Get ready for the April 8 solar eclipse with a roundtable discussion between the Across the Sky podcast meteorologists of Lee Enterprises and Dr. Robert H. Gowdy, a physics professor at Virginia Commonwealth University. Gowdy explains the different types of eclipses and answers commonly asked questions.
Sean Sublette, based at the Richmond-Times, hosts the conversation and is joined by his colleagues Matt Holiner of Lee Enterprises' Midwest group in Chicago, Kirsten Lang of the Tulsa World in Oklahoma, and Joe Martucci of the Press of Atlantic City, New Jersey.
More resources to prepare for the total solar eclipse
Consider visiting one of these locations to view the April 8 total solar eclipse
25 of the best places to see the solar eclipse across the US
The total solar eclipse on April 8 won't just be a wondrous astronomical event—it's projected to be one of the biggest drivers of travel in the United States this year.
The Great American Eclipse expects between 1 and 4 million people to travel to see the eclipse; that doesn't include the 31 million Americans who live in the path of totality, the 115-mile-wide stretch where you'll be able to see the eclipse in full, spanning from Mexico to Maine. "It will likely be the most-viewed astronomical event in American history," Michael Zeiler, eclipse cartographer and co-founder of Great American Eclipse, said in a statement.
Part of what's driving the popularity of eclipse travel this year is its timing—the busiest week for spring break travel happens to be the week the eclipse will occur. Others who aren't on school schedules may be watching the eclipse due to scarcity; according to NASA, the next total solar eclipse visible in the contiguous United States won't occur until August 2044.
Many people plan a trip to visit family and friends who live in the path of totality. Travelers who aren't seeing loved ones are expected to visit an area in the path of totality that's closest to their home, according to the Great American Eclipse. Texas alone expects a million additional visitors to witness the rare event.
If you plan to travel for the total eclipse, prepare to fly into and out of busy airports. Once you've reached your destination, look for nearby eclipse events. Many cities are planning eclipse block parties, astronomy lectures, and more. Airlines like Delta and Southwest are even planning special eclipse flights. Finally, make sure you have eye protection to view the eclipse safely. It's unsafe to do so through lenses like cameras, so finding proper eyewear ahead of time is a must.
Stacker used data from the North Carolina Institute for Climate Science to identify 25 places across the U.S. in the path of totality during the 2024 total solar eclipse.
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Mapping the path of totality across the US
This article predominantly highlights cities with available weather data, but the path of totality expands beyond that scope.
Smaller towns near areas on this list or elsewhere on the path of totality can also be an ideal place to view this rare event. Because this article relies on available weather station data, it does not include all the states that the eclipse's path dots: Texas, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine. According to NASA, portions of Tennessee and Michigan will also be able to see the total solar eclipse.
Read on to find out where—and when—you should be able to see the total eclipse on April 8.
Emma Rubin // Stacker
Waco, Texas
- Time of peak totality: 1:40 p.m. CDT
- Length of totality: 4 minutes, 19 seconds
- Chance of viewability: 63.9%
- Historic cloud conditions:
--- Clear 49.8% of the time
--- Few clouds 7.7%
--- Partly cloudy 6.2%
--- Mostly cloudy 10.6%
--- Overcast 25.8%
Getty Images // PATRICK T. FALLON
Cleveland
- Time of peak totality: 3:15 p.m. EDT
- Length of totality: 3 minutes, 49 seconds
- Chance of viewability: 38.9%
- Historic cloud conditions:
--- Clear 12.1% of the time
--- Few clouds 11.6%
