Total Solar Eclipse Aug. 21, 2017: Path, Times, Duration, Best Viewing Cities, All You Need To Know

America has never seen a sun party like the nationwide total solar eclipse bash taking place on Monday, Aug. 21. In cities along a band from Salem, Oregon, to Charleston, South Carolina, only the shimmering corona of the sun will be visible as the moon completely masks the blazing orb, but each of the Lower 48 states will be plunged in at least partial darkness for a few moments between late morning and early afternoon in what NASA is calling the “Great American Eclipse.”

For an event that will last only about an hour and a half from start to finish, Americans are going to a lot of fuss. For eclipse chasers, it’s the party of a lifetime. A phenomenon like this, in which the eclipse barrels across the entire continental United States, hasn’t happened in 99 years. It was June 8, 1918, and America had just gotten out of World War I.

Total solar eclipses aren’t all that rare. They occur about once every 18 months and are visible from at least some place on the Earth’s surface. But it would take a millennium for every geographic location in the continental U.S. to see the phenomenon, NASA says.

So, let’s get this party rolling.

Southern Illinois University at Carbondale is eclipse party central. The reason is that the point of the longest duration of the total eclipse — Shawnee National Forest, where it will be dark for two minutes, 44 seconds — is located just south of the university’s Saluki Stadium.

NASA, the Adler Planetarium of Chicago and Louisiana Space Consortium are throwing a huge eclipse camp-in. It’s one of dozens of parties, festivals and viewing events that are planned all along the eclipse path. More eclipse events can be found on NASA’s solar eclipse website.

When And Where To See It

Eclipse chasers should start planning their excursions now. The total eclipse touches 14 states — only 12 if you consider the Montana and Iowa “eclipse controversy” — and duration times vary, depending on whether cities are at the eclipse’s center line or are located north or south.

Eclipse2017.org has put together a list of the best cities to see the eclipse, but first let’s talk about the red-headed stepchildren of the eclipse, Montana and Iowa. Only about 8 square miles of the vast state of Montana and a minuscule 450 acres in tiny Iowa will see a total eclipse, so there’s some debate about whether they should be included.

An uninhabited section of Montana will see the 95 percent eclipse somewhere between 11:31 a.m. 11:39 a.m., Mountain Daylight Time, according to local sources. The far southwest corner of Iowa will see a 95 percent eclipse anywhere from 11:37 a.m. to 11:42 a.m., Central Daylight Time, again according to local sources.

But these states in the path of the total eclipse are the place to be (all times are local):

Oregon, starts at about 10:15 a.m.; duration, about 1 minute, 50 seconds: The shadow of the eclipse first falls on American soil on a rocky spot near Newport that juts into the Pacific Ocean. Several cities, including Salem, are in the path of totality, but Portland and Eugene residents will have to travel either south or north, respectively, to get the full effect.

Idaho, starts at about 11:30 a.m.; duration, about 1 minute, 49 seconds: Borah Peak, the highest point in Idaho, is in the path of totality. Other good bets are Idaho Falls and Rexburg, but Boise and Pocatello residents need to travel north to get in the shadow of the eclipse.

Wyoming, starts at about 11:35 a.m.; duration, about 2 minutes, 20 seconds: Grand Teton National Park is one of the best places in the country to experience the eclipse in totality. Other cities along the path of totality include Pavillion, Shoshoni, Riverton, Casper, Douglas, Gledo, Thermoplis, Lusk and Torrington.

Nebraska, starts at about 11:48 a.m.; duration about 1 minute, 43 seconds: The shadow of the eclipse will fall on endless miles of prairie and some good-sized cities, but Omaha is not in the path. Some cities in the path include Scottsbluff, North Platte, Lincoln and Grand Island, where the total eclipse will last a full 2 minutes and 35 seconds.

Kansas, starts at about 1:05 p.m.; duration about 2 minutes, 38 seconds: The northeast corner of the Sunflower State will see the eclipse in totality. Cities included are Troy, Atchison, Hiawatha, Seneca and Leavenworth. Topeka is not in the path of totality.

Missouri, starts at about 1:06 p.m.; duration about 2 minutes, 38 seconds: St. Joseph and the southern edge of Kansas City will see a total eclipse. Downtown St. Louis isn’t in the path, but folks there should head west or south to St. Clair or Festus. Columbia, Jefferson City and Cape Girardeau are among the cities that will see a total eclipse.

