What Smithsonian calls "one of nature's grandest spectacles"—a total solar eclipse—is slated to sweep across North America on April 8, 2024, from Mexico to Eastern Canada. According to CNN and Smithsonian, it's a not-to-be-missed phenomenon for sky watchers as the moon slides in front of the sun, reducing it to a crescent before blotting it out entirely for four awe-inspiring minutes. This celestial event will outdo its 2017 predecessor by almost two minutes in regard to "totality." With nearly 32 million people living in its path, it is likely to be "one of the most-watched celestial events in history," per Smithsonian.
Beginning over Mexico's Pacific coast at 11:07am Pacific Daylight Time, the eclipse will pass over Mexico, the United States, and Canada, exiting North America on Newfoundland's Atlantic coast at 5:16pm local time, according to NASA. In the US, the path of totality is over 13 states: Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine. Some key cities include Dallas, Little Rock, Indianapolis, and Buffalo. See a map for more details at GreatAmericanEclipse.com.
Those who want to experience the eclipse but don't live in the path better start planning now, advises CNN. Many hotels and Airbnbs along the path already are filling up, and prices will likely rise as awareness of the eclipse increases. The stakes: This will be the last chance to see an easy-access total solar eclipse over the contiguous United States until August 23, 2044. (More solar eclipse stories.)
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