We know; you’re probably sick and tired of hearing about the Great American Solar Eclipse of 2017 by now, especially since it already came and went. Nevertheless, not everyone got a chance to see it in person on Monday, and some are already wondering when the next viewing opportunity will come.
Image Credit: Anthony Bouchard/LabRoots
Anyone residing in the United States that missed the chance to view the solar eclipse on Monday will have another opportunity to see one on April 8th, 2024. While seven years into the future might seem like a while to wait, it’s just a blink of an eye when it comes to outer space.
The next United States-baed solar eclipse won’t travel from Northwest to Southeast across the country like the one on Monday did. Instead, it will move from Southwest to Northeast, giving a new audience the chance to experience totality. Worthy of note, many of the same viewers from Monday's eclipse will be able to view the next one as well.
But even if you can’t make it outside to see the solar eclipse in 2024, then fear not; yet another one of these spectacular events is predicted to occur in the United States on August 12th, 2045.
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The 2045 solar eclipse is in the far more distant in the future, but it will travel just South of the same path that Monday’s did, giving nearly the same audience in the United States a second chance to see what they missed 28 years earlier.
Solar eclipses frequently happen all over the world, but if you don’t travel and instead remain in the same spot on the Earth all the time, then you probably won’t see one very often.
Many regard solar eclipses as "once-in-a-lifetime" events as a result, even though that's not entirely accurate. The big challenge of viewing many solar eclipses in a lifetime stems from being in the right place at the right time, which often isn’t the case for most people.
Those who travel to other parts of the world more frequently have a better chance of seeing many in their lifetime, but even being a traveler doesn't guarantee you a front-row seat to viewing several solar eclipses. Sometimes they occur in the middle of the ocean, or over Antarctica, where human populations are practically non-existent.
Fortunately, now you know of the soonest upcoming solar eclipse dates in the United States. Assuming you can even find a 2024 or 2045 calendar in stores, you can go ahead and mark them accordingly with confidence.
Source: EarthSky
