Go Back
  • For Business
  • |
  • Warnings
  • Data Suite
  • Newsletters
  • Advertising
  • Superior Accuracy™
High risk of tropical development off US Atlantic coast. Get details Chevron right
Storms to spark on July 4th in parts of the Plains and Southeast. Click here Chevron right

Columbus, OH

91°F
Location Chevron down
Location News Videos
Use Current Location
Recent

Columbus

Ohio

91°
No results found.
Try searching for a city, zip code or point of interest.
settings
Columbus, OH Weather
Today WinterCast Local {stormName} Tracker Hourly Daily Radar MinuteCast Monthly Air Quality Health & Activities

Around the Globe

Hurricane Tracker

Severe Weather

Radar & Maps

News

News & Features

Astronomy

Business

Climate

Health

Recreation

Sports

Travel

For Business

Warnings

Data Suite

Newsletters

Advertising

Superior Accuracy™

Video

Winter Center

AccuWeather Early Hurricane Center Top Stories Trending Today Astronomy Heat Climate Health Recreation In Memoriam Case Studies Blogs & Webinars

News / Astronomy

Spectacular events are happening right above your head. Here’s why you haven’t noticed

By Vahe Peroomian

Published Sep 12, 2023 11:18 AM EDT | Updated Sep 12, 2023 11:18 AM EDT

Copied

A total eclipse is seen from South Mike Sedar Park on August 21, 2017 in Casper, Wyoming. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images; VCG/Getty Images; Lars Baron/Getty Images)

Editor's note: Vahe Peroomian is Professor of Physics and Astronomy at USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences.

 (CNN) -- For years, small groups of astronomy enthusiasts have traveled the globe chasing the rare solar eclipse. They have embarked on cruises to the middle of the ocean, taken flights into the eclipse’s path and even traveled to Antarctica. In August 2017, millions across the US witnessed a total solar eclipse visible from Oregon to South Carolina, with a partial eclipse visible to the rest of the continental US.

The interest in astronomical events that this eclipse sparked will likely return with two eclipses visible in the US during the next year – the annular solar eclipse on October 14, 2023, and the total eclipse on April 8, 2024. But astro-tourism – traveling to national parks, observatories or other natural, dark-sky locations to view astronomical events – isn’t limited just to chasing eclipses.

According to a recent study, 80% of Americans and one-third of the planet’s population can no longer see the Milky Way from their homes because of light pollution. As a consequence, most people have to travel to witness meteor showers and other common astronomical events.

The Taj Mahal is pictured during a partial solar eclipse in Agra, India, on October 25, 2022. (Pawan Sharma/AFP/Getty Images)

I am a space scientist with a passion for teaching physics and astronomy and photographing the night sky. Every summer I spend several nights backpacking in the Sierra Nevada mountains of California, where the skies are sufficiently dark to allow the Milky Way to be seen with the naked eye. My son and I also like to take road trips – often along US 395, the Eastern Sierra Scenic Byway – that coincide with eclipses and meteor showers.

Can’t-miss astronomical events

There are two types of eclipses. Lunar eclipses occur when the full moon passes through Earth’s shadow. Solar eclipses occur when the new moon briefly blocks the Sun.

There are three types of solar eclipses. During a total eclipse, the Moon completely covers the Sun, with totality, or the time during which the Sun is completely eclipsed, lasting as long as seven minutes. During totality, those in the path of the eclipse will see the Sun’s corona, or its outer atmosphere, behind the Moon’s silhouette.

The Moon’s orbit around the Earth is an ellipse, so the Moon can appear to be 15% smaller when it’s at its farthest point from Earth, its apogee, compared with its size when it is at its closest point to Earth, its perigee. An annular eclipse occurs when the Moon doesn’t cover the entire disk of the Sun, leaving a ring of sunlight around the Moon.

Finally, a partial eclipse occurs when the Moon blocks only a part of the Sun’s disk, as the name implies.

Meteor showers are a far more common astronomical event than eclipses, and they are visible from any dark-sky location on Earth. Meteor showers occur when Earth’s orbit around the Sun takes it through the dust left behind by a comet. The Earth sweeps up the dust like a car speeding through a cloud of insects on the highway.

Locals and travelers from around the world gather on Menan Butte to watch the solar eclipse on August 21, 2017 in Menan, Idaho. (Natalie Behring/Getty Images)

Meteor showers are named for the constellations from which the meteors seem to emanate, though it’s not necessary to stare in that direction to see meteors. The most prominent meteor showers, occurring on approximately the same dates every year, are the Perseids, named for the constellation Perseus and peaking on the night of August 12-13; the Geminids, named for the constellation Gemini, on December 14-15; and the Lyrids, named for the constellation Lyra, on April 21-22. The night sky will be mostly moonless for the first two this year, but a nearly full moon will make the Lyrid shower of 2024 difficult to see.

Tips for aspiring astro-tourists

One of the most important factors to consider when planning an outing to stargaze or to watch a meteor shower is the phase of the Moon. The full moon rises at about 6 p.m. and sets at 6 a.m., making stargazing all but impossible because of its brightness. For ideal stargazing conditions, the Moon should be below the horizon, and the best viewing conditions are during a new moon. You can use a moonrise/moonset calculator to determine the phase of the Moon and its rise and set times for any location on Earth.