--- Partly cloudy 13%
--- Mostly cloudy 20.3%
--- Overcast 43%
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Indianapolis
- Time of peak totality: 3:07 p.m. EDT
- Length of totality: 3 minutes, 48 seconds
- Chance of viewability: 37.2%
- Historic cloud conditions:
--- Clear 9.1% of the time
--- Few clouds 13.3%
--- Partly cloudy 11.2%
--- Mostly cloudy 23%
--- Overcast 43.4%
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Findlay, Ohio
- Time of peak totality: 3:12 p.m. EDT
- Length of totality: 3 minutes, 45 seconds
- Chance of viewability: 54.2%
- Historic cloud conditions:
--- Clear 36.9% of the time
--- Few clouds 10.2%
--- Partly cloudy 5%
--- Mostly cloudy 13.6%
--- Overcast 34.3%
Getty Images // Alex Trautwig / Stringer
Buffalo, New York
- Time of peak totality: 3:20 p.m. EDT
- Length of totality: 3 minutes, 44 seconds
- Chance of viewability: 35.9%
- Historic cloud conditions:
--- Clear 7% of the time
--- Few clouds 13.9%
--- Partly cloudy 11.7%
--- Mostly cloudy 22.4%
--- Overcast 45%
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Erie, Pennsylvania
- Time of peak totality: 3:18 p.m. EDT
- Length of totality: 3 minutes, 42 seconds
- Chance of viewability: 56.2%
- Historic cloud conditions:
--- Clear 43.5% of the time
--- Few clouds 6.7%
--- Partly cloudy 4.5%
--- Mostly cloudy 9.1%
--- Overcast 36.1%
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Rochester, New York
- Time of peak totality: 3:21 p.m. EDT
- Length of totality: 3 minutes, 38 seconds
- Chance of viewability: 34.3%
- Historic cloud conditions:
--- Clear 5.7% of the time
--- Few clouds 13.7%
--- Partly cloudy 11.7%
--- Mostly cloudy 20.9%
--- Overcast 47.9%
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Hondo, Texas
- Time of peak totality: 1:33 p.m. CDT
- Length of totality: 3 minutes, 32 seconds
- Chance of viewability: 70.3%
- Historic cloud conditions:
--- Clear 53.3% of the time
--- Few clouds 9.8%
--- Partly cloudy 9%
--- Mostly cloudy 10.4%
--- Overcast 17.6%
Shutterstock // Stocker plus
Niagara Falls, New York
- Time of peak totality: 3:20 p.m. EDT
- Length of totality: 3 minutes, 32 seconds
- Chance of viewability: 39.2%
- Historic cloud conditions:
--- Clear 8.5% of the time
--- Few clouds 16.5%
--- Partly cloudy 9.6%
--- Mostly cloudy 26.4%
--- Overcast 38.8%
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Dayton, Ohio
- Time of peak totality: 3:10 p.m. EDT
- Length of totality: 3 minutes, 17 seconds
- Chance of viewability: 42.2%
- Historic cloud conditions:
--- Clear 15.9% of the time
--- Few clouds 11.5%
--- Partly cloudy 11.9%
--- Mostly cloudy 22.4%
--- Overcast 38.4%
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Del Rio, Texas
- Time of peak totality: 1:30 p.m. CDT
- Length of totality: 3 minutes, 13 seconds
- Chance of viewability: 74.1%
- Historic cloud conditions:
--- Clear 64.4% of the time
--- Few clouds 6.1%
--- Partly cloudy 4.6%
--- Mostly cloudy 6.8%
--- Overcast 18.2%
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Evansville, Indiana
- Time of peak totality: 2:04 p.m. CDT
- Length of totality: 3 minutes, 13 seconds
- Chance of viewability: 63.9%
- Historic cloud conditions:
--- Clear 48.3% of the time
--- Few clouds 9.1%
--- Partly cloudy 6.4%
--- Mostly cloudy 11.4%
--- Overcast 24.9%
Getty Images // Patrick T. Fallon
Burlington, Vermont
- Time of peak totality: 3:27 p.m. EDT
- Length of totality: 3 minutes, 12 seconds
- Chance of viewability: 47.5%
- Historic cloud conditions:
--- Clear 20.5% of the time
--- Few clouds 15.5%
--- Partly cloudy 10.6%
--- Mostly cloudy 17%
--- Overcast 36.4%
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Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas
- Time of peak totality: 1:42 p.m. CDT
- Length of totality: 2 minutes, 58 seconds
- Chance of viewability: 48.1%
- Historic cloud conditions:
--- Clear 19% of the time
--- Few clouds 14.3%
--- Partly cloudy 13.1%
--- Mostly cloudy 22.9%
--- Overcast 30.8%
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Little Rock, Arkansas
