ROANOKE, Va. – We’re now less than a week away from the solar eclipse.
What/when is it?
In case you need a refresher, this is when the moon passes between Earth and the sun. The moon then casts a localized shadow onto Earth.
The map below shows where totality is expected, which will be west of here, on the afternoon of April 8, 2024.
We made a slow-moving animation below to show the multiple towns and cities that will experience totality (temporary darkness) that day.
Here at home, this is how the eclipse will progress.
Do I need glasses to see it?
Peak eclipse happens at 3:15 p.m. This is when, in our area, roughly 82 to 89% of the sun will be obscured by the moon.
It’s important to note that, with 82% to 89% of the sun being obscured, that is still not enough to remove solar eclipse glasses.
You can find a list of suppliers for safe viewing of the eclipse here.
You should not look directly at the sun, even when most of it is covered by the moon.
Based on previous experience from the 2017 eclipse, you may notice a milky appearance to the sky during peak eclipse.
I also noticed sounds of nocturnal animals coming out, which was pretty eerie during the afternoon hours, though the area I was in saw about 92-96% of the sun being blocked by the moon.
Are there events going on in our area?
Though we won’t see totality, there are plenty of places that plan to take in the eclipse together.
There are several listed here.
There are also events at a number of parks and state parks, including Natural Bridge, Smith Mountain Lake, Claytor Lake, New River Trail State Park, Staunton River State Park and Fairy Stone Park.
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The next solar eclipse to happen in the U.S. isn’t until 2045.