Mark your calendars for April 2024, as something exciting is on the horizon for skywatchers – a total solar eclipse. On Monday, April 8, a total solar eclipse will pass over North America, including Mexico, the United States, and Canada. The eclipse will commence over the South Pacific Ocean. If the weather is clear, the first location in the continental North America to experience totality will be Mexico’s Pacific coast at about 11:07 a.m. PDT. According to the Washington Post, the upcoming total solar eclipse overlaps with a period of increased solar activity. Solar physicist Scott McIntosh described the active sun as appearing very spiky, akin to a “very irritated little hedgehog.” READ MORE: How to safely watch an eclipse Scientists have stated that the sun is nearing its peak activity this year, which means it will emit more solar flares and eruptions from its surface — potentially making this year’s total solar eclipse much more dynamic. The 2024 eclipse will evoke memories of the 2017 eclipse when an estimated 88% of U.S. adults observed the moon passing in front of the sun, either in person or online. This year’s version could be even more thrilling due to “differences in the path, timing, and scientific research,” as per NASA. NASA explains, “The path of totality – where viewers can see the Moon totally block the Sun, revealing the star’s outer atmosphere, called the corona – is much wider during the upcoming total solar eclipse than it was during the eclipse in 2017. As the Moon orbits Earth, its distance from our planet varies. During the 2017 total solar eclipse, the Moon was slightly farther away from Earth than it will be during the upcoming total solar eclipse, causing the path of that eclipse to be a little narrower. In 2017, the path ranged from about 62 to 71 miles wide. During the April eclipse, the path over North America will range between 108 and 122 miles wide – meaning at any given moment, this eclipse covers more ground.” The 2024 eclipse path will also traverse more cities and densely populated areas. An estimated 31.6 million people live in the path of totality this year, compared to 12 million in 2017. An additional 150 million people live within 200 miles of the path of totality. The dark gray line on this map from AccuWeather shows the path of the moon’s shadow during the total solar eclipse coming on April 8, 2024.
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