Total Eclipse of the Sun: April 08, 2024

by Fred Espenak

Introduction

On Monday, April 8, 2024, a total eclipse of the Sun will be visible from the contiguous United States for the first time since 2017. The track of the Moon's umbral shadow begins in the Pacific Ocean and crosses northern Mexico before reaching the USA. Traveling southwest to northeast, it sweeps through parts of fifteen states: Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri, Tennessee, Kentucky, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Michigan, Pennsylvania, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine. The path of totality also crosses six Canadian provinces: Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland. Within the 101 to 124 mile-wide path of totality, the Moon will completely cover the Sun as the landscape is plunged into an eerie twilight and the Sun's glorious corona is revealed for nearly 4 1/2 minutes.

2024 Total Solar Eclipse Map
Path of the 2024 Total Solar Eclipse
(click to enlarge)

This special web page contains information about the 2024 total eclipse of the Sun. It will be updated with additional details as eclipse day approaches.

The EclipseWise Prime Page for the 2024 April 08 eclipse presents detailed information on this event including the primary eclipse characteristics, conjunction times, geocentric coordinates of the Sun and Moon, lunar libration values, penumbral and umbral shadow contact data, central line data, polynomial Besselian elements and additional links.

Path of Totality

A table of the geographic coordinates for the path of totality are available below.

Path of Totality of the 2024 Total Solar Eclipse

Orthographic Map of the Total Solar Eclipse

The following map shows the overall regions of visibility of the partial eclipse as well as the center of the Total eclipse through Mexico, the USA, and Canada. It uses coastline data from the World Data Base II (WDB).

2024 Total Solar Eclipse Map
Path of the 2024 Total Eclipse through North America
(click to enlarge)

Intermediate Detail Maps of the Path of Totality

The following maps show the path of the 2024 total solar eclipse in intermediate detail for locations across North America. The path of totality is shaded for clarity, and lines of maximum eclipse have been plotted (in yellow) at 10-minute intervals. The Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), the duration of totality (minutes:seconds) and the Sun's altitude (degrees) is given on the eclipse central line at 10-minute intervals. The maps also include cities, major towns, highways, rivers, lakes and parks.

Map
Number
Title/Description
Map 1 Total Eclipse Path through North America
Map 2 Total Eclipse Path: Mexico and Texas
Map 3 Total Eclipse Path: Texas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas
Map 4 Total Eclipse Path: Arkansas, Missouri, Tennessee, Kentucky, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Michigan, and Pennsylvania
Map 5 Total Eclipse Path: Pennsylvania, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, Ontario and Quebec
Map 6 Total Eclipse Path: New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland

Interactive GoogleMap of the Path of Totality

An implementation of Google Map has been created which includes the central path of the 2024 total solar eclipse. This allows the user to select any portion of the path and to zoom in using either map data or Earth satellite data.

2024 Total Solar Eclipse Map
Google Map of 2024 Total Solar Eclipse

Safe Eclipse Viewing

eclipse glasses
Order Safe Eclipse Glasses from American Paper Optics (click here)

Every total eclipse of the Sun begins and ends with a partial eclipse. The partial phases require either a projection technique or a special solar filter to be viewed safely. Read more about this at Safe Solar Eclipse Viewing.

Of course during the few brief minutes of Totality when the Sun's disk is completely covered by the Moon, it is then safe to look directly at the Sun with the naked eye or through a telescope or binoculars.


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Safe Solar Eclipse Glasses


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Rainbow Symphony Eclipse Shades


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Thousand Oaks Optical Solar Filters


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Great American Eclipse Store

Books About the 2024 Eclipse

eclipse book

Get Eclipsed: A Family Guide to Two North American Eclipses

North America will be the scene for two spectacular eclipses of the Sun. On October 14, 2023, an annular eclipse of the Sun occurs in western USA and Mexico. Six months later, an incomparable total eclipse of the Sun occurs on April 8, 2024. Its 125-mile wide path crosses Mexico, the USA from Texas to Maine, and eastern Canada.

During both of these events, a partial eclipse of the Sun will be visible from virtually all of North America. The last annular eclipse visible from the USA was in 2012. The last total eclipse visible from the USA was in 2017, and the next one to cross the country won't be until 2044. Don't miss the incredible experience of seeing these celestial wonders!

