Latin word anulus or annulus, meaning “ring.”
If you think about it, an annular solar eclipse should rightfully be a total solar eclipse. The alignment of Sun-Moon-Earth is perfect. The only problem is that the Moon doesn’t want to fully cooperate and is too far away to completely cover the Sun from our vantage point on Earth. Statistically, annular solar eclipses occur just about as frequently as total solar eclipses, give or take. If not for the fact that the Moon’s orbit around the Earth is elliptical, we Earthlings would enjoy twice as many total solar eclipses as we actually do.
Because the Moon never entirely covers the Sun during an annular solar eclipse, you must use special eclipse safety glasses or viewers at all times. Unlike during a total solar eclipse, when it’s safe to remove your eclipse glasses during the very brief period of “totality” when the Sun is 100 percent blocked by the Moon, there is never a time during an annular solar eclipse when it’s safe to look with unprotected eyes.
As is the case with a total solar eclipse, which traces a “path of totality” across the Earth, an annular solar eclipse has a path too. We call it a “path of annularity.” In the same way that you need to be inside the path of totality to see totality during a total solar eclipse, you need to be inside the path of annularity to see annularity during an annular solar eclipse. If you’re outside the path of annularity, the Moon won’t line up perfectly with the Sun and you won’t see the perfect “ring of fire” in the sky.
The upcoming annular solar eclipse on October 14, 2023, will carve a narrow path of annularity from northwest to southeast across eight U.S. states — Oregon, California, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Texas. While the total eclipse occurring six months later on April 8, 2024, runs from Texas to Maine, this annular eclipse is more of a western affair.
The paths of the October 14, 2023, annular solar eclipse and April 8, 2024, total solar eclipse. [large image]
In fact, although nobody will ever claim that an annular solar eclipse is more impressive than a total solar eclipse, this one in particular does have the advantage of crossing over some truly stunning landscapes in the American West. On October 14, the ring of fire will be seen over a plethora of national parks and monuments, including Crater Lake National Park, Bryce Canyon National Park, Capitol Reef National Park, Canyonlands National Park, Natural Bridges National Monument, Mesa Verde National Park, and others. It also crosses over the world famous Monument Valley area along the Utah-Arizona border. In terms of its visual appeal, especially for professional photographers, this annular eclipse might actually surpass that of the total eclipse six months later.
Although they certainly don’t generate the buzz and excitement of total solar eclipses, annulars are generally considered the next best thing. And since eclipse fever is already in the air for the April 2024 total, the October 2023 annular will definitely garner more enthusiasm than usual. Just remember that an annular solar eclipse will never come anywhere near the splendor and magnificence of a total solar eclipse. If you live in the path of annularity or you’re planning a trip there for October 14, don’t allow the lesser experience of an annular eclipse to discourage you from seeing the total eclipse six months later. Enjoy the annular eclipse for what it is, use it to practice your eclipse-day preparations, and then get ready six months later to really have your mind blown.
Visit NationalEclipse.com for more about eclipses, including information on the October 14, 2023, annular solar eclipse and April 8, 2024, total solar eclipse.
In just a few days, the total solar eclipse of April 8, 2024, will be exactly three years away. That’s still a long time, but that day suddenly now seems within reach. Those who saw the historic 2017 total solar eclipse in America knew they would have to endure an agonizing seven-year wait for totality to return to the United States. But now, with only three years to go, we’re more than halfway to the finish line.
If you thought the 2017 eclipse was something special, get ready for a real treat in 2024. With eclipse fever once again heating up, it seems like a good time to highlight some of the reasons why the 2024 eclipse shouldn’t be missed. And why 2024 promises to be even more spectacular than 2017.
REASON #1—THE PATH OF TOTALITY CROSSES OVER MORE MAJOR CITIES
The 2017 path of totality—the narrow strip of land within which a total solar eclipse is “total”—crossed the United States from west to east, starting in Oregon and ending in South Carolina. Although it did cross over several major cities, including Kansas City, St. Louis, Nashville, and Charleston, much of the cross-country path consisted of inaccessible wilderness in the American West, sparsely populated prairies in the Great Plains, and remote mountain areas in the East. Still, millions of Americans and visitors from around the world found a suitable viewing site.
The 2024 eclipse isn’t a coast-to-coast event. But that’s a good thing. Instead of crossing over all of that difficult-to-access terrain across the width of the country, the 2024 path of totality races from southwest to northeast, entering the country in Texas and exiting in Maine. In the process, it crosses a plethora of major American cities and population centers in Texas and up through the “Rust Belt” of America.
The paths of the 2017 and 2024 eclipses. [large image]
Along its roughly 2,000-mile trek across the country, the 2024 path of totality crosses over San Antonio, Austin, Dallas, Indianapolis, Cleveland, Buffalo, and many other large northern cities and state capitals. At the same time, the path also comes tantalizingly close to a profusion of other major cities from which the path can easily be reached by car—Houston, Oklahoma City, Memphis, St. Louis, Louisville, Cincinnati, Columbus, Detroit, Pittsburgh.
The fact that the 2024 eclipse crosses over or comes close to more major cities than in 2017 means that more people than ever will have a chance to experience nature’s greatest show. The eclipse will happen, literally, in the backyards of millions of Americans. And millions more who live outside the path of totality can easily drive into it on eclipse day or take advantage of the wealth of lodging options offered by the cities located inside the totality zone. On April 8, 2024, this eclipse will supplant the 2017 eclipse as the most widely viewed in human history.
REASON #2—THE DURATION OF TOTALITY IS ALMOST TWO MINUTES LONGER
For a total solar eclipse, the “duration of totality” is the amount of time during which the Sun is totally eclipsed by the Moon. This total phase can only happen inside the narrow path of totality, with the longest durations occurring along the centerline of the path. In addition, along every eclipse path centerline is a single “point of greatest duration” where the duration of totality is longer than anywhere else along the path for that eclipse. Simply put, totality is the main attraction during a total solar eclipse, and the duration of totality dictates for how long you’ll enjoy the show.
“Totality” during a total solar eclipse.
In 2017, the point of greatest duration was located in Southern Illinois. At that singular spot along the centerline, the Sun went dark for exactly 2 minutes and 40 seconds. In terms of duration, this was considered an average total solar eclipse. As opposed to an eclipse measured in mere seconds, it offered enough time for spectators to observe totality in detail, but it didn’t come anywhere close to the theoretical maximum duration of totality for a total solar eclipse on Earth: 7 minutes and 30 seconds.
It’s a far different story in 2024. On April 8, the longest duration of totality will clock in at a whopping 4 minutes and 28 seconds—almost two minutes longer than in 2017! This time, the point of greatest duration will be located in Mexico. But even hundreds of miles north of the border, the duration of totality along the centerline will only be a few seconds short of the eclipse maximum in Mexico. Therefore, if you want the longest durations of totality in the U.S., Texas is the place to be, with the duration gradually decreasing along the centerline as the path travels up through the nation. By the time the path enters Maine, the duration of totality will have decreased to about 3 minutes and 28 seconds on the centerline. But even in Maine, totality will last almost a minute longer than anywhere in 2017.
A four-minute eclipse is special. They don’t happen often. In fact, the 2024 eclipse marks the first time a four-minute eclipse will occur over what constitutes the present-day contiguous U.S. since 1806. And this time, by sheer luck, it happens along a path of totality that’s easily accessible by millions of Americans.
REASON #3—THE FEAR OF MISSING OUT
If the 2017 total solar eclipse was the most widely viewed eclipse in human history, the 2024 eclipse will be the most anticipated. After experiencing the shock and awe of a total solar eclipse for the first time in 2017, millions of Americans declared their intention to see another one. And they told their friends and families about it. If cities and towns along the path of totality were packed in 2017, they’ll be absolutely bursting in 2024.
