Attention North America: you have one year left before dusting off your glasses to witness a total solar eclipse. On April 8, 2024, the Moon will cast its shadow on the Sun across parts of Mexico, the United States and Canada, and millions of people will be plunged into darkness in broad daylight.

It's been less than six years since a total solar eclipse crossed the skies of the United States from coast to coast. It was August 21, 2017.

Anyone who misses the next show will have to wait 20 years for the next eclipse, but it will only be visible in Montana and the Dakotas.

WHERE CAN I SEE IT?

Next year's eclipse will follow a diagonal path across North America. It will start in the Pacific and make landfall in Mexico around 11:07 a.m. local time, NASA reported.

According to the site https://eclipse2024.org/path-north-america.html, it will pass through the Mexican states of Sinaloa, Nayarit, Durango, Chihuahua and Coahuila.

It will then enter Texas and cross part of 13 states: Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine. It will pass through the cities of Dallas; Little Rock, Arkansas; Indianapolis; Cleveland and Buffalo, New York.

In Canada, it will be seen in the provinces of Ontario, Quebec, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Newfoundland.

The path of totality will be 185 kilometers (115 miles) wide. Outside of this band, a partial eclipse will be observed, in which the Moon will appear to eat a piece of the Sun and turn it into a “crescent”.

Total eclipses occur about every 18 months, but many pass through remote areas where few people see them.

WHAT HAPPENS DURING AN ECLIPSE?

Solar eclipses occur when the Moon passes between the Earth and the Sun, blocking sunlight.

Although the Moon is 400 times smaller than the Sun, it is 400 times closer to Earth, says astronomer Doug Duncan. Therefore, when their orbits are aligned from Earth's perspective, our natural satellite can block the enormous star. Those in the right places will see a total eclipse: when the Moon's shadow covers the entire landscape.

Totality in 2024 will last four and a half minutes, almost twice as long as in 2017.

WHERE WILL BE THE BEST LOCATION?

The weather can be an unfavorable factor, since the eclipse will occur in spring, when the weather is unpredictable. Texas is a good place to find clear skies.

Events of all kinds were planned along the way: luxury cruises in Mexico, music festivals in Texas, camping in Arkansas and planetarium visits in upstate New York.

Eclipse glasses are needed to see the partial phases before and after totality, said Dan Schneiderman, who helps the Rochester Museum and Science Center plan the events. Looking at the partially covered sun without protection can harm your eyesight. ___

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