Guide to the 2024 total solar eclipse across the eastern United States
The total solar eclipse on Aug. 21, 2017 as seen from Cookeville, Tennessee. (Photo/AccuWeather Meteorologist Brian Lada)
Today marks the 1-year anniversary of the ‘Great American Eclipse’ that awed audiences from Oregon to South Carolina.
After last year's eclipse on Aug. 21, 2017, many began to wonder when the next time a celestial event like this would be visible across the United States.
Although solar eclipses themselves are not rare, only a small number of them are visible in North America. Luckily, those that live in the U.S. that do not want to travel around the world have to wait only a few more years to see another solar eclipse.
The next total solar eclipse in North America
On April 8, 2024, the moon will completely block out the sun along a narrow path from Texas to Maine, as well as parts of Mexico and Canada.
Crowds gathering to view the 2024 eclipse may rival that of the Great American Eclipse. Although the path of totality will not be stretching across the entire country like it did in 2017, the path of totality will be closer to many major cities across the eastern U.S.
Cities that will be directly in, or within a few miles, of the path of totality include Dallas, San Antonio and Austin, Texas; Little Rock, Arkansas; St. Louis; Louisville, Kentucky; Indianapolis; Cincinnati, Cleveland and Columbus, Ohio; Detroit; Buffalo and Niagra Falls, New York; Toronto and Ottawa, Ontario; and Montreal and Quebec City, Quebec.
Additionally, everyone living across the eastern and central U.S. will be less than a one-day drive away from being able to witness the total solar eclipse.
This eclipse will also last much longer than last year's with the moon completely blocking the sun for over three minutes in many areas. Some areas of Mexico and Texas will experience nearly four and a half minutes of totality.
If you’re thinking about traveling to see the eclipse in 2024, here are some tips to follow.
Location: Plan ahead of time where you want to view the eclipse. Some hotels in and around major cities in the path of totality may be booked up months ahead of time.
Traffic: The eclipse happens on a Monday, so I suggest enjoying an extended weekend near your viewing site. Arrive near your viewing site on Saturday or Sunday and stay until at least Tuesday to avoid some of the worst eclipse-related traffic.
Right after last year’s Great American Eclipse, millions of people (including myself) got stuck in the ‘Great American Traffic Jam’ as people left the path of totality to head home. This led to extensive backups, accidents and added hours to people’s journey home. You’ll avoid all this by spending an extra night near your viewing site.
Glasses: Safely viewing a solar eclipse (or looking at the sun in general) requires the use of proper solar filters. There are several verified manufacturers that make ‘eclipse glasses’ to wear to prevent permanent eye damage. However, they may be difficult to order right before the eclipse, so purchase them months ahead of time to secure a pair. Here is a list of reputable solar filter vendors.
Weather: This one is tough to plan for, but it is the most important factor when it comes to viewing a total solar eclipse. An accurate weather forecast won’t be available until a week or two ahead of time at best, but we can look at past years to see what the most likely weather will be on April 8, 2024.
Jay Anderson has a website about solar eclipses, and he makes some of the best weather graphics available. This map that he made shows what the odds are of cloudy weather on the day of the eclipse based on climatology. Blue means that it is typically clear, while red means that it is typically cloudy.
(Image/Jay Anderson)
If you are extremely determined to see this eclipse, I recommend having several viewing locations in mind then deciding where precisely to view the eclipse just a few days beforehand based on the short-term weather forecast.
Total solar eclipses around the world before 2024
While many people begin to look ahead to the 2024 eclipse, there are several total solar eclipses between now and then elsewhere across the globe.
Here are all of the total solar eclipses leading up to the one on April 8, 2024.
July 2, 2019
This is the first total solar eclipse anywhere in the world since the Great American Eclipse of Aug. 21, 2017. The path of totality will be largely over the open waters of the Pacific Ocean, but some areas in Chile and Argentina will be able to see it.
Dec. 14, 2020
Similar to the prior total solar eclipse, the path of totality will be once again largely over open water, as well as a small area of Chile and Argentina.
Dec. 4, 2021
This may be one of the least-viewed total solar eclipses in the coming years. There are ‘eclipse chasers’ that travel to see every solar eclipse that occurs, but the path of totality for this event will be confined to Antarctica and small parts of the Pacific and Atlantic Ocean. Fortunately, it’s happening during Antarctica’s ‘summer.’
April 20, 2023
This eclipse stands out from the rest as it will be a hybrid eclipse. This means that some areas in the ‘path of totality’ will see a total solar eclipse, while other areas will see an annular solar eclipse (which I will explain below).
Oct. 14, 2023
This is not a total solar eclipse, but I am including it in my list because it is important. An annular solar eclipse will be visible across a swath of the western U.S., as well as part of Central America and South America, near the end of 2023.
While the moon will be passing directly between the Earth and the Sun, it will happen when the Moon is at a point in its orbit when it is farther away from the Earth. As a result, the Moon does not not completely cover the face of the sun.
This is known as a ‘Ring of Fire’ eclipse.
An annular eclipse appears at a waterfront park in Yokohama, near Tokyo, Monday, May 21, 2012. The annular eclipse, in which the moon passes in front of the sun leaving only a golden ring around its edges, was visible to wide areas across China, Japan and elsewhere in the region before moving across the Pacific to be seen in parts of the western United States. (AP Photo/Shuji Kajiyama)
This eclipse will be an excellent opportunity for photographers and scientists to prepare for the total eclipse seven months later. It can serve as a dry run so that people can test any new equipment that they have for the 2024 eclipse, such as solar filters for cameras.
This will also be an opportunity for people across the western U.S. to see an eclipse without having to travel to the East Coast the following year (although it will not be quite as impressive).
This Ring of Fire eclipse will be visible from several popular national parks, including Crater Lake, Bryce Canyon, Capitol Reef and Canyonlands. Someone may also be able to view it while standing in four states at one time at the intersection of Utah, Colorado, New Mexico and Arizona.
One final note: Solar eclipses are not rare, but they don’t happen in your backyard too often. Having seen one for myself, I recommend that anyone that has the ability to travel and see the total solar eclipse in 2024 do so. You will not regret it.
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