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Solar eclipses

Total solar eclipse just five months away

Doyle Rice
USA TODAY

T-minus five months: The biggest and best solar eclipse in American history arrives five months from today.

Carbondale, Ill., the home of Southern Illinois University, is promoting itself as the “Eclipse Crossroads of America.”

On Aug. 21, 2017, a total solar eclipse will be visible from coast to coast, according to NASA. It will be the first total eclipse visible only in the USA since the country was founded in 1776.

It will also be the first total solar eclipse to sweep across the entire country in 99 years, NASA says. And not since 1970 has there been an opportunity to see a total solar eclipse in such easily accessible and widespread areas of the nation.

A total solar eclipse occurs when the moon gets in the way of the sun, turning day to an eerie twilight. Barring pesky clouds, more Americans should be able to see this one than ever before as it passes through 12 states.

The eclipse will start on the West Coast in Oregon and trace a 67-mile wide path east across the country, finally exiting the East Coast in South Carolina. At any given location, the total eclipse will last between 2 to 3 minutes.

10 best places to see this summer’s solar eclipse

It will pass directly over cities such as Salem, Ore., Idaho Falls, Lincoln, Neb., Kansas City, Nashville, and Columbia and Charleston, S.C. Places within a one- or two-hour drive of the eclipse include Portland, Ore., Boise, Cheyenne, Rapid City, Omaha, Neb., Topeka, St. Louis, Louisville, Knoxville, Chattanooga, Atlanta and Charlotte.

An estimated 12 million people live within the path of totality, according to Space.com. The number of people within just one day's drive of the totality zone is around 200 million.

The eclipse tourist hype is already in full swing: Organizers of the Oregon SolarFest are calling it "a rare, mind-blowing cosmic experience," while Nashville promises visitors "a once-in-a-lifetime celestial event."  Meanwhile, Carbondale, Ill., is promoting itself as the “Eclipse Crossroads of America," and Charleston, S.C., is planning a blues-and-barbecue harbor cruise during the eclipse.

Folks who miss this eclipse won't have to wait too long for the next one: A total solar eclipse will be visible across portions of the southern and eastern U.S. on April 8, 2024.

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