On Monday, April 8, 2024, a total solar eclipse will take place. A total solar eclipse occurs when the moon passes between the sun and the Earth.  For a short time, it completely blocks the face of the sun.  The track of the moon’s shadow across Earth’s surface is called the path of totality. In the U.S., the path of totality begins in Texas and will travel through Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine.  Small parts of Tennessee and Michigan will also experience the total solar eclipse, according to NASA.  In Illinois, the best viewing will be in Carbondale at 1:59pm., lasting 4 minutes, 8 seconds.  Also, in Mount Vernon, IL at 2pm, lasting 3 minutes, 40 seconds.

Some fun facts about a total solar eclipse:

The shadow of the moon will travel at more than 1500 miles per hour as it crosses Earth during the April total solar eclipse.

The moon is moving away from Earth a tiny bit each year.  At the current rate, the moon will appear too small to cause a total solar eclipse in 600 million years.

If the moon and the sun didn’t take up about the same amount of space in the sky, we wouldn’t have a total solar eclipse.  Fortunately, the moon happens to be both about 400 times smaller than the sun and 400 times closer to Earth, so it fits just right.

After the total solar eclipse on April 8, 2024, the next total solar eclipse that can be seen from the United States will be on August 23, 2044.  Be sure to see this one on Monday and wear your special eclipse glasses  because even when the sun is partially obscured by the moon, its rays are still strong enough to permanently damage your eyesight.