On April 8, 2024, a total solar eclipse, dubbed “The Great American Eclipse,” will stretch across the United States from Texas up to Maine, and then on into Canada.
The duration of totality will be a staggering 4 minutes and 27 seconds, according to Great American Eclipse.
If you’d like to travel to somewhere that will experience totality and camp there to really enjoy the experience, you’ll need to act quickly.
“Searches for a stay that includes April 8th, 2024, are up 118 percent if we look at all U.S. states that will be in the full or partial path of totality,” a spokesperson for Campspot told TravelAwaits in an exclusive interview. “For those states in the full path of totality, searches for a stay that includes April 8th, 2024, are up 703 percent.”
For instance, searches for a stay in Texas over April 8, 2024, are up 10 times over the same date in 2023. Searches for a stay in Pennsylvania have increased five times and searches for a stay in New York have increased seven times, the spokesperson told TravelAwaits.
Why A Solar Eclipse Occurs
A solar eclipse requires a somewhat rare alignment of the Earth, the Moon, and the Sun. When they line up exactly, the Moon blocks the Sun’s light from reaching Earth, and instead, the Moon casts a shadow on Earth.
The Moon’s shadow isn’t large enough to cover the Earth, which is why the shadow is always limited to a certain area. This area moves during the eclipse because the Moon is in constant rotation around the Earth, and the Earth continuously rotates on its axis while it orbits the Sun, according to NASA.
During a solar eclipse, the Moon casts two shadows on the Earth. The first shadow, known as the penumbra, gets larger as it reaches Earth. People in the penumbra will see a partial eclipse.
The other shadow, known as the umbra, is the dark center of the Moon’s shadow. It gets smaller as it reaches Earth. People in the umbra will see a total solar eclipse.
“People viewing the eclipse from locations where the Moon’s shadow completely covers the Sun, the path of totality, will experience a total solar eclipse,” NASA explains. “The sky will darken, as if it were dawn or dusk. Weather permitting, people along the path of totality will see the Sun’s corona, or outer atmosphere, which is usually obscured by the bright face of the Sun.”
What Will Happen On April 8, 2024
Totality for the total solar eclipse on April 8, 2024, will begin over the south Pacific Ocean before covering Mexico at Mazatlan. After that, it will travel northeast and enter the U.S. in Texas before moving diagonally across the country up to Maine, and then moving into Canada.
In the U.S., totality will begin in Texas at 1:27 p.m., Central Daylight Time. Eventually, totality will begin in Maine at 3:31 p.m., Eastern Daylight Time, before ending there at 4:40 p.m., Great American Eclipse explains.
In between those times, the path of totality will move across parts of Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine.
The path of totality will also enter Canada in southern Ontario, then make its way across parts of Quebec, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and Nova Scotia.
The eclipse will eventually exit continental North America on the Atlantic coast of Newfoundland, Canada, at 5:16 p.m. Newfoundland Daylight Time, NASA notes.
The major cities that will be in the path of totality are Mazatlan and Torreon in Mexico; San Antonio, Austin, Dallas, Fort Worth, Indianapolis, Cleveland, Buffalo, Rochester, and Syracuse in the U.S.; and Montreal in Canada.
You can use Great American Eclipse’s Map of Totality to see where and when totality will occur, as well as what parts of the country will only experience a partial solar eclipse and when that will occur.
While you’re thinking of it, be sure to read all of our stargazing content, including:
Editorial Note: For all your camping needs, Campspot is an online marketplace for premier RV resorts, family campgrounds, cabins, glamping options, and other campgrounds in North America that enables campers to find campgrounds and then book reservations online.