Solar Eclipse: What to Expect

One month from today the moon will pass in front of the sun resulting in an incredible display across the United States. The total solar eclipse on August 21st will be the first coast-to-coast total eclipse since 1918. 

Eclipse_Geometry
Courtesy: NASA

To truly get the full experience you'll have to travel. While the sun will be approximately 70% obscured here in Connecticut totality will occur in only a narrow zone from Oregon to South Carolina. I'll be in Charleston, SC for the eclipse to experience totality and I cannot wait! If it's cloudy or rainy or otherwise overcast I will be very sad :(

1925solareclipse

The last time Connecticut experienced a total solar eclipse was January 24, 1925. The next time Connecticut will experience a total solar eclipse is May 1, 2079. They're pretty rare! The 1925 solar eclipse was viewed in totality here in Connecticut. In New York City the New York Times reported the eclipse was total above 96th street as the City was on the southern extent of the total eclipse path.

In totality the moon will complete cover the disk of the sun creating a spectacle most humans have never seen with their own eyes. The sun's atmosphere, the corona, will flash and shimmer as your surroundings plunge into darkness. The temperature drops rapidly and animals are rightfully freaked out. 

Here in Connecticut the partial eclipse will be cool to look at - but you can only do so using eye protection or some type of contraption. Read more here from NASA. I remember the May 10, 1994 partial eclipse here in Connecticut and going outside at school to watch the spectacle. 

If you can't travel to experience this total eclipse you can wait a few years and head up north. Burlington, Vermont and parts of Quebec and upstate New York will experience a total eclipse on April 8, 2024. 

Only one month to go!!

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