This is the third reason why the 2024 eclipse will outshine the 2017 eclipse. People will not want to miss it. This time around, the eclipse won’t be considered a novelty, an interesting event that might be worth checking out. After you’ve seen a total solar eclipse, you must see another one. And you’ll encourage everyone you know to see one too. The buzz and hype preceding this eclipse will be unprecedented. What’s more, this will be the last total solar eclipse visible from the lower 48 states for 20 years. If you missed the 2017 eclipse, you knew there would be another opportunity in seven short years. If you don’t see the 2024 eclipse, you’re out of luck in America until 2044.
Any veteran eclipse chaser will tell you that part of the fun is in the excitement that surrounds an upcoming eclipse. In the days leading up to a total solar eclipse, there’s a festival atmosphere all along the path of totality. In small towns and large cities, eclipse-related events and activities are planned for both locals and visitors. On eclipse day itself, viewing parties of all shapes and sizes pop up all over the place—at science museums, in town squares, at wineries and breweries, during sporting events, even on boats and planes…
The 2024 eclipse already promises to be extra special. With a path of totality that crosses over or comes close to more major cities and with a maximum duration of totality that’s almost two minutes longer than in 2017, it will be the must-see attraction of the year. When you combine that with the FOMO factor and the influx of eclipse tourists it will generate and all of the hoopla they will bring with them, the 2024 eclipse will be a celebration for the ages.
AND NOW FOR SOME BAD NEWS…
In most ways, the 2024 eclipse will surpass the 2017 experience. But there’s one aspect of the 2024 event that falls short by comparison. In 2017, the eclipse occurred on August 21, in the middle of summer. Setting aside the potential threat of summertime storms, the weather was warm, people were enjoying summer vacations, and the risk of weather-related travel delays were minimal.
The 2024 eclipse occurs in April—and in the beginning of the month to boot. If a spring thaw doesn’t come early, many northern cities may still be experiencing chilly temperatures on April 8 and snow is still a possibility. The 2024 eclipse traces a path that takes it across Lake Erie and Lake Ontario. Under ideal conditions, these lakes would be the perfect place for an eclipse viewing, either on or off the water. In early April, however, both air and water temperatures will be frigid. In New York, the Adirondack Mountains promise to be one of the most scenic places to see an eclipse, but the weather in early April is unpredictable in this part of the country. Many of the beautiful mountain lakes might still be frozen on April 8.
The northern U.S. will hope for an early spring in April 2024.
The wise eclipse chaser knows how important it is to monitor short-term weather reports in the days leading up to an eclipse. Even a single stray cloud can spoil years of planning. For the 2024 eclipse, this vigilance is even more critical, especially in the North. Keep close tabs on weather forecasts for your planned viewing location and remain mobile if you can. In 2017, many people found clear skies just a short drive away from their original clouded-out locations.
BUT ON THE BRIGHT SIDE…
The potential for bad or unpleasant weather notwithstanding, the nature of the 2024 eclipse all but guarantees that it will, well, eclipse the excitement and majesty of the 2017 eclipse. It will be the longest total solar eclipse in America in over 200 years. It will be seen by more people and attract more attention than any total solar eclipse in world history. Already, excitement is building. All along the path of totality, cities and towns are starting to get ready. All over the world, people are starting to make travel plans, or at least thinking about them. It’s never too early to start planning for a total solar eclipse, especially one as monumental as this. Take a moment, right now, to mark your calendar for April 8, 2024. You’ll be glad you did.
Visit NationalEclipse.com for more about eclipses, including information on the next total solar eclipse coming to America on April 8, 2024.
The paths of the 2017 and 2024 eclipses and where they cross. [large image]
Back in 2016, we posted a short article about how the path of the 2017 total solar eclipse would be crossed by the path of the 2024 total solar eclipse, creating a zone of overlapping totality spanning parts of Missouri, Illinois, and Kentucky. Even before the 2017 eclipse occurred, locals were calling that area the “Eclipse Crossroads of America.” Conceivably, we noted, someone could plan to see two total solar eclipses from the same place in the span of only seven years.
Most people think of total solar eclipses as extremely rare events, but a total eclipse occurs somewhere in the world, on average, about once every 18 months. If you look at a map that details even a relatively short timespan, like 100 years, you’ll see path crossings all over the place. In 2016, we ended our blog post with a note that a total of eight total solar eclipses would occur in the contiguous U.S. this century and we promised to dedicate a future blog post to discussing when and where those eclipses would cross paths.
Some of those upcoming eclipses will probably occur far beyond your lifetime. Others will happen sooner. And, like with the 2017 and 2024 total solar eclipses, some of them will cross paths within relatively short time spans of each other. What follows is our long-overdue look at every one of those 21st century eclipse path meet-ups.
Total Solar Eclipse of August 21, 2017
The total solar eclipse that occurred on August 21, 2017, was noteworthy for several reasons. It was the first total solar eclipse of the 21st century in America. It was the first total solar eclipse to cross the U.S. from coast to coast in nearly 100 years. It was the first total solar eclipse exclusive to U.S. soil since before America was even founded. And, of course, its path would be crossed in only seven short years by that of another total solar eclipse, on April 8, 2024. As already mentioned, the 2017 and 2024 eclipses cross paths to create an overlapping totality zone of roughly 9,000 square miles in Missouri, Illinois, and Kentucky, with the centerlines of those two eclipse paths meeting up in southern Illinois.
But the 2024 eclipse isn’t the only one that crosses the path of the 2017 eclipse in America this century. There are two others. A total solar eclipse on March 30, 2052, will cross the path of the 2017 eclipse along the coast of South Carolina, with Charleston inside the totality overlap zone. And on May 11, 2078, 61 years after the 2017 eclipse occurred, its path will be crossed by a total solar eclipse in South Carolina and Georgia.
The 2017 eclipse is crossed by the 2024, 2052, and 2078 eclipses. [large image]
Total Solar Eclipse of April 8, 2024
The next total solar eclipse in the U.S. will occur on April 8, 2024, traveling through the country from Texas to Maine. In some ways, the 2024 eclipse promises to be even more spectacular than in 2017, crossing over or coming close to more major cities and with a maximum duration of totality that’s almost two minutes longer.
After the 2024 eclipse occurs, when it will cross the path of the 2017 eclipse, it will itself be intersected by two future eclipses. The first path crossing occurs 21 years later on August 12, 2045, in Arkansas and Oklahoma. The second occurs after a 75-year wait on September 14, 2099, in Ohio and Indiana. It wouldn’t be unreasonable to expect that a young person who witnessed totality from one of those states in 2024 could see another total solar eclipse from the exact same place as a senior citizen in the last year of the century.
The 2024 eclipse crosses the 2017 eclipse and is crossed by the 2045 and 2099 eclipses. [large image]
Total Solar Eclipse of August 23, 2044
On August 23, 2044, a total solar eclipse will sweep down from Canada into the U.S., terminating its path in Montana and North Dakota. Usually, the path of a total solar eclipse terminates at sunset. In this case, since the path terminates over land, the people of Montana and North Dakota will have a chance to see a relatively rare “sunset eclipse.” Although difficult to view unless you have a clear line of sight to the horizon, the effect can be fantastic.
Since the 2044 eclipse doesn’t cover much ground in the U.S., never making it very far beyond the U.S.-Canada border, it’s crossed in the U.S. by only one other 21st century eclipse, 55 years later on September 14, 2099. The 2044 eclipse traces a very wide path, so the path crossing itself is quite large, but most of it is located in Canada. In the U.S., a zone of overlapping totality can be found in the northeast corner of Montana and the northwest corner of North Dakota.
