The outermost red contour on the map above traces where in the world the eclipse will be
visible – i.e., where the Moon will cover any part of the Sun’s disk. Within this, the thinner red
contours show where the Moon will cover at least 20%, 40%, 60% and 80% of the Sun at the moment of
greatest eclipse.

The central red line shows the narrow track where the total eclipse will be visible.

This map is also available as a
KMZ overlay
which can be imported into Google Earth, Google Maps, or other mapping software, to create a more detailed
map. Alternatively, it can be downloaded as a non-interactive image in
PNG,
PDF or
SVG format.

The animation above shows the progress of the Moon’s shadow across the
Earth as the eclipse proceeds. The red circle shows the edge of the Moon’s
shadow: all places inside the red circle will see the Moon covering some
part of the Sun’s disk. Within this, the yellow contours show where various
fractions of the Sun’s disk is covered.

The green cross in the center of the Moon’s shadow indicates the point of
central eclipse, where the Moon appears exactly centered on the middle
of the Sun’s disk, and where a total eclipse will be seen.

The eclipse path

The total eclipse will be visible from:

A partial eclipse will be much more widely visible, from countries including:

According to Fred Espenak’s Five Millennium Canon of Solar Eclipses, totality will last for a maximum of
4m28s at the point of greatest eclipse.
^[2]

Viewing from Los Angeles

From Los Angeles (select a different location), the percentage of the Sun’s disk covered by the Moon will proceed as follows:

The simulation to the right shows how the eclipse will appear from

Los Angeles.

The Sun is shown as the yellow disk at the center of the simulation and the Moon is shown as the black
disk which moves in front of the Sun. Both objects are of similar size – roughly
30 arcminutes across.

By default the simulation is drawn with the local vertical in

Los Angeles
uppermost (Zenith up), so that it is orientated as you would see it
looking up at the sky through an appropriate solar filter. The compass shows
the direction of celestial north relative to the local vertical. Alternatively,
you can orientate the Sun with celestial north orientated uppermost, by
selecting the option North up.

Selecting the option Diagram of Moon’s path produces a static display of
the Moon’s path over the duration of the eclipse.

The lower panel shows the Sun’s position in the sky relative to the
horizon, as seen from

Los Angeles.

The eclipse geometry

Solar eclipses occur when the Sun, Moon and Earth are aligned in a straight
line, so that the Moon passes between us and the Sun and blocks its light.

Each time the Moon orbits the Earth, it comes close to the Sun in the sky as it
passes New Moon. If the Moon orbited the Earth in exactly the same plane that
the Earth orbits the Sun, it would pass in front of the Sun at New Moon every
month.

But in fact the Moon’s orbit is tipped up at an angle of 5° relative to the
Earth’s orbit around the Sun. This means that the alignment between the Moon
and Sun at New Moon usually isn’t exact. Normally, the Moon passes a few
degrees to the side of the Sun.

In the diagram to the right, the grid represents the plane of the Earth’s orbit
around the Sun. As it circles the Earth, the Moon passes through this
Earth–Sun plane twice each month, at the points on the left and right
labelled as nodes. A solar eclipse happens only when one of these node
crossings happens to coincide with New Moon. This happens roughly once every
six months.

Even when solar eclipses do occur, they are not visible from the whole world.

The Moon is much smaller than the Earth, and the shadow it casts onto the
Earth is never more than a few hundred miles across. The diagram to the right
is not drawn to scale, but gives an approximate sense of how much of the
Earth’s surface can be covered by the Moon’s shadow at any one time. As the
Moon travels along its orbit, its shadow sweeps across the Earth, usually
travelling from west to east at a speed which varies between 1,000 and 5,000
mph.

The Moon’s shadow can be divided into the umbra, indicated as a dark
gray cone, where the Moon appears to completely cover the Sun, and the larger
penumbra, where the Moon only partially covers the Sun.