Illinois, starts at about 1:19 p.m.; duration about 2 minutes, 40 seconds: Illinois has the most areas of overlap of any of the Lower 48 in the 2017 eclipse — and, by the way, for another coming in 2024. The Shawnee National Forest south of Carbondale (the site of the NASA eclipse party) will see 2 minutes and 44 seconds of totality. Chicago isn’t in path of totality.

Kentucky, starts at about 1:22 p.m.; duration about 2 minutes, 20 seconds: Paducah will is in the path of totality, and the Land Between the Lakes is another prime spot for viewing. Hopkinsville, which lies on the centerline, will see 2 minutes, 40 seconds of totality.

Tennessee, starts at about 1:25 p.m.; duration 2 minutes, 17 seconds: The shadow first passes over Clarksville before moving on to Springfield, Portland, Westmoreland and finally to the home of the Grand Ol’ Opry, Nashville at about 1:27 p.m. Nashville will see 1 minute, 54 seconds of totality. Read more on Patch.

North Carolina, starts at about 2:34 p.m.; duration about 2 minutes, 38 seconds at peak: The western part of Great Smoky Mountains National Park is in the path of totality, as are Bryson City, Santeetlah Lake, Murphy, Andrews and Franklin. Read more on Patch.

Georgia, starts at about 2:35 p.m.; duration about 2 minutes, 34 seconds: The path of totality barely clips the Peach State, but the shadow will fall along a 12-mile stretch between the borders of Tennessee and South Carolina. To be under it, Interstate 85 offers the best route because it gets people toward South Carolina for the big finale.

South Carolina, starts at around 2:36 p.m.; duration about 2 minutes, 30 seconds at peak: Eclipse chasers from all over are going to South Carolina, the final state in the shadow’s path. Big events are planned in the Greenville-Spartanburg area and in Charleston, the last big city to see the total eclipse before the shadow leaves American soil at 2:49:07 p.m. on an isolated beach on a barrier island at the tip of the Cape Romain wildlife preserve just east of McClellanville.

If you can’t make it to one of the cities in the path of the total eclipse, NASA will have live video from several cities.

Safety: See It, But Don’t See It

Regardless of how much sunlight is blocked out, the eclipse is one of those “see it, but don’t see it” events. In other words, don’t look directly at the sun, except during totality — which elapses so quickly that it’s not a good idea, even then. Looking directly at a solar eclipse, whether total or partial, can seriously and permanently injure your eyes.

Your sunglasses won’t protect you. You can buy special glasses commercially — we found these eclipse glasses on Amazon.com for $12.69 — but you may want to check with local science museums, schools and astronomy clubs for certified glasses. Or you can make your own sun funnel or pinhole camera.

Superstitions: The Bear Ate The Sun

Legends in ancient cultures attributed the temporary disappearance of the sun to celestial dragons and other mythical creatures, wolves and even giant frogs who either ate the sun or stole it. Among some cultures, the solar eclipse was a foreboding sign the gods were angry or that the siblings the sun and the moon were quarreling, according to timeanddate.com. In many cultures, “eclipse” means to eat.

Among the Pomo, an indigenous group of people who lived in the Northwest United States, the literal translation of “eclipse” is “got bit by a bear.” The legend is that a bear mixed it up with the sun and took a bite out of it and then decided to have a slice of moon as well, causing a lunar eclipse.

Scientists and astronomers long ago solved the riddle of the solar eclipse — it’s simply what happens when the moon masks the sun as it passes in front of it. Still, some superstitions remain in modern culture, including that solar eclipses are dangerous for pregnant women and their unborn children, or that food cooked during an eclipse is poisonous.

In Italy, though, the superstitions aren’t as gloomy as the sky when the moon blots out the sun. Instead, the eclipse is prime flower planting time; it’s believed they will bloom brighter and more colorful than flowers planted at other times of the year.

Other claims about negative effects on human behavior have been debunked by scientists. So go out and enjoy the eclipse with unfettered joy. Make sure you protect your eyes, though.

Feature photo by Rob Stothard/Getty Images News/Getty Images