The 2044 eclipse is crossed by the 2099 eclipse. [large image]
Total Solar Eclipse of August 12, 2045
The total solar eclipse that will occur in the U.S. on August 12, 2045, could arguably be considered the best of the century. Like the 2017 eclipse, it’s a coast-to-coast event, beginning in California and ending in Florida. It crosses over several major cities, including Salt Lake City, Denver, Oklahoma City, Orlando, Tampa, and Miami. It even passes over Walt Disney World. But the most exciting aspect of the 2045 eclipse is its maximum duration of totality. At the point of greatest duration, the Sun will go dark on August 12, 2045, for a whopping six minutes and six seconds, only about 90 seconds short of the theoretical maximum for any total solar eclipse on Earth.
After the 2045 eclipse sweeps across the nation, crossing the path of the 2024 eclipse in the process, its own path will in turn be crossed by two additional total solar eclipses. The first crossing occurs just seven years later, on March 30, 2052, matching the 2017/2024 path crossing timespan for the shortest of the century. The overlap zone is located in Alabama, Georgia, and along the Florida panhandle, with Tallahassee receiving a double dose of darkness. Perhaps this region will be touted as the next “Eclipse Crossroads of America” in the years leading up to the 2045 eclipse. Later in the century, on May 11, 2078, a second path crossing occurs just northwest of the first, with Mississippi joining Alabama, Georgia, and Florida in the overlap zone.
The 2045 eclipse crosses the 2024 eclipse and is crossed by the 2052 and 2078 eclipses. [large image]
Total Solar Eclipse of March 30, 2052
On March 30, 2052, a total solar eclipse will skim parts of six southern states: Texas, Louisiana, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina. Indeed, the 2052 eclipse continues a trend that highlights the southeastern U.S. as a 21st century eclipse hotspot. No other region of the country will see more total solar eclipses over the next 100 years than the Southeast.
The 2052 eclipse crosses the paths of the 2017 and 2045 eclipses and then changes its role from crosser to crossee when, 26 years later, it’s crossed by the path of another 21st century eclipse. That path crossing occurs on May 11, 2078, at the extreme southern tip of Texas, through a narrow strip of the Mississippi River Delta in Louisiana, and over tiny slices of land in Alabama and Florida.
The 2052 eclipse crosses the 2017 and 2045 eclipses and is crossed by the 2078 eclipse. [large image]
Total Solar Eclipse of May 11, 2078
The May 11, 2078, eclipse charts a path similar to that of the 2052 eclipse. It tracks from west to east and crosses over Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Virginia. And, like the 2045 eclipse, it’s a long one, with a maximum duration of totality that clocks in at five minutes and 40 seconds.
The 2078 eclipse also happens to be the only 21st century eclipse in the U.S. that crosses or is crossed by more than three other eclipses over U.S. soil this century. When it occurs, it crosses the paths of the 2017, 2045, and 2052 eclipses. And then, 21 years later, it’s intersected by the path of a total solar eclipse on September 14, 2099. This time, the overlap is located along the coast of Virginia and North Carolina, with Norfolk and Virginia Beach inside the totality zone.
The 2078 eclipse crosses the 2017, 2045, and 2052 eclipses and is crossed by the 2099 eclipse. [large image]
Total Solar Eclipse of May 1, 2079
While in 2044 a total solar eclipse terminates its path in the U.S., resulting in a rare “sunset eclipse,” on May 1, 2079, a total solar eclipse commences its path in the U.S., offering viewers a rare “sunrise eclipse.” The path of the 2079 eclipse begins in Pennsylvania and New Jersey and travels through New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine, with its centerline running directly through Long Island and Cape Cod, before looping through Canada and Greenland and up over the North Pole.
Since it quickly leaves the U.S. after covering a relatively small area of land, the 2079 eclipse is the lone total solar eclipse of the 21st century in the U.S. that neither crosses nor is crossed by another total solar eclipse path in the U.S. during those 100 years.
The 2079 eclipse neither crosses nor is crossed by another total solar eclipse in the U.S. during the 21st century. [large image]
Total Solar Eclipse of September 14, 2099
On September 14, 2099, a total solar eclipse arcs down from Canada and races through 14 U.S. states in a southeasterly direction from Montana to North Carolina. Yet again, it’s an eclipse that breaks the five-minute mark, with a maximum duration of totality of five minutes and 18 seconds.
The 2099 eclipse crosses the paths of the 2024, 2044, and 2078 eclipses. But, of course, as the last total solar eclipse of the 21st century in America, it isn’t itself crossed by another total solar eclipse path during this 100-year period.
The 2099 eclipse crosses the 2024, 2044, and 2078 eclipses. [large image]
2023/2024 Path Crossing
One other 21st century path crossing in the U.S. deserves to be mentioned, because it’s coming up soon. On October 14, 2023, an annular solar eclipse will occur in the U.S. An annular eclipse takes place when the Moon is too far away in its orbit around the Earth to completely obscure the Sun. Instead of totality, an annular eclipse results in what looks like a “ring of fire” in the sky. Although nowhere near as impressive as a total solar eclipse, most eclipse chasers consider annulars to be the next best thing. As is the case with total eclipses, annular eclipses have paths too, and the annular solar eclipse of October 14, 2023, will chart a narrow path of annularity across eight U.S. states from Oregon to Texas.
Texas is the place where the 2023 annular solar eclipse will be crossed just six months later by the path of the 2024 total solar eclipse. If you’re so inclined, you could plan to see two solar eclipses, an annular and a total, from the exact same place in the span of only half a year. The overlap zone consists of a large diamond-shaped area in the Texas Hill Country to the west of San Antonio. The exact point where the centerlines of these two eclipses meet is near the tiny town of Vanderpool.
The paths of the 2023 annular solar eclipse and the 2024 total solar eclipse and where they will cross. [large image]
Last Words
The prevailing wisdom is that, on average, a total solar eclipse can be seen from the same place only once every 375 years. Of course, the key word here is average, and the timespan can also be a lot longer or a lot shorter. For example, there hasn’t been a total solar eclipse over present-day Cincinnati in 626 years and there won’t be another one until after the year 3000. On the other hand, as we’ve already seen, two different areas in the U.S. this century will twice experience totality during a seven-year period.
As to where eclipse paths cross, the answer is as varied as to that of when. Although solar eclipses are indeed cyclical, with similar eclipses occurring about every 18 years, no two solar eclipses are identical. The place over which two total solar eclipse paths intersect is virtually random.
However, because of the fact that eclipses do occur relatively frequently, the chances are fairly high that any one eclipse will cross or be crossed by the path of another inside a defined geographic area within a relatively short number of years. For the eight total solar eclipses in the contiguous U.S. during the 21st century, there are a total of 10 different path crossings. On average, an eclipse crosses or is crossed by 36 percent of the other eclipses, with a high of 57 percent (the 2078 eclipse) and a low of zero percent (the 2079 eclipse). Although it’s a small sample size, if we assume that the data for other continents and centuries fall somewhere within the same ballpark, then it’s safe to assert that total solar eclipse path crossings are quite common.
In the 21st century, eight total solar eclipses will occur in the contiguous U.S. resulting in 10 different path crossings. [large image]
Finally, if we increase the timespan, path crossings become a virtual riot. if you like abstract art, you might enjoy looking at a map of the United States overlaid with every total solar eclipse path over the next 1,000 years. Even only a millennium’s worth of total solar eclipse paths makes any meaningful naked eye analysis impossible.
A map of the United States overlaid with every total solar eclipse path from 2000 to 3000. [large image]
To see a time-lapse video of every total solar eclipse path over the present-day United States from 1000 to 3000, visit our YouTube channel.
Visit NationalEclipse.com for more about eclipses, including information on the next total solar eclipse coming to America on April 8, 2024.