Another important factor is weather. Amateur astronomers always joke that the sky is cloudy during the most interesting astronomical events. For example, most major cities in the US that are in the path of the April 2024 eclipse have had cloudy skies on April 8 60% of the time since the year 2000.

Most Americans live in heavily light-polluted areas. A light pollution map such as lightpollutionmap.info can help identify the nearest dark-sky location, which, in my case, is hours away. These maps often use the Bortle dark-sky scale, which reports 1 for extremely dark skies to 9 for highly light-polluted city centers.

Though you may still see the brightest meteors from city suburbs, the darker your sky, the more meteors you’ll see. In general, expect to see fewer than 25 meteors per hour. To see the complex structure of the Milky Way with the naked eye, look for a location with a Bortle index of 3 or below.

Spectators look skyward during a partial eclipse of the sun on August 21, 2017 at the Cradle of Aviation Museum in Garden City, New York. (Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

It’s important to arrive at your chosen site early, preferably during daylight hours. Stumbling around in the dark at an unfamiliar site is a recipe for disaster and may also disturb others who are already at the site. Arriving early also gives time for your eyes to adapt to the dark as night falls, as it typically takes 30 minutes or even longer for your eyes to reach their full dark-adapted potential.

Make sure to carry a headlamp or flashlight that has a red light setting, as red light doesn’t ruin night vision. Avoid using your phone, as even a glance at the screen can ruin your eyes’ dark adaptation. If you’re using a sky-viewing app, switch the app to night mode.

Plan ahead if you’re thinking of traveling to view one of the eclipses visible in the US next year. If you’re in the path of the eclipse, stay put! If you’re traveling, staying at the same location overnight before and after the eclipse can help avoid the hours-long traffic jams experienced by eclipse watchers in 2017.

Hotel searches for the week of the solar eclipse are up by more than 5,000 percent, so if you want to travel to see it in totality, you’re already running out of time.

Also, you should never look at the Sun directly with the naked eye, even during a total eclipse. You’ll need a pair of inexpensive eclipse glasses to watch and fully enjoy the eclipse, but get yours early, as many stores ran out of glasses during the 2017 eclipse.

No matter where you travel during the next year, don’t forget to look up at night and marvel at the beauty of the night sky away from city lights.

More Astronomy and Space:

Astronomy news: Aurora may glow alongside meteor shower
This luxury tent camp has celestial credentials
2024 total solar eclipse guide: Everything you need to know
Astronaut sets new US record for longest trip in space

The-CNN-Wire™ & © 2023 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.

Report a Typo

Weather News

Weather News

Passenger ferry sinks off Bali killing 5 people, 29 unaccounted for

Jul. 3, 2025
video

Bomb cyclone slams Australia with heavy rain and intense winds

Jul. 2, 2025
Weather News

Alabama teen in ICU after lightning strike hits boat, causing burns an...

Jul. 2, 2025
Show more Show less Chevron down

Topics

AccuWeather Early

Hurricane Center

Top Stories

Trending Today

Astronomy

Heat

Climate

Health

Recreation

In Memoriam

Case Studies

Blogs & Webinars

Top Stories

Weather Forecasts

Storms to spark on July 4th in parts of the Plains and Southeast

28 minutes ago

Weather News

Madre Fire grows to 35,000 acres, now California’s largest wildfire of...

3 hours ago

Hurricane

High risk for tropical development off US Atlantic coast

30 minutes ago

Travel

Passengers scramble out of plane in St. Louis after report of smoke

6 hours ago

Weather News

Alabama teen struck by lightning while using phone during storm

3 hours ago

More Stories

Featured Stories

Weather News

‘Shark Whisperer’ swims its way into our shark obsession

23 hours ago

Weather News

Endangered turtles share this Mexican beach with SpaceX rocket debris

21 hours ago

Travel

Fourth of July gas hasn’t been this cheap since 2021

2 days ago

Weather News

What makes fireworks burst with vibrant colors?

6 days ago

Health

There is no safe amount of processed meat to eat, new research shows

6 hours ago

AccuWeather Astronomy Spectacular events are happening right above your head. Here’s why you haven’t noticed
Company
Proven Superior Accuracy About AccuWeather Digital Advertising Careers Press Contact Us
Products & Services
For Business For Partners For Advertising AccuWeather APIs AccuWeather Connect RealFeel® and RealFeel Shade™ Personal Weather Stations
Apps & Downloads
iPhone App Android App See all Apps & Downloads
Subscription Services
AccuWeather Premium AccuWeather Professional
More
AccuWeather Ready Business Health Hurricane Leisure and Recreation Severe Weather Space and Astronomy Sports Travel Weather News Winter Center
Company
Proven Superior Accuracy About AccuWeather Digital Advertising Careers Press Contact Us
Products & Services
For Business For Partners For Advertising AccuWeather APIs AccuWeather Connect RealFeel® and RealFeel Shade™ Personal Weather Stations
Apps & Downloads
iPhone App Android App See all Apps & Downloads
Subscription Services
AccuWeather Premium AccuWeather Professional
More
AccuWeather Ready Business Health Hurricane Leisure and Recreation Severe Weather Space and Astronomy Sports Travel Weather News Winter Center
© 2025 AccuWeather, Inc. "AccuWeather" and sun design are registered trademarks of AccuWeather, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Cookie Policy | About Your Privacy Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information

...

...

...