IMAGES COURTESY OF Dr. Mike Reynolds
March 29, 2006, total solar eclipse
June 21, 2001, total solar eclipse
July 11, 2010, total solar eclipse
Gear up for an eclipse encounter
2017 will deliver
total solar eclipse
for U.S. observers
By DR. MIKE REYNOLDS
Guest Contributor
On August 21, 2017, the United
States will experience its first total
solar eclipse since February 26, 1979.
All of the continental United States
will experience at least a significant
partial solar eclipse. For those
fortunate enough to live along the
narrow track of totality, or travel to
the path of totality, up to 2 minutes
and 40 seconds under the shadow
awaits viewers.
The Moon’s shadow first comes
ashore in the northern Pacific,
moving west to east. Totality first
crosses the west coast of the United
States at Oregon, then to Idaho,
Montana, Wyoming, Nebraska,
Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky,
Tennessee, North Carolina, Georgia,
and South Carolina before going
out to sea. There are a number of
cities near the path of totality, with
several smaller communities very
close to if not directly on the center
line. Interstate highways and state
roads should make accessibility to the
center line easy.
12
COURTESY OF Fred Espenak, MrEclipse.com
This graphic shows the path of the August 21, 2017, total solar eclipse across the
continental United States.
This eclipse will attract a great deal
of attention, both internationally and
within the United States, from amateur
and professional astronomers, the
general public and media.
It is best to make pla