Get Eclipsed is an easy to read, family friendly, inexpensive eclipse guide for the entire family. It tells you everything you need to know about the upcoming annular and total eclipses of the Sun in 2023 and 2024. And it comes with two pairs of special glasses for safely watching the partial eclipse phases and annularity.

For more information visit Get Eclipsed.

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eclipse book

Road Atlas of the Total Solar Eclipse of 2024

The Road Atlas for the Total Solar Eclipse of 2024 contains a comprehensive series of 26 maps of the path of totality across Mexico, the USA and Canada. The large scale (1 inch ≈ 22 miles) shows both major and minor roads, towns and cities, rivers, parks, and mountains.

Although a partial eclipse will be seen from all of North America, the total phase in which the Moon completely covers the Sun (known as totality) will only be seen from within the 120-mile-wide path of the Moon’s umbral shadow as it sweeps across Mexico, the United States (Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri, Tennessee, Kentucky, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Michigan, Pennsylvania, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine), and Canada (Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia and Newfoundland).

Armed with this atlas and the latest weather forecasts, the road warrior is ready to chase totality no matter where it takes him/her along the entire path. This mobile strategy offers the highest probability of witnessing the spectacular 2024 total eclipse in clear skies.

For more information visit Road Atlas for the Total Solar Eclipse of 2024.

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book

Eclipse Bulletin: Total Solar Eclipse of 2024 April 08

The Eclipse Bulletin: Total Solar Eclipse of 2024 April 08 is the complementary publication of the 2024 Road Atlas and is the ultimate guide to this highly anticipated event.

Eleven high resolution maps plot the total eclipse track across Mexico, the USA, and Canada. The large map scale (1 inch ≈ 53 miles) shows hundreds of cities and towns in the path, the location of major roads and highways, and the duration of totality with distance from the central line. Local circumstances tables for hundreds cities the USA, Canada, and Mexico provide times of each phase of the eclipse along with the eclipse magnitude, duration and Sun's altitude. A detailed climatological study identifies areas along the eclipse path where the highest probability of favorable weather may be found.

Finally, comprehensive information is presented about solar filters and how to safely observe the eclipse.

For more information visit Eclipse Bulletin: Total Solar Eclipse of 2024 April 08.

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Totality - The Great American Eclipses of 2017 and 2024

The Totality - The Great American Eclipses of 2017 and 2024 is a complete guide to the most stunning of celestial sights, total eclipses of the Sun. It focuses on the eclipses of August 21, 2017 and April 8, 2024 that pass across the United States. The U.S. mainland has not experienced a total solar eclipse since 1979. This book provides information, photographs, and illustrations to help understand and safely enjoy all aspects of these eclipses including:

  • How to observe a total eclipse of the Sun
  • How to photograph and video record an eclipse
  • Why solar eclipses happen
  • The earliest attempts to understand and predict eclipses
  • The mythology and folklore of eclipses
  • The response of animals to total solar eclipses
  • The response of man to total eclipses through time
  • How scientists used total eclipses to understand how the Sun works
  • How astronomers used a total eclipse in 1919 to confirm Einstein's general theory of relativity
  • Weather prospects for the 2017 eclipse
  • Detailed maps of the path of totality for the 2017 eclipse and the eclipses of 2018 through 2024
  • Precise local times for the eclipses of 2017 and 2024 (the next total solar eclipse to visit the U.S.)
  • Color and black-and-white photographs, diagrams, and charts to illustrate and explain total solar eclipses
  • Global maps of total solar eclipses from 2017 to 2045 and lists of total and annual solar eclipses from 1970 through 2070

For more information visit Totality - The Great American Eclipses of 2017 and 2024.

2024 Eclipse Bulletin Extras

Additional Links for 2024 April 08 Total Solar Eclipse

2006 Total Solar Eclipse
The Total Solar Eclipse of 2006 Mar 29 as seen from Jalu, LIBYA.
(click to visit photo gallery)

Links to Additional Solar Eclipse Information

  • Home - home page of EclipseWise with predictions for both solar and lunar eclipses

Solar Eclipse Photography

Solar Eclipse Viewing

Other Links