The umbra gets narrower at greater distances from the Moon, since the Moon
covers less of the sky when seen from greater distances, and so needs to be
more precisely aligned in order to cover the entire Sun. At a distance of
373,000 km, the Moon appears with exactly the same angular size as the Sun, and
so the umbra narrows to a single point where the two objects are perfectly
aligned in the sky.

As seen from the Earth, the Moon is only just large enough to cover the Sun.
The Sun’s angular diameter varies over the course of the year between 0.542
degrees (January) to 0.524 degrees (July) due to the Earth’s elliptical orbit.
The Moon’s angular diameter likewise varies between 0.548 degrees and 0.490
degrees.

When the Earth and Moon are at their closest, the umbral shadow projects a
circle onto the Earth’s surface with a diameter of 170 miles, within which a
total solar eclipse can be seen. But when the Earth is at its furthest from the
Moon, the planet falls beyond the furthest limit of the Moon’s umbral shadow
and the Moon appears too small to entirely cover the Sun’s disk. This gives
rise to the possibility of annular eclipses, where a complete ring of
sunlight is formed around the Moon.

The region of space where annular eclipses are seen lies beyond the furthest
tip of the umbra at a distance of 373,000 km from the Moon, in a third
region of shadow called the antumbra.

The diagram above was not drawn to scale, so as to make the three regions of
the Moon’s shadow large enough to see. In practice, all celestial bodies are much
smaller than the distances which separate them, and the Earth and Moon are no exception. The
diagram below shows the Earth and Moon drawn to scale, together with the Moon’s
shadow spanning the space between them. As above, the light gray region shows
the Moon’s penumbra, and the dark gray region shows the Moon’s umbra.

The Earth is drawn twice, at its closest and furthest possible distances from
the Moon – distances of around 363,000 km and 405,000 km respectively.
The cross marks the maximum extent of the Moon’s umbra – the furthest
distance from Moon at which a total eclipse is possible (373,000 km).

Eclipse safety

Observing the Sun can be very dangerous if it is not done with the right
equipment. The Sun is the brightest object in the sky, and looking directly at
it can cause permanent eye damage within seconds. Viewing it through any
optical instrument – even a pair of binoculars or the finderscope on the
side of a telescope – can cause instant and permanent blindness.

If you have any doubts about whether your equipment is safe, it is best not to
risk using it. By far the safest thing to do is to go along to a public
observing event. Many astronomical societies are likely to be hosting observing
events on the day, and they’ll be sure to welcome newcomers. You may meet some
new people at the same time as seeing the eclipse.

Many astronomy suppliers sell special special filters which can be fitted to
telescopes to make them safe for solar viewing. These include aluminised mylar
filters, or black polymer filters, identified as suitable for direct viewing of
the Sun. Check that the filter has a CE mark, and a statement that it conforms
to European Community Directive 89/686/EEC. Alternatively, you can use a
welder’s glass rated at No. 14 or higher. Always read the manufacturer’s
instructions carefully.

Never attempt to make your own filter. In addition to visible light, the Sun
also produces prodigious amounts of infrared and ultraviolet radiation which
cannot be seen yet can still damage your eye. Even if a homebrew filter appears
adequate, it may allow this unseen radiation to pass.

Projecting an image of the Sun

Another safe way to view solar eclipses is to buy a purpose-built solar
projection box.

These typically consist of a cardboard box with a small lens on one side. They
project an enlarged image of the Sun onto a white cardboard sheet inside the
box. Once the eclipse is over, they’re also great for observing sunspots. They
are safe to use, quick to set up, and ideal for use with children and groups.

Further details

This eclipse is a member of Saros series
139. The position of the Sun at the moment of greatest eclipse will be:

The coordinates above are given in J2000.0.

Next/previous eclipses

The sky on 8 Apr 2024

Warning

Never attempt to point a pair of binoculars or a telescope at an object close to the Sun. Doing so
may result in immediate and permanent blindness.

Source

License

You may embed the animations and images above in your own website. They are licensed under the
Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported license, which allows you to copy and/or modify
them, so long as you credit In-The-Sky.org.

You can download them from:

Image credit

© Lutfar Rahman Nirjhar. Image taken in July 2009.