- Time of peak totality: 1:53 p.m. CDT
- Length of totality: 2 minutes, 51 seconds
- Chance of viewability: 58%
- Historic cloud conditions:
--- Clear 29.5% of the time
--- Few clouds 17.8%
--- Partly cloudy 9.8%
--- Mostly cloudy 20.8%
--- Overcast 22.1%
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Texarkana, Arkansas
- Time of peak totality: 1:48 p.m. CDT
- Length of totality: 2 minutes, 27 seconds
- Chance of viewability: 64.7%
- Historic cloud conditions:
--- Clear 50.5% of the time
--- Few clouds 8.9%
--- Partly cloudy 3.9%
--- Mostly cloudy 12.3%
--- Overcast 24.5%
Getty Images // MediaNews Group/Orange County Register
Massena, New York
- Time of peak totality: 3:26 p.m. EDT
- Length of totality: 2 minutes, 27 seconds
- Chance of viewability: 51.9%
- Historic cloud conditions:
--- Clear 34.3% of the time
--- Few clouds 8.4%
--- Partly cloudy 6.9%
--- Mostly cloudy 14.8%
--- Overcast 35.5%
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Paducah, Kentucky
- Time of peak totality: 2:01 p.m. CDT
- Length of totality: 2 minutes, 18 seconds
- Chance of viewability: 64.5%
- Historic cloud conditions:
--- Clear 49.5% of the time
--- Few clouds 8.7%
--- Partly cloudy 5.9%
--- Mostly cloudy 11.6%
--- Overcast 24.4%
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Caribou, Maine
- Time of peak totality: 3:33 p.m. EDT
- Length of totality: 2 minutes, 5 seconds
- Chance of viewability: 47.2%
- Historic cloud conditions:
--- Clear 33.3% of the time
--- Few clouds 6.6%
--- Partly cloudy 4.2%
--- Mostly cloudy 11.5%
--- Overcast 44.4%
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Syracuse, New York
- Time of peak totality: 3:23 p.m. EDT
- Length of totality: 1 minute, 51 seconds
- Chance of viewability: 32%
- Historic cloud conditions:
--- Clear 7% of the time
--- Few clouds 8%
--- Partly cloudy 13.7%
--- Mostly cloudy 20.9%
--- Overcast 50.6%
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Akron/Canton, Ohio
- Time of peak totality: 3:15 p.m. EDT
- Length of totality: 1 minute, 41 seconds
- Chance of viewability: 34.3%
- Historic cloud conditions:
--- Clear 6% of the time
--- Few clouds 10.5%
--- Partly cloudy 14.8%
--- Mostly cloudy 23.1%
--- Overcast 45.6%
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Youngstown, Ohio
- Time of peak totality: 3:16 p.m. EDT
- Length of totality: 1 minute, 39 seconds
- Chance of viewability: 31.6%
- Historic cloud conditions:
--- Clear 5.2% of the time
--- Few clouds 10.6%
--- Partly cloudy 11.7%
--- Mostly cloudy 22.2%
--- Overcast 50.3%
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San Antonio
- Time of peak totality: 1:34 p.m. CDT
- Length of totality: 1 minute, 14 seconds
- Chance of viewability: 45.8%
- Historic cloud conditions:
--- Clear 17.1% of the time
--- Few clouds 15.3%
--- Partly cloudy 10.6%
--- Mostly cloudy 23.2%
--- Overcast 33.7%
GettyImages // Erika Goldring
Toledo, Ohio
- Time of peak totality: 3:13 p.m. EDT
- Length of totality: 1 minute, 10 seconds
- Chance of viewability: 54.2%
- Historic cloud conditions:
--- Clear 39.1% of the time
--- Few clouds 7.8%
--- Partly cloudy 5.4%
--- Mostly cloudy 11.7%
--- Overcast 36%
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Barre/Montpelier, Vermont
- Time of peak totality: 3:28 p.m. EDT
- Length of totality: 1 minute, 5 seconds
- Chance of viewability: 52.2%
- Historic cloud conditions:
--- Clear 38% of the time
--- Few clouds 8.9%
--- Partly cloudy 3.1%
--- Mostly cloudy 9.6%
--- Overcast 40.3%
Story editing by Jaimie Etkin. Copy editing by Kristen Wegrzyn. Photo selection by Ania Antecka.
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Total solar eclipses through the decades
FILE - Eclipse watchers squint through protective filters as they view an eclipse of the sun from the top deck of New York's Empire State Building in New York on Wednesday, Aug. 31, 1932. Full solar eclipses occur every year or two or three, often in the middle of nowhere like the South Pacific or Antarctic.