On the night of Sunday, January 20, 2019, a total lunar eclipse will be visible from all 50 U.S. states. It’s been over three years since lunar totality has been seen across such a wide swath of the country. Of course, more recently, the U.S. witnessed a total eclipse of the solar variety, in August of 2017. People sometimes confuse the difference between solar eclipses and lunar eclipses, so with January 20 right around the corner, let’s discuss what a lunar eclipse is, what makes it special, and how it compares to a solar eclipse.
A lunar eclipse occurs when the Sun, the Earth, and the Moon are aligned and the Earth casts a shadow across the Moon that can be seen by a viewer on Earth. During a total lunar eclipse, the Sun, the Earth, and the Moon line up perfectly and the Earth’s shadow fully covers the Moon, resulting in “totality”; in a partial lunar eclipse, the Sun, the Earth, and the Moon are not perfectly aligned and the Earth’s shadow covers only part of the Moon; and during a penumbral lunar eclipse, only the faint outer edge of the Earth’s shadow falls on the Moon.
As is the case with solar eclipses, you’ll get the most thrill and bang for your astronomical buck when a lunar eclipse is total. Although certainly not as awe-inspiring and even life-changing as a total solar eclipse, a total lunar eclipse is definitely worth making an effort to see at least once.
A partial lunar eclipse is certainly interesting, as the shadow of the Earth is quite distinctive as it slowly moves across the Moon. But it’s probably not as impressive as the Sun being gobbled up by the Moon during a partial solar eclipse.
As for a penumbral lunar eclipse, don’t expect to see much. If you’re lucky, you might notice a very slight dimming of the lunar disc. If the eclipse occurs late at night, it’s probably not worth staying up for unless you’re an obsessive eclipse chaser.
Unlike during a total solar eclipse, when totality is visible from Earth only along a very narrow path, a total lunar eclipse can be seen by almost everyone on the nighttime side of the Earth. Although total lunar eclipses aren’t necessarily more common than total solar eclipses, the extremely wide viewing area means that while most people will never see a total solar eclipse in their life, almost everybody on Earth will have multiple opportunities to see a total lunar eclipse right from their own homes.
What’s more, while totality is visible along the eclipse path for just a few short minutes during a total solar eclipse, a total lunar eclipse can last for up to almost two hours. And while a solar eclipse requires special eclipse safety glasses or viewers, a lunar eclipse can be viewed safely with just the naked eye. All of these reasons make lunar eclipses much more accessible to the casual viewer than solar eclipses.
A total lunar eclipse is sometimes referred to as a “blood moon” due to the reddish tint exhibited by the Moon during totality. Although the Earth blocks all direct sunlight from striking the Moon, a small amount of indirect light reaches the Moon after passing around the edge of the Earth. After Earth’s atmosphere filters and refracts this light, scattering non-red wavelengths, it’s reflected back from the Moon to the Earth with a reddish hue. This occurs for the same reason that the sky turns red during a sunrise or sunset. The reddish tint of the Moon can be more or less noticeable depending on the amount of dust and particles in the atmosphere when an eclipse occurs. A total lunar eclipse occurring shortly after a volcanic eruption, for example, can result in a very bright red blood moon.
As mentioned, it’s not uncommon for people to confuse the difference between a solar eclipse and a lunar eclipse but the two are entirely different astronomical events. A solar eclipse is the obscuration of the Sun by the Moon; a lunar eclipse is the obscuration of the Moon by the Earth. The name of the eclipse type (solar or lunar) refers to the body being obscured. A lunar eclipse can only occur during a full Moon, when the Moon is on the opposite side of the Earth from the Sun; a solar eclipse can only occur during a new Moon, when the Earth is on the opposite side of the Moon from the Sun.
On Sunday, January 20, 2019, the partial phase of the eclipse will start at about 10:33pm ET, with totality beginning at about 11:41pm ET and lasting for a little over an hour. The eclipse timeline is the same wherever it’s viewed, so simply adjust those times for your own local time zone.
Last year, America went eclipse crazy. As the first major widespread eclipse event in the U.S. since then, this upcoming eclipse will surely generate more excitement than usual. If you’ve never seen a total lunar eclipse before (or even if you have), hope for a cloud-free sky on the night of Sunday, January 20, 2019, and treat yourself to totality.
To see a list of every lunar eclipse for the 21st century, and the U.S. states in which each will be visible, see our lunar eclipse calendar at NationalEclipse.com.
Visit NationalEclipse.com for more about eclipses, including information on the next total solar eclipse coming to America on April 8, 2024.
The paths of the last and next coast-to-coast total solar eclipses in the U.S. [large image]
If someone asked you to picture the world in the year 2116, 99 years from now, what would you see? Would you see flying cars and colonies on Mars? The future usually doesn’t turn out quite the way we imagine it might. And the world of today probably looks nothing like the Americans of 1918 pictured it. So when the Topeka State Journal published an article on June 8, 1918, about the total solar eclipse that would occur over Kansas that day, with a headline saying “Next Total Eclipse Here Will Be in 2017,” who knows what kinds of images the good folks of Kansas conjured up in their minds.
The June 8, 1918, Topeka State Journal headline about the last coast-to-coast total solar eclipse in the U.S.
The Topeka State Journal might have been the one and only newspaper to mention “2017” in a headline that day and NationalEclipse.com has been sharing it online as an example that illustrates that the people who saw the last coast-to-coast total solar eclipse in the U.S. might have been thinking about us in the distant future, at least abstractly. It’s an intriguing concept and we thought it would be fun to try to find other mentions of the year 2017 in the contemporary newspaper articles that reported on the 1918 eclipse. There aren’t many, but the few we found are interesting.
But before we take a look at some of those articles, one note of caution. Many of the newspaper stories about past eclipses note how observers used “smoked glass” to view an eclipse. Fortunately, we know a lot more about eye safety today than we did 100 years ago. And we have the technology available to manufacture materials that we know will block 100 percent of the Sun’s harmful infrared and ultraviolet light and all but a tiny fraction of its visible light, allowing us to safely observe an eclipse without damaging our eyes. Always use special eclipse safety glasses when any part of the Sun’s disc is showing and never use items like “smoked glass” or anything else that hasn’t been certified safe for direct solar viewing.
Indeed, the story published by the Alliance Herald on June 13, several days after the 1918 eclipse, notes that the 92 percent partial eclipse in Alliance, Nebraska, was such a big event that observers had a difficult time keeping their neighbors from snatching away their smoked glass. But this article is especially noteworthy because the year 2017 is mentioned by a newspaper located in a town that’s within the 2017 path of totality. It’s a short article, but the Herald reports that “the event was interesting from every standpoint; this eclipse will not occur again for 99 years, the next eclipse occurring in 2017.” In fact, several more total eclipses would be visible in the U.S. during the intervening years, so the newspaper must have been referring to the relatively rare coast-to-coast nature of the 1918 and 2017 eclipses. We wonder if the editors knew that the path of totality would cross right over their own town in 2017.
An article from the Alliance Herald on June 13, 1918. Note that it’s never safe to use homemade items such as “smoked glass” to view an eclipse.
The short blurb about the 1918 eclipse printed on June 14 by the Holt County Sentinel of Oregon, Missouri, reminds us that there was a world war raging in Europe when the eclipse passed overhead in the U.S. Apparently nobody noticed the incorrect date reference, May 8 instead of June 8, before going to print and again we see that observers were using unsafe “smoked glass” to view the 88 percent partial eclipse at their location. Oregon, Missouri, is also within the path of the 2017 eclipse and again we wonder if the locals were aware of this. We also wonder if the newspaper was being playful or if someone just didn’t do the math when they suggested that “those who did not see the eclipse will have another opportunity in the year 2017.”
The Holt County Sentinel, June 14, 1918.
