Coming up soon, on April 8th, 2024, the sun will be shrouded across the United States in a total solar eclipse. A rare sighting that isn’t much like any other will be very cool to see but there are certain things to know about this celestial event before it comes. Many travel far distances just to see as the sun, earth, and moon all align to make for a fantastic sight. The most important things to know about this event are traffic, the path this sighting follows, and how to view it.
This is what is known as a total solar eclipse where the moon will perfectly align between the Sun and the Earth. This is expected to happen again until 2044! When the Sun is covered by the Moon it leads to a period of complete or partial darkness depending on where you are when it occurs. This occurrence is so rare because the Moon doesn’t commonly align between the Sun and the Moon. It can only happen during a new moon as well which increases the rarity of this occurrence.
To perfectly view the solar eclipse you must be in an area between Texas and Maine to get the most optimal view for a few minutes. If you lie in the area that sees the eclipse perfectly you may not need any eye protection due to the alignment of the planets so that you may safely view for a couple of minutes. If you are in an area of the United States that is outside of this perfect alignment path you may not see the event as nicely as it will be off center depending how far off you are. The moon won’t “perfectly” block the sun if you are viewing from this angle and you will require some eye protection. There will be many videos and livestreams across the internet of a perfect viewing of this event that will allow you to see the perfect angle without having to travel through traffic and such.
The eclipse shall begin on April 8th, 2024 at 2:00PM and end at 3:35 PM Eastern Daylight Time (EDT). Texas or Maine are considered the best state for viewing this eclipse if you are looking to see a perfect view. I would recommend going to Maine considering that it is closest and will grant an amazing view of the eclipse. There are good odds the sky will be clear in this area. Traffic will be bad in getting to some of these places where the eclipse will align perfectly and will only get worse once it is over as everyone will be scrambling to get back to the area they reside following this. This will be exciting to see so make sure to have your solar glasses ready and enjoy!