Uncredited - staff, ASSOCIATED PRESS
FILE - A total solar eclipse is observed above the mountainous Siberian Altai region, about 3,000 kilometers (1,850 miles) east of Moscow, on Friday, Aug. 1, 2008.
Oleg Romanov - stringer, ASSOCIATED PRESS
FILE - A youth dressed as a shaman arrives to take part in a photo session before Tuesday's total solar eclipse, in La Higuera, Chile, Monday, July 1, 2019.
Esteban Felix - staff, ASSOCIATED PRESS
FILE - A group of school children look at the solar eclipse in Accra, Ghana, Wednesday, March 29, 2006, which swept from Brazil to Mongolia.
Olivier Asselin - stringer, ASSOCIATED PRESS
FILE - A child looks through protective glasses at the total eclipse of the sun as a projection of the sun is displayed on card, during a total solar eclipse seen near the Bulgarian's Black sea town of Varna east of the capital Sofia, Friday, Aug. 1, 2008.
Petar Petrov - stringer, ASSOCIATED PRESS
FILE - The moon starts to block the sun during a solar eclipse seen through a cloud, in Skopje, Macedonia, Friday, March 20, 2015, in the last total solar eclipse visible in Europe for over a decade.
Boris Grdanoski - stringer, ASSOCIATED PRESS
FILE - A man watches a solar eclipse through an x-ray film in Jakarta, Indonesia, Wednesday, March 9, 2016.
Dita Alangkara - staff, ASSOCIATED PRESS
FILE - The moon passes in front of the setting sun during a total solar eclipse in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Tuesday, July 2, 2019.
Marcos Brindicci - stringer, ASSOCIATED PRESS
FILE - Shepherd Heinz Greiner watches the beginning of a total solar eclipse near Augsburg, southern Germany, on Wednesday, Aug. 11, 1999. A German myth has the cold and lazy male moon, ignoring the fiery passionate female sun during the day most of the time, except for a few bits of passion during an eclipse and then they'd squabble again and the sun would resume shining again, Mark Littmann of the University of Tennessee says.
Frank Boxler - staff, ASSOCIATED PRESS
FILE - The sun sets over Hyderabad, India during the last phases of the last total solar eclipse of the millennium Wednesday, Aug. 11, 1999.
P Anil Kumar - stringer, ASSOCIATED PRESS
FILE - Vietnamese student Dang Anh Tuan shows a projected image of a solar eclipse at an observatory in Hanoi National University of Education in Hanoi, Vietnam, Wednesday, July 22, 2009, during the longest total solar eclipse of the 21st century, though in most of Vietnam, people will only be able to see a partial eclipse.
Chitose Suzuki - staff, ASSOCIATED PRESS
FILE - This multiple exposure photograph shows the progression of a partial solar eclipse over the Gateway Arch in St. Louis on Aug. 21, 2017.
Jeff Roberson - staff, ASSOCIATED PRESS
FILE - Magdalena Nahuelpan, a Mapuche Indigenous girl, looks at a total solar eclipse using special glasses in Carahue, La Araucania, Chile, Monday, Dec. 14, 2020. The total eclipse was visible from Chile and the northern Patagonia region of Argentina, and as a partial solar eclipse in Bolivia, Brazil, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay.
Esteban Felix - staff, ASSOCIATED PRESS
FILE - People view a total solar eclipse from La Higuera, Chile, Tuesday, July 2, 2019.
Esteban Felix - staff, ASSOCIATED PRESS
FILE - People watch in darkness during the totality of a solar eclipse on as seen from a hill beside a hotel on the edge of the city overlooking Torshavn, the capital city of the Faeroe Islands, Friday, March 20, 2015.
Matt Dunham - staff, ASSOCIATED PRESS
FILE - In this photo provided by NASA, the International Space Station is silhouetted against the sun during a solar eclipse Monday, Aug. 21, 2017, as seen from Ross Lake, Northern Cascades National Park in Washington state.
Bill Ingalls - hogp, ASSOCIATED PRESS
FILE - A young shepherd carries a goat as he watches a partial solar eclipse in the village of Bqosta, near the southern port city of Sidon, Lebanon, Wednesday, March 29, 2006. In Lebanon the Education Ministry ordered all public schools closed for the day with advice to families to keep children indoors during the solar eclipse which started around noon.