The Arizona Republican published an article on May 30 previewing the 73 percent partial eclipse expected in Phoenix, commenting on the rarity of the coast-to-coast path by saying that “not for 99 years—until 2017—will a similar opportunity come to the United States.” The paper also roughly estimates that it will be an additional 360 years before another total solar eclipse will cross over the states along the 1918 path of totality, apparently not realizing that parts of Oregon, Idaho, Wyoming, and Kansas would all be within the path of the 2017 eclipse.
The Arizona Republican, May 30, 1918.The Arizona Republican printed a nice map of the 1918 path of totality.
Back east, the New York Sun published reports from the path of totality as well as a local account of the 60 percent partial eclipse in the Big Apple. Not only does the Sun take note of the 2017 eclipse—even mentioning August!—but the paper also cites some of the other upcoming total eclipses in the U.S., in 1923, 1925, 1970, and 1979.
The New York Sun mentioned the August 2017 eclipse in its June 9, 1918, edition.Also mentioned by the Sun in 1918 are the upcoming 1923, 1925, 1970, and 1979 eclipses in the U.S.
Finally, we noticed one other reference to the 2017 National Eclipse printed in newspapers around the country in the days following the 1918 event. In his syndicated “On the Spur of the Moment” column of funny facts and amusing anecdotes, humorist Roy K. Moulton says “the next eclipse of the sun visible hereabouts is scheduled for August 2017. Judging by the performance this month, it won’t be worth waiting for.” Perhaps Moulton was clouded out and disappointed with what he saw on June 8. Either that, or what he’s saying is somehow supposed to be funny and we’re just not getting the 1918 humor.
A reference to a disappointing eclipse viewing or a 1918 attempt at humor?
Visit NationalEclipse.com for more about eclipses, including information on the next total solar eclipse coming to America on April 8, 2024.
In our last post, Staying Safe on August 21, we called attention to the fact that the media sometimes inadvertently provides incorrect or dangerous information about how to safely view a solar eclipse. Needless to say, this is a disturbing pattern because so many people never think to verify or fact check what they read or hear in the news. Unfortunately, that blind faith can lead to irreparable eye damage on August 21.
But the media, and people in general, also make other kinds of factual mistakes and false assumptions when it comes to the subject of solar eclipses. Some of these errors are the result of long-held beliefs; others are simply due to an innocent mistake that quickly spreads and propagates online. Although these mistakes don’t necessarily put anyone in danger, they do undermine the public’s understanding and appreciation of the National Eclipse and eclipses in general. To help set the record straight, here are some of the more common eclipse-related inaccuracies and our efforts to debunk them:
The National Eclipse will be a “rare” event. The word “rare” is a relative term. Its meaning depends on the context in which it’s used. A total solar eclipse isn’t a particularly rare event when you consider that one happens someplace on Earth about once every 18 months. If you wanted to, and if you had the resources to do so, you could see dozens of them in a lifetime. What most people would consider rare is the occurrence of a total solar eclipse for any one spot on Earth. It’s been calculated that, on average, a total solar eclipse can be seen from the same place only once every 375 years, although the time span can also be much more or much less. So, will the National Eclipse be a “rare” event? Not for the planet. But maybe for your city. Let’s just try to keep things in perspective.
The National Eclipse will be the first total solar eclipse in the U.S. since 1918. This is a fallacy that’s been spreading online by way of several recent news stories. Of course, this spawns more news stories, and on and on we go. In fact, the National Eclipse on August 21 will be the sixteenth total solar eclipse visible in the U.S. since 1918, ten of which occurred in the contiguous 48 states. So, where does the confusion come from and what does 1918 have to do with anything? 1918 was the last time a total solar eclipse crossed the U.S. from coast to coast, which the National Eclipse will also do. This has led to a lot of talk about the 1918 eclipse in particular, and some people have jumped to the conclusion that that eclipse was also the last one to occur in the U.S. Not so. Just ask those who witnessed totality in the Hawaiian Islands in 1991 or in the Pacific Northwest in 1979.
There were 12 total solar eclipses in the contiguous U.S. during the 20th century. [large image]
The National Eclipse will be the first total solar eclipse exclusive to the U.S. since 1776. Okay, maybe we’re splitting hairs with this one, because this statement is essentially correct. But the way it’s often worded can be misleading. One of the most exciting things about the National Eclipse, and one of the reasons why it’s called the National Eclipse in the first place, is the fact that it will be the first eclipse with a path of totality that doesn’t touch any other country other than the United States since before there even was a United States. You have to look all the way back to 1257 to find another total eclipse that was exclusive to present-day U.S. soil. But there was no total solar eclipse in the U.S. in 1776. There wasn’t one anywhere in the world that year. A better way to word this claim would be to say that the National Eclipse will be the first total solar eclipse exclusive to the U.S. since before the nation’s founding in 1776. Come to think of it, if there had been a total eclipse over the 13 original colonies in 1776, the symbolism it might have suggested to the patriots could very well have become part of the American historical tradition.
City X will be the best place to view the National Eclipse. This is a claim that you’ll see quite often. And—no surprise—it’s usually made by a local newspaper or tourist bureau. There is no single “best” or “greatest” place to see the National Eclipse. Every eclipse chaser needs to evaluate what’s most important to them and then decide where their own personal “best” place is. If you need to travel to see the eclipse, should you choose the closest location to your home or should you visit another area with other attractions that you’ve always wanted to see? Or maybe better weather odds in another part of the country is more important to you. And, of course, you need to factor in your distance to the centerline to ensure a long duration of totality. Should you locate yourself directly on the centerline and squeeze every second of totality out of your experience? Some cities and towns on the centerline would like you to do that. But maybe it makes more sense to sacrifice a few seconds of totality in another place that has better weather prospects in late August. These are the difficult questions that you need to ask yourself. When you’ve come up with an answer, you’ll have found your “best” place to view the National Eclipse.
The National Eclipse will be a lunar eclipse. We’re not going to spend a lot of time on this one because it’s so annoyingly untrue and the result of journalistic sloppiness more than anything else. But you will see this statement from time to time, sometimes in the headlines of newspaper articles. Usually, the reporter correctly states in the body of the article that the eclipse will be solar but someone else at the newspaper is responsible for writing headlines and they don’t have a clue that a lunar eclipse and a solar eclipse are two completely different things. The terms are not interchangeable in the least. Hopefully, this misconception will peter out as we get closer to August 21.
The National Eclipse will be a “sunrise” eclipse. This is a fallacy that’s been making the rounds recently. Apparently, somebody noticed that the National Eclipse will begin at sunrise. But, guess what? With very few exceptions, every solar eclipse begins at sunrise! And every solar eclipse also ends at sunset. Sometimes, by mere chance, an eclipse will begin over land instead of over water, which means that people in that location are able to see an “eclipse sunrise.” But the path of totality doesn’t start over land on August 21. It starts at sunrise in the North Pacific Ocean about halfway between Hawaii and Alaska’s Aleutian Islands. By the time it makes landfall in Oregon, the local time will be 9:04am with the Sun already about 27 degrees above the horizon. Nobody within the path of totality will see a “sunrise” eclipse on August 21.
Being close to the path of totality is close enough. For a total solar eclipse, the path of totality is the narrow track across the Earth along which the darkest part of the Moon’s shadow, the umbra, will travel. On either side of the path’s width an eclipse is only partial, with the percentage of obscuration incrementally decreasing the farther you get from the edge of the path. Some people make the false assumption that being close to this path is close enough. After all, a 98 or 99 percent partial eclipse sounds impressive. But the difference between a total eclipse and even a 99.9 percent partial eclipse is like the difference between day and night, literally. It’s like turning a light on and off. There’s no in-between. Either you’re in the path of totality where the eclipse will be total or you’re not. If you’re outside the path by even a mile, you’ll miss out on all of the phenomena associated with a total solar eclipse, like the full darkening of the sky, the appearance of the solar corona, and the 360-degree “sunset.” True, you’ll still experience some subtle eclipse effects even a few hundred miles outside the path of totality. Depending on how deep the partial eclipse is in your location, you might notice a change in the character of the sunlight and the landscape might take on a slightly unusual look. But this pales in comparison to what you’ll witness inside the umbral path. Trust us. When it comes to eclipses, close isn’t close enough.
