Date:August 19, 2017

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10 Fun Facts About the Solar Eclipse

Are you as excited as us to witness such a neat event? Here are 10 fun facts about the solar eclipse!

1. This will be the first total solar eclipse in the continental US in 38 years.
2. A solar eclipse is a lineup of the sun, moon, and earth.
3. Everyone in the continental US will see at least a partial eclipse.
4. The eclipse will be the most watched ever, with tons of media reporting on it!
5. A solar eclipse happens at the New Moon.
6. The first contact will be in Oregon. People there will be the first to experience it in the continental US. The total phase will last two minutes.
7. Just before a total eclipse you’ll see a diamond ring effect. There’s a glow around the moon’s orb plus a diamond-like burst of sunlight.
8. There will be 69 solar eclipses in the next 100 years, but many will only be seen over the ocean.
9. Maximum totality is not the longest possible in 2017. The longest possible duration of the total phase of a solar eclipse is 7 minutes and 32 seconds. But that won’t occur until June 13 of 2132.
10. The first recorded eclipse was 4,000 years ago in China. The residents there thought it was a sign of the apocalypse, and believed a dragon was eating the sun. It was terrifying for them until 5 minutes later, when the sun cam back!