Mohammed Zaatari - stringer, ASSOCIATED PRESS
FILE - People watch the total solar eclipse from Svalbard, Norway on Friday March 20, 2015.
Haakon Mosvold Larsen - foreign subscriber, ASSOCIATED PRESS
FILE - Using a welder's mask as protection, a man views a total eclipse in Piedra del Aguila, Argentina, Monday, Dec. 14, 2020. The total solar eclipse was visible from the northern Patagonia region of Argentina and from Araucania in Chile, and as a partial eclipse from the lower two-thirds of South America.
Natacha Pisarenko - staff, ASSOCIATED PRESS
FILE - An man uses special glasses to view a partial solar eclipse as people gather near the Sphinx at the Giza Pyramids on the outskirts of Cairo, Egypt, Friday, March 20, 2015. The partial eclipse was visible across Europe and parts of Asia and Africa, while sky-gazers in the Arctic were treated to a perfect view of a total solar eclipse as the moon completely blocked out the sun in a clear sky.
Khaled Kamel - stringer, ASSOCIATED PRESS
FILE - Lucy Maphiri, left, and Margaret Makuya watch the total solar eclipse over Shingwedzi camp in the Kruger National Park, South Africa, Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2002.
Jon Hrusa - stringer, ASSOCIATED PRESS
FILE - Ukrainian man watches a partial solar eclipse through a strip of film in Kyiv, Ukraine, Wednesday, March 29, 2006. The moon began blocking out the sun in the morning in Brazil before the path of greatest blockage migrated to Africa, then on to Turkey and up into Mongolia, where it will fade out with the sunset.
Efrem Lukatsky - staff, ASSOCIATED PRESS
FILE - Images of the crescent shaped sun are projected on a sidewalk as light passes through the leaves of a tree during a partial solar eclipse in Oklahoma City, Monday, Aug. 21, 2017.
Sue Ogrocki - staff, ASSOCIATED PRESS
FILE - A total solar eclipse is barely visible through the clouds in Carahue, La Araucania, Chile Monday, Dec. 14, 2020. The total eclipse was visible from Chile and the northern Patagonia region of Argentina, and as a partial solar eclipse in Bolivia, Brazil, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay.
Esteban Felix - staff, ASSOCIATED PRESS
FILE - Steve Spalding of Chattanooga squints through the viewfinder of a movie camera for the sun at a Valdosta industrial park as the solar eclipse began in Valdosta, Ga., on Saturday, March 7, 1970. The search was in vain, however, as the sun remained hidden behind a heavy cloud cover before hiding behind the moon. In background, many of the amateur astronomers who traveled to see the total eclipse from as far as western Canada stand disappointedly beside idle telescopes.
Joe Holloway Jr. - staff, ASSOCIATED PRESS
FILE - Members of the British Astronomers Association prepare their telescopes at their campsite near Truro, England, on Tuesday, Aug. 10, 1999, preparing for a total solar eclipse the next day.
Dave Caulkin - staff, ASSOCIATED PRESS
FILE - A total solar eclipse is seen from an aircraft over Patna, India, Wednesday, July 22, 2009.
Shreya Sahai - staff, ASSOCIATED PRESS
FILE - A crowd reacts to the view of a partial solar eclipse as it peaks at over 70% percent coverage on Monday, Aug. 21, 2017, in New York.
Michael Noble Jr. - staff, ASSOCIATED PRESS
FILE - Thousands of tourists gather to view a solar eclipse in front of Apollo Temple in the Turkish Mediterranean coastal resort of Side, Turkey, Wednesday March 29, 2006.. Astronomers from NASA and Britain's Royal Institute of Astronomy watched the eclipse from an ancient Roman theater. The total solar eclipse began at sunrise on the eastern tip of Brazil, crossesed the Atlantic and made landfall in Ghana, headed north across the Sahara, the eastern Mediterranean, Turkey and the Black Sea, and on into Central Asia, where it will finally die out at sunset in Mongolia.
Burhan Ozbilici - staff, ASSOCIATED PRESS
FILE - Stone statues known as Moais stand together during a total solar eclipse in Easter Island, Chile, some 4,000 kilometers (2,480 miles) west of the Chilean coast, Sunday, July 11, 2010.
Patricio Munoz - stringer, ASSOCIATED PRESS
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