The world will end on August 21.Sigh. Does this really need to be debunked? Inevitably, though, you’ve probably already started seeing doomsday claims associated with August 21. If the world does indeed end on August 21, you can tell us “we told you so.” But there’s no basis whatsoever for these claims. The world doesn’t end every time the Sun goes behind a cloud. Neither are there earthquakes or volcanoes. There’s really nothing “special” about a solar eclipse in terms of the effect it has on the Earth. Yes, the temperature decreases during totality and scientists have discovered other subtle phenomena. But there’s nothing that’s, literally, earthshaking. From a biblical or spiritual perspective, we need to remember that total eclipses happen all the time, relatively speaking. There was one last year. There was one in the U.S. in 1979 and 1991. As many as five solar eclipses can occur each year. The purpose here isn’t to ridicule any person or any group who makes these assertions, but some people are legitimately afraid when they hear these claims. We don’t want the National Eclipse to be the cause of fear. We want people to look forward to this event and celebrate it when it arrives. It will be an amazing opportunity to witness the mechanics of our solar system and an awe-inspiring celestial phenomenon that most people will never get the chance to experience.
Visit NationalEclipse.com for more about eclipses, including information on the next total solar eclipse coming to America on April 8, 2024.
You’ll need a pair of special eclipse safety glasses to stay safe on August 21.
The most important thing to consider when planning for a solar eclipse isn’t your location within the path of totality, your distance to the centerline, or even the weather. It’s eye safety. If you attempt to view an eclipse incorrectly, there’s a really great chance your souvenir of the eclipse will be irreparable eye damage or even blindness. We all want to make lifelong memories on August 21, but those memories should be indelibly imprinted onto our minds, not our retinas.
Unfortunately, the media sometimes neglects to mention the importance of solar eclipse eye safety and occasionally they even unwittingly provide incorrect or dangerous information. Recently, one of the largest media companies in the world suggested that people should use sunglasses to view the eclipse on August 21. Of course, ordinary or polorized sunglasses are never safe to use for eclipse viewing. Another media outlet encouraged readers to get their binoculars ready for the eclipse and never mentioned the fact that optical devices like cameras, binoculars, and telescopes need specially designed solar filters that fit snugly on the front end (the Sun side) of the device. Attempting to view an eclipse with an unfiltered optical device is like holding a magnifying glass to your eye while focusing direct sunlight through the lens. No, you definitely don’t want to do that.
Our hope is that as we get closer to August 21, the media will take the subject of eye safety more seriously and communicate the proper and safe way to view a solar eclipse as carefully and unambiguously as possible. Too many eyes are at risk not to get this information right every single time. In the meantime, here’s what you need to know to stay safe on August 21:
Use Eclipse Safety Glasses or Viewers
You must use special eclipse safety glasses or viewers to view a partial eclipse, an annular eclipse, and the partial phases of a total eclipse. (For the record, total eclipses are partial most of the time within the path of totality and partial all of the time outside the path of totality.) Although it may be tempting to look directly at an eclipse with unprotected eyes when so much of the Sun is obscured, the small amount of light emitted during even a 99.9 percent partial eclipse is still dangerous. The only time it’s safe to look at a total eclipse without proper eye protection is during the very brief period of “totality” when the Sun is 100 percent blocked by the Moon. If you’re not located within the narrow path of totality where the eclipse will become total for a very brief period of time, there is never a time when it’s safe to look with unprotected eyes.
Be Wary of Phony Glasses
Make sure that your eclipse safety glasses or viewers are certified as meeting ISO standards for safe solar viewing. The current standard for safe solar viewing is ISO 12312-2; your eclipse glasses or viewers should have this designation printed on them. Take care to purchase your glasses or viewers from a reputable seller and be wary of products that claim to be safe but aren’t. Be very careful and don’t use any product unless claims of safety can be verified.
Update: For the 2017 eclipse, there were many reports of unsafe eclipse glasses being distributed as well as reports of counterfeit eclipse glasses printed with names of reputable manufacturers, including many that were sold on Amazon. Leading up to the 2017 eclipse, the American Astronomical Society provided guidance on how to tell if your eclipse glasses or viewers are safe.
Before using your glasses or viewers, make sure that they are not damaged in any way (lenses shouldn’t have scratches or wrinkles) and that you read all of the safety instructions that came with them. Children should always be supervised by a responsible adult when using eclipse safety glasses or viewers.
Don’t Improvise
Unless a product has been specifically designed for safe solar viewing and has been certified as meeting international standards for such products, it’s best to assume that a device, method, or instrument is unsafe. Don’t risk it! Items such as regular or polarized sunglasses, smoked glass, exposed film, medical x-rays, homemade filters, and many others are all unsafe. You can use welder’s glass to view an eclipse, but it must be #14 welder’s glass; any rating below #14 is not safe. It’s also safe to view an eclipse using indirect methods, such as projecting an image of the eclipsed Sun onto a white screen. Search online for “pinhole projector” and follow the instructions provided by a trusted organization like NASA to make your own.
Protect Your Eyes Before and After Totality
A total solar eclipse will be “total” for a very short period of time and only in the narrow path of totality. If you’re located in the path of totality, don’t remove your eclipse glasses until the very last bit of the Sun is gone and you can no longer see any light through them. Again, it’s only safe to look with unprotected eyes when the Sun is 100 percent blocked by the Moon and only the soft wisps of the solar corona are visible. Once totality begins, it’s important to know precisely when totality will be ending in your exact location so that you can once again put on your eclipse glasses before the first brightness of the exposed Sun is revealed.
The definitive source to determine the exact start time, end time, and duration of totality for any location is NASA’s interactive Google eclipse maps. (Update: Since 2017, NASA’s maps no longer work. Instead, use the interactive Google eclipse maps developed by Xavier Jubier.) You should also allow for a very generous margin of error to ensure that you are no longer looking with unprotected eyes when totality ends (and keep in mind that your clock or watch may not be in sync with astronomical time!). Additionally, NASA advises that you should pay careful attention to the edge of the Moon opposite of where the Sun last appeared. When you start to notice a very slight crescent-shaped brightening, you’ll know that totality is coming to an end. This is your signal to look away or put your eclipse glasses back on before the first flash of exposed sunlight. As mentioned earlier, children should always be supervised by an adult who fully and clearly understands safe eclipse viewing procedures.
Optical Devices Must Have Solar Filters
As already noted, attempting to view an eclipse using cameras, binoculars, telescopes, or other optical devices without proper solar filters is extremely hazardous and can permanently damage the eyes in an instant. These devices need specially designed solar filters that fit snugly on the front end (the Sun side) of the device. Never attempt to view an eclipse through an optical device using eclipse glasses or any type of filter that attaches to the viewing side (as opposed to the Sun side) of the instrument; the focused light will destroy the filter and enter and damage your eyes. Remember the magnifying glass analogy? Since viewing or photographing a solar eclipse with an optical device requires specialized equipment and knowledge, your best bet is to consult with a qualified astronomer or just enjoy the eclipse with your own eyes using the safe eclipse viewing procedures already mentioned.
For more information on how to safely view a solar eclipse, see the excellent pages on viewing safety by the American Astronomical Society and NASA.
Visit NationalEclipse.com for more about eclipses, including information on the next total solar eclipse coming to America on April 8, 2024.
