A Total Solar Eclipse Will Make History as It Sweeps Across America

Millions of Americans will turn their eyes skyward Monday as a total solar eclipse sails across the country from coast to coast for the first time, turning day into night in more than a dozen states. It’s the first total solar eclipse that will be seen in no other country but the U.S. since the nation’s birth in 1776. Dubbed “The Great American Eclipse,” it is also the first one visible from the contiguous U.S. since 1979. The rare phenomenon happens when the moon passes directly between the sun and the Earth and completely covers the entire face of the sun. All of North America will see the moon partially block the sun, resulting in some darkness, but only the states within the 70-mile-wide path of totality will get to witness the total eclipse. In less than two hours, the eclipse is expected to pass through parts of 14 states, beginning on the West Coast in Oregon and ending on the East Coast in South Carolina. It will make landfall in Lincoln Beach, Ore., which will see totality for less than three minutes starting at 10:16 a.m. local time. More than 1,000 state camping sites and hotels in Oregon have been sold out for months in anticipation of the once-in-a-lifetime event, much like in other parts of the country. Most skygazers in Oregon, Idaho, Wyoming, Nebraska, Missouri, Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina will have front-row seats to the total eclipse. Here’s a map of the total solar eclipse’s path: NAS...
Source: TIME.com: Top Science and Health Stories - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Uncategorized eclipse onetime space space 2017 Source Type: news