Observing

Get ready for the Great American Eclipse

It’s been nicknamed the Great American Eclipse as totality returns to the USA for the first time in twenty-six years. On 21 August 2017, the Moon will move in front of the Sun along a strip cutting diagonally across more than a dozen different states, from Oregon on the west coast to South Carolina.

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Highlights of 9 March total solar eclipse from Micronesia

Although thick cloud in parts of Indonesia spoiled the view for some along the path of totality, tens of millions more were greeted to spectacular views of the 9 March total solar eclipse. NASA, in partnership with the Exploratorium Science Center, hosted live coverage of the event from the coral island of Woleai in the Pacific Ocean.

Eclipse

Get ready for the 9 March total solar eclipse

The Moon will pass in front of the Sun on 9 March 2016 UT, casting its shadow over much of Southeast Asia. The path of totality, in which all of the Sun’s bright face is blocked by the Moon, is nearly 100 miles wide as it crosses Indonesia, while the partial phases can be seen from East Asia, Australia and the Pacific Ocean. Here is our detailed guide.

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Watch the 9 March total solar eclipse live

If you left it too late to book your Indonesian flight to view the total solar eclipse on the morning of Wednesday, 9 March (UT), don’t despair — put away your passport, sit back and enjoy the spectacle online, courtesy of Exploratorium and NASA TV. For virtual eclipse viewers in the UK, the event starts at 1am GMT on 9 March.

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NASA science during the 9 March total solar eclipse

As the Moon slowly covers the face of the Sun on the morning of 9 March, a team of NASA scientists in Indonesia will be anxiously awaiting the start of totality. They plan to take 59 exposures of the Sun in just over three minutes, capturing data on the corona — the innermost parts of the Sun’s volatile, superhot atmosphere.

Picture This

Visualising the 9 March total solar eclipse

The total solar eclipse of Wednesday, 9 March 2016 is of relatively long duration — 4m 9s at greatest eclipse — which occurs at 1:57 UT. Totality is visible from Sumatra, Borneo, Sulawesi and the North Pacific Ocean, while the partial phases can be seen from East Asia, Australia and the Pacific Ocean. See the event unfold in these new NASA timelapse visualisations.