Ten unique places to view the National Eclipse on August 21, 2017. [large image]
With less than a year to go until the National Eclipse touches down in the U.S., the obligatory top ten lists of the “best” or “greatest” viewing sites are starting to pop up in the media and around the web. Usually, these lists focus on places with the most promising weather prospects, the longest durations of totality, or the most interesting local attractions. To be sure, these lists are valuable if you’re still trying to decide where to go to see the eclipse. But for our list, we decided to resist the temptation to mimic what everyone else is doing and instead add some levity to the decisionmaking process by offering our picks for the most quirky, outrageous, or just plain unique places to view the National Eclipse. On August 21, 2017, everyone should seek out clear skies and long durations, but if you want a good story too, this list is for you. Here are our picks, presented from west to east along the path of totality:
1. Fishing Rock — Lincoln Beach, Oregon. On the coast of Oregon there’s an unincorporated community called Lincoln Beach, population about 2,000. On the south end of the beach for which the town is named is a spit of land called Fishing Rock that juts out a few hundred feet into the Pacific Ocean. Apparently, you can walk out onto Fishing Rock. And if you happen to be standing there at exactly 10:15am PT on August 21, 2017, you’ll be among the first people in the U.S. to see the National Eclipse and you’ll be the very first person to see the centerline, where the eclipse lasts the longest, make landfall.
Of course, you can’t actually see an imaginary centerline, but that’s where it will first touch U.S. soil, just off the southern edge of Fishing Rock. Plus, your elevated vantage point might give you a really good glimpse of the Moon’s shadow as it races toward you across the ocean in the moments before totality. It’s unclear how early you’ll need to arrive in order to secure a spot on that narrow rock. If you arrive too early, when it’s still dark, you’ll be risking life and limb on the cliffs. The other risk is that morning clouds or fog along the Oregon coast might spoil the event for observers. But if you manage to safely find a spot and the weather cooperates, Fishing Rock definitely qualifies as a unique place to view the National Eclipse.
The eclipse will begin at Fishing Rock at approximately 9:04am PT with totality starting at about 10:15am PT and lasting for around one minute and 59 seconds.
2. Volcanoes EclipseFest — Keizer, Oregon. All around the U.S., minor league baseball teams are known for their goofy promotions and silly gimmicks. Even some of the team names are absurd: the El Paso Chihuahuas, the Lansing Lugnuts, the Montgomery Biscuits. But the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes have come up with one of the zaniest (and best!) minor league baseball promotions of all time.
The Volcanoes, a Class A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants, will host a three-game brewfest on August 18, 19, and 20. But that’s not the best part. The celebration will culminate with a morning game on August 21 that will feature the first ever “eclipse delay” in baseball history. As the moment of totality approaches, the game will be paused, fans and players alike will don their Volcanoes-branded eclipse glasses, and everyone in the ballpark will witness the sight of a lifetime. After totality, the game will resume—no tarp roll-up necessary. If you’re a baseball fan, how can you resist?
The eclipse will begin at Volcanoes Stadium at approximately 9:05am PT with totality starting at about 10:17am PT and lasting for around one minute and 49 seconds.
3. 1918 Viewing Site — Baker City, Oregon. Before 2017, the last time a total solar eclipse swept across the U.S. from coast to coast was 1918. That eclipse, too, entered the U.S. in the Pacific Northwest. There aren’t too many places where the paths of both the 1918 and 2017 eclipses overlap before they diverge, but Baker City, Oregon, is one of them and that’s where a U.S. Naval Observatory team stationed itself to observe the 1918 eclipse. Led by astronomer John C. Hammond, the team included eclipse expert Samuel Alfred Mitchell and artist Howard Russell Butler, whose painting of the eclipse was important in a day before reliable color photography.
According to an expedition report written by Hammond, “an ideal site was obtained at the fair grounds which were located about a mile from the center of the city.” Maybe someone in Baker City can tell you if the original fairgrounds still exist. If so, and if you’re an astronomy history buff and think this might be cool, maybe you can view the eclipse from that exact spot and follow in the footsteps of the men from 1918.
The eclipse will begin at downtown Baker City at approximately 9:09am PT with totality starting at about 10:24am PT and lasting for around one minute and 34 seconds.
4. Craters of the Moon National Monument — Butte County, Idaho. On May 2, 1924, President Calvin Coolidge signed a proclamation establishing Craters of the Moon National Monument. Today, it encompasses over 1,000 square miles of volcanic features and lava fields.
Craters of the Moon National Monument. [Image by National Park Service]
Certainly, there are lots of scenic places and stunning vistas along the path of totality, especially in the western U.S., from which you can view the National Eclipse. But where else can you bask in the shadow of the Moon in a place that purportedly looks like the Moon? Granted, most of Craters of the Moon National Monument lies outside the path of totality to the south. If you want to see a total eclipse, you’ll need to find an access point in the very northern reaches of the preserve, just below the town of Arco, Idaho. And even then, you might only get a little more than a minute of totality. But the landscape will be otherworldly.
The eclipse will begin at the northern tip of Craters of the Moon National Monument at approximately 10:13am MT with totality starting at about 11:31am MT and lasting for around one minute and 16 seconds.
5. Carhenge — Alliance, Nebraska. If you’ll be in western Nebraska on August 21, 2017, consider viewing the National Eclipse from Carhenge. It’s one of several viewing sites designated by the city of Alliance and it’s arguably one of the most unique along the path.
If you can imagine Stonehenge, but with automobiles instead of stone monoliths, that’s Carhenge. Conceived by Jim Reinders in 1987 as a memorial to his father who lived on the site, it was constructed with 39 vintage American-made cars. The cars, painted gray to mirror Stonehenge, are arranged in a circle to closely replicate the prehistoric astronomical site in England. It may all be a bit kooky, but it’s pure Americana right in the heartland…so maybe, it’s the perfect place to view a total eclipse that will be visible only in America. Plus, it’s virtually right on the centerline.
The eclipse will begin at Carhenge at approximately 10:27am MT with totality starting at about 11:49am MT and lasting for around two minutes and 29 seconds.
6. The Iowa Triangle — Fremont County, Iowa. If you’ve already done some research on where to view the National Eclipse, you’ve probably at least memorized the 12 states through which the path of totality will travel, from Oregon in the west to South Carolina in the east. If so, you’re probably wondering Iowa? The eclipse doesn’t travel through Iowa. But it does. As the path of totality exits Nebraska, the northern line of the path makes a short side trip into Fremont County, Iowa, before entering Missouri. The word “short” is really an overstatement here. It amounts to a distance of less than two miles and the resulting wedge of farmland—which we’ve dubbed the “Iowa Triangle”—is just shy of a mile square.
The National Eclipse will travel through a tiny slice of Iowa on August 21, 2017. [large image]
If you’d like to forever be known as the only person to have witnessed totality in Iowa on August 21, 2017, here’s your chance (assuming nobody else shows up). There are exactly three roads that can be used to access the Iowa Triangle: 240th Avenue, County Road J64, and 100th Street, which forms the bottom side of the triangle as it runs along the Iowa-Missouri state line. Since this eclipse path anomaly occurs at the very northern limit of the path, totality here will be very, very short. But it will make for a good story and possibly a good claim to fame.
The eclipse will begin at the intersection of 100th Street and 240th Avenue at approximately 11:38am CT with totality starting at about 1:05pm CT and lasting for around 25 seconds.
7. Eclipse Crossroads — Jackson County, Illinois. After 2017, the next total solar eclipse to occur in the U.S. will take place on April 8, 2024. Since the 2017 eclipse crosses the country from northwest to southeast and the 2024 eclipse travels through the nation from southwest to northeast, the two paths cross each other and create a zone of overlapping totality in southeastern Missouri, southern Illinois, and western Kentucky. If you stand in the same place within this totality zone on August 21, 2017, and April 8, 2024, you can tell your friends that you witnessed two total eclipses from the same spot in seven years. Pretty neat, right?
