USA TSE, total solar eclipse: April 2024 (was "three years away for USA" when started)

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
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Start making your plans, it’s only three years away. The next major TSE, total solar eclipse, in the USA and to cross a significant part of CONUS* will be in 3 years, in Apr 2024.

  • — from Texas to Maine; or more completely across North America it’s from Mazatlán to NL CAN, and it touches 15 US states: TX OK AR MO TN KY IL IN OH MI PA NY VT NH ME

Mexico - USA - 2024 April 8 Total Solar Eclipse - Interactive Google Map - Xavier Jubier > this is its path map (2024)

The last was in Aug 2017 and its path of totality touched 13 states from Pacific to Atlantic: OR ID WY NE KS IA MO IL KY TN GA NC SC

USA - 2017 August 21 Total Solar Eclipse - Interactive Google Map - Xavier Jubier > this is its path map (2017)

I was in Idaho for that one. It was my first in totality and it was amazing! It’s so much better to be in totality.

Who else is thinking about going? I’m thinking of west Texas, or southwest Texas, because I think they should likely have clear skies — critical for the experience.

The 2024 path includes some interesting place names. Between Mazatlan and Newfoundland, it will touch Bogota TX, Paris TX, Italy TX, Athens AR, Denmark IL, Geneva IL, Lafayette OH, Persia NY, Bagdad NY, Holland NY, Vienna NY, Copenhagen NY, Rome NY, and Holland VT.

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Wow, that one has benefits for some of Canada, too. Totality includes areas both southwest and northeast of Lake Ontario. I’ll be on the fringes of it where I live, but I can easily drive to any of the areas of totality. Definitely plan on doing so.

ETA: The funny thing is that during the last eclipse, I looked at the predicted paths of totality for future eclipses and none came even close to where I live in southern Ontario. I sure hope the path illustrated in the link is correct, because it’s almost ideal!

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I went to the Aug 2017 one in the middle of Oregon. So glad I did. I have to say it is absolutely worth making an effort to see a total eclipse. Maybe not a eclipse chaser kinda thing with a cruise ship to Bora Bora for $10k worth of effort, but certainly worth driving a few hours.

I’ll have to fly somewhere but will probably pick somewhere in the zone that shouldn’t be too crowded but has something else that appeals to me personally. Maybe just a great Meadery in Vermont like Groennfell or something like that…

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I’ve seen four total solar eclipses, and each has been a unique experience. The best was in 1998, from the island of Guadeloupe. Absolutely clear skies from first contact through last. Took lots of photos, especially showing Mercury, Jupiter an Saturn during totality.

In 2024 I won’t have to travel at all. I’ll just have to step out of my house and look up.

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As someone who has seen many lunar eclipses and partial solar eclipses, I have to agree. Nothing I’ve seen in the sky compares to a total solar eclipse. It’s the closest I’ll ever be to being in a big-budget sci-fi movie. So much cooler than I thought it would be.

I doubt I’ll see the next one, though. Pity. If you have the means, I highly recommend seeing it. So choice.

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I have an aunt that lives in Ohio, and we’re planning a trip to visit her and see the eclipse. My wife missed the 2017 eclipse (she used to work in a college bookstore and it was the first day of classes) and even though I took the day off work and drove about an hour north to be in the path of totality, it was cloudy and rainy so I didn’t see much.

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I was in Driggs, ID for teh eclipse. This was part of Cycle Greater Yellowstone, a multi day supported bicycle tour that ran a few years (for COVID and other reasons 2019 was the last one.
We started in West Yellowstone and the first night was in Warm River (cargo folks brought some inner tubes and had fun floating down the river). Left the morning of the Eclipse very early – on the way to Driggs it was interesting to see all the makeshift campgrounds that sprung up.
I got into camp (Teton High/Middle School or possibly Driggs Elementary) in time to set up my tent before it was 60%)
Watched the eclipse (very cool), and took my post ride shower when it was back below 50%.
It was interesting too see all the private jets take off from the Driggs airport (the airport is close to to the schools)
We had a day off the next day, but I biked the optional route to Grand Targhee resort and I took a ski lift up. Saw some outhouses up there and asked – they said they quite a few folks up there for the eclipse, and they could see the Moon’s shadow moving across the valley :sunglasses:

Will definitely consider the 2024 eclipse

Brian

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Lucky Carbondale, IL is right in the center of where the two paths (2017 & 2024) cross!

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Looking at that map, my plans are essentially just to look up.

It looked like it might just miss me, but I drilled down and found my house. Here’s hoping the weather is good!

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We were talking about this last night and checking out possible places to travel to. Gotta check out what a typical day in April is as far as cloudiness in Texas versus Indiana and the points in between. In 2017 we were at York Nebraska, and it started clouding up, so we quickly drove about 30 miles west to Aurora Nebraska. We’d want to be somewhere on uncrowded highways if possible.

This will be my third total eclipse, 1979 in Winnipeg and the 2017 one.

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We saw the one in 2017. We have family in the Cleveland area, but my greatest concern about going there in 2024 would be the amount of cloud cover - Cleveland has a lot of overcast days.

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I’m seriously considering flying out to Dallas to see the 2024 eclipse. If it is cloudy that day, not much I can do but to check out other spots I haven’t already visited in Dallas, but I’ll try again in 2045 if I’m still alive by then.

Now I kinda regret not taking a couple of days off work and driving up to Oregon to see the 2017 eclipse, which some of my coworkers did.

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[quote=“wolfpup, post:2, topic:938873, full:true”]I sure hope the path illustrated in the link is correct, because it’s almost ideal!
[/quote]

It should be an accurate path. They predict these orbits out many years in advance.

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@panache45 your astronomy pictures are truly fantastic. Especially your Venus transit that’s your avatar! (it is Venus, IIRC…?)

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Yes, I’ve confirmed it with other sources. It’s just odd that I never knew about this eclipse that’s going to be practically right over my house despite looking for future eclipses a few years ago. Thanks for posting!

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Yes, it’s Venus. That photo took me over 6.5 hours to take, standing out in the sun. Quite a sunburn.

I earned a little money at my last eclipse, in 2017. I was in Hopkinsville, KY, the point of the longest Totality. I found a place where, for $10, you could join a group on a large front lawn of a house. I was the only person who had seen previous eclipses, so I became the de facto eclipse maven. At one point, the owner of the house, who was an “anti-science” person, proclaimed that the scientists don’t know exactly when the eclipse will start. I countered him with the fact that they know to the second when it will begin in any given location. He bet me $100. Of course my watch was accurately calibrated. A minute before Totality, I started counting down. As a reached zero, the sky got dark and there was a “hole” in it. Easiest money I ever made.

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Heh, you were just miles from me. It was an unforgettable show, and congrats on the $100. Lot of anti-science types in these parts. It was thoughtful of that one to pay you $100 to learn something any reasonable person already knows.

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I’m planning where I’ll watch it from.
This eclipse is going to be mid-day, so the sun will be high in the sky. That’s too bad, since I would prefer to take a landscape picture, so it can go on our digital photo frame, like this one from 2017:
Imgur
But, if I have to go Portrait, so be it.

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You’re a voodoo magic witch doctor whacko. Someone to be feared!! :wink:

Seriously now, that’s a great story. Nicely profitable for you too. I didn’t think of watching my watch for the exact second. I will next time!

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I’m going to be at 99.71% totality where I live. Totality is about a 20 minute drive south for me. Might be a nice day for a drive.