Total Solar Eclipse Coming April 8
Map Courtesy of NASA
By Tami Stevenson
North America is all abuzz as many throughout the U.S., Canada and Mexico prepare to see the April 8, 2024 total eclipse sweep across these three nations.
Although Florida is not in the path of totality, according to NASA, Florida will still see a partial eclipse beginning around 1:35 p.m. with the midpoint at approximately 2:55 p.m. Do not look directly at the eclipse with your naked eye. It can instantly damage your eyes. Be sure to wear eclipse glasses, not regular sunglasses.
Every contiguous U.S. state, parts of Canada, Mexico, plus parts of Alaska and Hawaii will experience at least a partial solar eclipse.
The unusual thing is that just seven years ago on August 21, 2017, a total eclipse swept across the U.S., making it the first total solar eclipse in the USA since 1979.
However, the August 2017 eclipse was the first with a path of totality crossing the Pacific and Atlantic coasts of the U.S. since the solar eclipse of 1918.
Additionally, the 2017 eclipse’s path of totality made landfall exclusively within the United States, making it the first such eclipse since the country’s declaration of independence in 1776.
Now, only seven years later, what is interesting to note is that this April 8 eclipse will cross over the path of the 2017 eclipse marking an ‘X’ across the USA in the area around Carbondale, Illinois.
Another rarity is that the 2017 eclipse’s longest period of totality was experienced near Carbondale, Illinois, at 2 minutes, 42 seconds, basically, right where ‘X’ marks the spot as the paths of the 2017 and 2024 eclipses cross.
SVT Embellished - NASA Map
Residents and visitors to that area will have the opportunity to see two total eclipses within a seven year period — a very rare experience.
There was an annular eclipse only six months ago on October 14, 2023, that went from Eugene, Oregon to Corpus Christi, Texas.
Because this was an annular eclipse and not a total eclipse, not as many are talking about this one or seem to be making comparisons, but the 2024 total eclipse will cross the path of the 2023 annular eclipse just east of the San Antonio, Texas area. Another ‘X’ marking the spot where two eclipses, each within months of each other, will cross paths in the United States.
According to NASA, totality will last longer during the April 8 eclipse over the 2017 eclipse, because the moon will be closer to the earth. It will be pitch dark for up to 4 minutes, 28 seconds in an area about 25 minutes northwest of Torreón, Mexico. As the eclipse enters Texas, totality will last about 4 minutes, 26 seconds at the center of the eclipse’s path. Durations longer than 4 minutes stretch as far north as Economy, Indiana. Even as the eclipse leaves the U.S. and enters Canada, totality will last up to 3 minutes, 21 seconds.
The April 8 total eclipse will cross over 13 states, Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine.
Many schools and universities along the path of totality are planning on closing for the day, taking into consideration how total darkness could be a safety hazard with bus drivers and other motorists that may be distracted on the roads.
Totality will also cover the Niagara Falls region in Ontario, Canada during the same time it reaches New York, around 3:20 EDT. It is reported they are declaring a state of emergency as the eclipse is expected to draw more than a million visitors to the region as National
Geographic declared Niagara Falls to be one of the best places to view the eclipse.
Niagara Falls Mayor Jim Diodati said they expect the most visitors the city has ever seen in a single day. This could involve major traffic jams and a myriad of other emergency situations, so they are just trying to be proactive.
Another unusual activity about the April 8 eclipse is that the sun is on an 11-year cycle and at the solar minimum solar flares and other eruptions are least active, as with the 2017 eclipse, but during the April eclipse it will be near the peak, or solar maximum.
That gives viewers a better chance of seeing streamers extending from the corona or possibly an eruption of solar gases flaring up.
Because of this rare series of events, those within the Christian community and many Biblical scholars warn these ‘signs in the heavens’ and the paths at where they cross may have Biblical significance pertaining to the end times and a warning to America to turn back to its Christian roots.
CLICK THE LINK BELOW FOR MORE INFORMATION
https://science.nasa.gov/eclipses/future-eclipses/eclipse-2024/where-when/
