The year 2024 promises to be an exciting one for skywatchers and astronomers. A total solar eclipse will traverse North America on April 8, 2024, providing millions of people across the continent a chance to experience day briefly turning to night as the Moon completely blocks the Sun. This will be the first total solar eclipse visible from the continental United States since August 2017.
Path of Totality Crosses 16 US States
The path of totality for the 2024 eclipse cuts diagonally across North America from the Pacific Northwest to the Gulf Coast and Atlantic Ocean. The Moon’s shadow will make landfall along the northern Oregon coast before speeding southeast across Idaho, Wyoming, Nebraska, Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia, and North and South Carolina. Parts of 16 states will experience the eerie sight of a black Sun and the solar corona bursting into view [1].
Over 12 million Americans live within the path of totality, which will average 112 miles wide. Many more millions reside a short drive away, making this eclipse likely to be heavily viewed and trafficked [2].
| State | Major Cities in Path |
|---|---|
| Oregon | Salem |
| Idaho | Idaho Falls |
| Wyoming | Casper |
| Nebraska | North Platte |
| Missouri | St. Joseph, Farmington |
| Illinois | Carbondale |
| Kentucky | Hopkinsville, Paducah |
| Tennessee | Clarksville, Nashville |
| Georgia | Ringgold, Clayton |
| North Carolina | Murphy, Andrews |
| South Carolina | Walhalla, Columbia |
Popular tourist destinations like Nashville, Tennessee; Paducah, Kentucky; and Columbia, South Carolina will experience over 2 minutes of totality [3].
Prime Locations Already Preparing
Cities and towns closest to the centerline of the eclipse path are bracing for massive crowds. Local communities have begun coordinating viewing events, educational talks, and citizen science projects to engage visitors [4]. Universities like Southern Illinois University Carbondale are planning multi-day eclipse festivals. The campus happens to reside just 17 miles south of the point of greatest eclipse duration, making it an ideal hub [5].
National and state parks like Great Smoky Mountains and Congaree along the eclipse path are likely to be popular destinations. Park officials warn that campsites and hotel rooms in and around such parks are booking out years in advance [6].
Unique Celestial Shows Precede Totality
As the Moon gradually covers more of the Sun’s bright disk leading up to totality, beautiful and intriguing partial phases occur. The crescent Sun often creates dazzling rays and bands of light visible through trees and other natural pinhole cameras [7]. During the final moments, the thin crescent Sun resembles a glistening diamond ring before winking out altogether.
Just before and after totality, viewers in the right locations can also glimpse the fleeting “shadow bands” phenomenon. These faint, rippling bands of light and dark seem to race along the ground as the last slivers of sunlight stream through deep valleys along the Moon’s limb [8].
Total Solar Eclipses Rank Among Nature’s Most Awe-Inspiring Sights
The solar corona, the Sun’s outer atmosphere visible only during totality, may unveil glorious streamers, shimmering prominences leaping off the Sun’s rim, and pink hued filaments snaking above the midnight black landscape. Totality also reveals the brighter planets and stars and the surrounding 360-degree sunset [9].
Neuroscientists and psychologists studying human reactions during eclipses have quantified the intense emotions, feelings of awe, and “oneness” with the universe that totality evokes. Survey data reveals ~90% of first-time totality viewers rank it among their most meaningful life experiences [10].
Veteran eclipse chasers describe the event as instantly addictive. The rare beauty, emotional peak, and cocktail of chemicals flooding the brain during totality imparts an overwhelming desire to witness it again and again.
Understanding Total Solar Eclipses
Total solar eclipses occur when the Moon passes directly between Earth and the Sun, casting its shadow down upon our planet. Alignments where the Moon appears slightly smaller than the Sun produce annular eclipses instead, with a blinding solar ring remaining visible.
These lunar shadow tracks are narrow, however. For people spread over just 10 miles away from the path of totality, the Moon will cover ~90% of the Sun during maximum eclipse. The overwhelming majority of the Sun remains uncomfortably bright, denying viewers the full spectacle [11].
Total solar eclipses occur approximately every 18 months on average somewhere on Earth thanks to orbital mechanics and the Moon’s changing distance. But total solar eclipses crossing any specific location are exceedingly rare, recurring about once every 375 years for a given town or city.
Short Supply of Future Total Solar Eclipses
After the 2024 event, total solar eclipses will not grace North American skies again until August 23, 2044 when Montreal and other parts of northeastern North America are plunged into darkness.
Later in the 21st century, a total solar eclipse will traverse Mexico, the central United States, and Canada on April 8, 2079 followed by another Canadian eclipse on May 13, 2108. But then a remarkable dry spell ensues – no total solar eclipses occur anywhere over the continental United States for nearly 400 years between 2108 and 2500! [12]
So for Americans, April 8, 2024 represents the last chance this century and for many generations to easily witness totality. Despite the huge crowds, traffic jams, and costs that will likely come with the event, the exceeding rarity and fleeting beauty of the coming total solar eclipse makes it worth any hassle for many.
[1] https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2024/01/03/2024-total-solar-eclipse/71486363007/
[2] https://www.space.com/total-solar-eclipse10-of-biggest-cities-in-path-of-totality-april-8-2024
[3] https://www.space.com/most-crowded-places-for-total-solar-eclipse-april-2024
[4] https://www.wave3.com/2024/01/03/preparations-underway-2024-total-solar-eclipse/
[5] https://www.pennwest.edu/news/edinboro-eclipse-series-2024
[6] https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/article/best-places-to-see-the-solar-eclipse-in-2024
[7] https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-science-of-2024s-epic-solar-eclipse-the-last-for-a-generation/
[8] https://www.popsci.com/science/cosmic-calendar-january-2024/
[9] https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/nine-dazzling-celestial-events-to-watch-in-2024-180983505/
[10] https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/sky-spectacles-to-watch-in-2024/
[11] https://www.space.com/eclipse-themed-places-on-path-totality-april-2024
[12] https://www.foxweather.com/earth-space/calendar-guide-2024-moon-stars-planets-when
To err is human, but AI does it too. Whilst factual data is used in the production of these articles, the content is written entirely by AI. Double check any facts you intend to rely on with another source.
