NASA Details Where to View the Next 2 Solar Eclipses (Without Ruining Your Eyes)
If you're looking to view the next two solar eclipses, bookmark NASA's newest maps.
Based on observations from several agency missions, the chart(Opens in a new window) details the path of the Moon's shadow as it crosses the contiguous US during the annular solar eclipse(Opens in a new window) on Oct. 14, 2023, and total solar eclipse(Opens in a new window) on April 8, 2024.
The dark bands on NASA's map show where observers should be stationed to see the so-called "ring of fire" once the Moon covers the sun. This year's annular eclipse will cross North, Central, and South America, making it visible for millions of people in the Western Hemisphere.
In the US, the event is expected to begin in Oregon at 9:13 a.m. PT (12:13 p.m. ET) and end in Texas at 12:03 p.m. CT (1:03 p.m. ET). As the sun is never completely blocked during an annular solar eclipse, it's not safe to look directly at the burning ball of fire without eye protection.
Mark your calendars: This is the last annular solar eclipse visible from the US until June 21, 2039, and for that one, Alaska is the only US state in its predicted path.
Some lucky folks in Texas, meanwhile, will get a double solar whammy when the annular eclipse passes over the same location as the total eclipse six months later.
Locals should keep those special-purpose solar filter glasses on hand come April 8, 2024, when the Moon passes between the sun and Earth, darkening the sky as if it were dawn or dusk. Weather permitting, the eclipse will appear along Mexico's Pacific coast at 11:07 a.m. PT (2:07 p.m. ET), entering the US in Texas and traveling northeast toward Maine, before exiting continental North America on the Atlantic coast of Newfoundland, Canada, at 5:16 p.m. NT (3:46 p.m. ET).
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