Eclipse Bulletin

Monday, August 21, 2017, marks the first time since 1979 that a total solar eclipse can be seen from the lower 48 states. The Moon's umbral shadow enters the Pacific, then sweeps eastward over the country, passing through Oregon, Idaho, Wyoming, Nebraska, Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia, and both Carolinas. Within a band about 70 miles wide, the Moon hides the Sun entirely, dimming the land into an unsettling dusk and exposing the Sun's corona for close to three minutes. People beyond that narrow track across North America will still see a partial eclipse.

This guide, titled Eclipse Total Solar Eclipse of 2017 August 21, is written by two of the field's leading eclipse specialists and covers the event in detail. Its tables list geographic coordinates, timing, altitudes, and the physical dimensions of the shadow's path. High-resolution maps trace the total eclipse track across the country, marking hundreds of towns, major roads, and how long totality lasts at each distance from the central line. Local circumstance tables give phase timings, magnitude, duration, and the Sun's altitude for more than 1,000 American cities, with further tables for Canada, Mexico, Central and South America, and Europe.

The book also offers a climatological study showing where clear skies are most likely along the path, and a travelogue that highlights notable spots between Oregon and South Carolina. A closing section explains how to choose solar filters and observe and photograph the eclipse safely.

Fred Espenak and Jay Anderson previously produced more than a dozen eclipse bulletins over fifteen years for NASA, each dedicated to a major solar eclipse and prepared in cooperation with the IAU. They have joined forces again for this bulletin, which is now available in a deluxe color edition.