Witnessing the Rare Beauty of the Total Solar Eclipse

Thursday - April 11 2024, 03:05 UTC - 9 months ago

On April 8, 2024, a total solar eclipse occurred over North America, visible to millions of Americans. Earth-observing satellites captured stunning views of the Moon's shadow and the Sun's active outer atmosphere. The path of totality covered parts of 14 US states, and the next total solar eclipse to cross the entire lower 48 states will be in 2045.

On April 8, 2024, millions of Americans witnessed a once-in-a-lifetime event: a total solar eclipse. As the Moon passed between the Sun and Earth, casting its shadow over the continent, observers on the ground were in awe as the skies turned from day to night.While many people gazed upwards to witness the stunning display, Earth-observing satellites captured imagery of the Moon's shadow as it raced eastward over North America .

From its vantage point 1 million miles away, NASA's EPIC imager on the DSCOVR satellite captured striking views of Earth between 16:02 and 20:32 Universal Time.The satellite, a joint effort between NASA, NOAA, and the US Air Force, is positioned at Lagrange Point 1, a stable spot between the Sun and Earth. From here, EPIC was able to capture unique views of the total solar eclipse as it passed over the continent .

Meanwhile, the NOAA-20 satellite orbited the Earth from pole to pole, capturing images of the eclipse's path from east to west. The resulting mosaic image, made up of data collected at three different times, shows the eastern United States before the eclipse began, in the midst of the eclipse, and after the Moon's shadow had moved out over the Atlantic Ocean.Along with the breathtaking views of the total solar eclipse, observers on the ground were treated to a rare sight: the Sun's active outer atmosphere, or corona .

The spiky and asymmetrical nature of the corona was a sign that the Sun's magnetic field was active and approaching solar maximum. This unique opportunity to study the corona will not occur again for many years.The path of totality for this eclipse covered parts of 14 different states, from the Pacific coast of Mexico, through the center of the country and over the Great Lakes, before crossing the Atlantic coast of Newfoundland, Canada .

Even outside of the path of totality, skies were much darker throughout the United States.For many, witnessing the total solar eclipse was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. The next time a total solar eclipse will cross the entire lower 48 states of the US will be in 2045. Until then, we can all marvel at the stunning images captured by Earth-observing satellites and continue to study and learn about our Sun and its extraordinary phenomena .