On Monday, August 21, 2017 for a few minutes early in the hot summer afternoon, the sun will be completely blocked from the earth by the moon for up to 2½ minutes in an 80-mile wide swath from Oregon over Casper, Wyoming; Grand Island, Nebraska; Nashville, Tennessee & Columbia, South Carolina. This is the first total eclipse over the US mainland in 38 years.
The last one was February 26, 1979 over the northern US & southern Canada. Since the sun is 400 times the size of the moon and roughly 400 times farther from earth, they appear the same size when viewed from earth.
On the infrequent occasions that their paths totally eclipse the sun from earth, the path of totality is the place to be. We almost got the urge to be there too late.
Accommodations in the “swath of totality” have been reserved for months in advance. We were looking in January and there was little available. If you know someone who lives in or near the swath, it might be the time to invite yourself for a visit. Many communities are planning events surrounding the eclipse.
One of the amazing things about a total eclipse is that you can see the stars, but they are not the stars you see at night. They are the stars they see at night halfway around the world. It is our winter sky. An observatory in the swath might offer some unique perspective.
The next eclipse is coming much sooner than we had to wait for this one. Seven years from now on April 8, 2024, the swath of totality will arc from Texas through Buffalo, NY and eastern Canada.
For further details, check out the NASA site eclipse2017.nasa.gov which is planning to provide viewing of the eclipse online live from various locations in the swath of totality.
Story by Peter Roos