This totality zone is big, encompassing roughly 9,000 square miles. But when two eclipse paths cross each other, there can only be one unique point on Earth where both centerlines meet. For the 2017 and 2024 eclipses, that point is located near the eastern shore of Cedar Lake in Jackson County, Illinois. Of course, if you set up camp in the nearby town of Makanda, less than four miles away, nobody will dispute your claim that you saw the eclipse from the crossroads. In fact, even the largest nearby city, Carbondale, is calling itself the “eclipse crossroads of America.” What’s more, the 2017/2024 centerline crossing is coincidentally located only about ten miles from the “point of greatest duration” in 2017. If you decide to view the eclipse at or near the crossroads on August 21, you’ll also enjoy the longest total eclipse in the country.
The eclipse will begin at the centerline crossing at approximately 11:52am CT with totality starting at about 1:20pm CT and lasting for around two minutes and 40 seconds.
8. “Little Green Men” Days Festival — Kelly, Kentucky. Every year, the unincorporated community of Kelly, Kentucky, holds an event called the “Little Green Men” Days Festival. The festival commemorates a local encounter with supposed extraterrestrials, known as the Hopkinsville Goblins, that took place on August 21, 1955. Notice the date? The close encounter occurred on the exact date of the upcoming National Eclipse, 62 years before.
If the date connection isn’t enough to raise the hairs on the back of your neck, the site of the farmhouse where the encounter occurred just happens to be mere miles from the exact spot on the eclipse path where the Moon’s shadow aligns most closely with the Earth, called the “point of greatest eclipse.” Coincidence? Or are the Hopkinsville Goblins coming back on August 21, 2017? Some think they are. If you attend the “Little Green Men” Days Festival, you might just find out.
The eclipse will begin at the “Little Green Men” Days Festival at approximately 11:56am CT with totality starting at about 1:24pm CT and lasting for around two minutes and 38 seconds.
9. Clingman’s Dome — Swain County, North Carolina. At an elevation of 6,643 feet, Clingman’s Dome is the third highest point in the eastern U.S. But since those other two peaks are outside the path of totality, that makes Clingman’s Dome the place to be in the east if you want to be as high as possible on August 21, 2017. As far as eclipses go, being up high has its advantages. You might be able to see the shadow of the Moon racing toward you across the landscape at faster than the speed of sound. And, especially here in the Great Smoky Mountains, it gets you up above any trees that might block your view of the sky.
As luck would have it, Clingman’s Dome is one of the most accessible mountains in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. There’s a neat-looking observation tower at the top of the mountain that, needless to say, will be a very popular place on eclipse day. The 45-foot high concrete tower only has a 28-foot diameter platform, so space is definitely limited. Perhaps the National Park Service will make passes available via a lottery system. If not, you’ll need to show up really early.
The eclipse will begin at Clingman’s Dome at approximately 1:06pm ET with totality starting at about 2:35pm ET and lasting for around one minute and 24 seconds.
Update: Indeed, the National Park Service has made Clingman’s Dome a ticketed event site. As of April 2017, tickets are no longer available.
10. Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge — Charleston County, South Carolina. Stretching along 22 miles of coastline and consisting of 66,000 acres of salt marshes, maritime forest, and coastal waterways, Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge is where the centerline of the National Eclipse will last touch U.S. soil. Most of the refuge is either not on solid ground or only accessible by water, which offers a convenient excuse to view the eclipse by boat if you’d like to be one of the very last people in the U.S. to wave goodbye to the shadow of the Moon as it heads out into the Atlantic Ocean before concluding its journey off the coast of Africa.
A couple of small fishing towns, like Awendaw and McClellanville, are located on the mainland adjacent to the refuge. You can bet that enterprising boat owners will be renting and chartering vessels of all types and sizes on August 21. For past eclipses, especially those that have occurred mainly over open ocean, entire cruises have been organized for the benefit of eclipse chasers. Maybe a few ship captains will offer something similar. But whatever your vessel of choice—from rowboat to cruise ship—and wherever you happen to be—a few feet from the refuge or miles out at sea—being on the water as the National Eclipse exits the U.S. will unquestionably qualify as a unique eclipse experience.
The eclipse will begin at the eastern end of Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge at approximately 1:18pm ET with totality starting at about 2:46pm ET and lasting for around two minutes and 34 seconds.
Final Words
We’re not claiming that any of these viewing sites are the “best” or “greatest” places to view the National Eclipse. They may not necessarily have the most promising weather prospects or the longest durations of totality and some of them may be far off the beaten track. If you’ve never seen a total solar eclipse before, you may want to hedge your bet by selecting a site located close to the centerline in an area that offers a good possibility of favorable weather. On the other hand, if you’re a nonconformist who enjoys a good adventure, consider viewing the National Eclipse from one of these ten unique places. And even if you don’t, simply knowing about them is fun too.
Visit NationalEclipse.com for more about eclipses, including information on the next total solar eclipse coming to America on April 8, 2024.
The paths of the 2017 and 2024 eclipses and where they will cross. [large image]
It’s been said that, on average, a total solar eclipse can be seen from the same place only once every 375 years. The methodology used by whoever calculated this number is unknown and it’s debatable whether there can even be a definitive methodology for such a calculation. For instance, how many points on Earth do you use to arrive at an average number of years? But regardless of the math, there’s no denying the fact that a total solar eclipse is a relatively rare event for any given place. So, for an area to get not one, but two, total solar eclipses in just seven years is a truly remarkable occurrence!
An area spanning parts of Missouri, Illinois, and Kentucky will be the nexus of the next two total solar eclipses to occur in the U.S., on August 21, 2017, and April 8, 2024. Because the 2017 eclipse travels across the country from northwest to southeast and the 2024 eclipse makes its way through the nation from southwest to northeast, the two paths cross each other and create a zone of overlapping totality of almost 9,000 square miles, or roughly the size of New Jersey.
The totality zone where the paths of the 2017 and 2024 eclipses will cross. [large image]
Although no major American cities are located within the totality zone, a few decent-sized ones are. In Illinois, Carbondale is located in the northern quadrant of the zone and Marion is located in the eastern. In the southern quadrant there’s Paducah, Kentucky, and Cape Girardeau, Missouri. Farmington, Missouri, is located in the western quadrant. Shawnee National Forest is completely enclosed within the zone of totality and both the Mississippi and Ohio rivers run through it.
The centerline of any total solar eclipse path is where totality lasts the longest, and cities located on or near this line often promote themselves as being the very best place to view an eclipse. Of course, when two eclipse paths cross, there can only be one singular point on Earth where both centerlines meet. For the 2017 and 2024 eclipses, “X” marks the spot over Cedar Lake in Jackson County, Illinois. The closest town to this exact astronomical treasure map spot is Makanda, population about 500. The nearest city of any size is Carbondale, located about three miles to the northeast. In fact, both Makanda and Carbondale are touting themselves as the place where the two centerlines cross, with Carbondale and its Southern Illinois University partner adopting the tagline “Eclipse Crossroads of America.” We’ll just split the difference and give Jackson County the bragging rights.
The centerline crossing of the 2017 and 2024 eclipses. [large image]
In all, eight total solar eclipses will occur in the contiguous U.S. this century, resulting in many more path crossings. We’ll dedicate afuture blog post to discussing when and where those crossings will occur. In the meantime, if you’d enjoy the unique distinction of seeing two total solar eclipses in one place, start making plans to be in southeastern Missouri, southern Illinois, or western Kentucky on August 21, 2017, and mark your calendar to do the same for April 8, 2024.
Visit NationalEclipse.com for more about eclipses, including information on the next total solar eclipse coming to America on April 8, 2024.
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