Everything You Need to Know About the 2017 Solar Eclipse

MACON, Georgia. (41NBC/WMGT) – The Great American Solar Eclipse will occur on Monday, August 21. If you find yourself wondering what an eclipse even is, why it’s such a big deal or how you can view it – no worries. The 41First Alert Storm Team is here to break it down for you.

Right now, and every day, Earth is orbiting the sun. It takes about 365 days to complete the orbit. While the Earth is orbiting the sun, the moon is also orbiting Earth. When the moon moves between the sun, blocking sunlight from reaching Earth, a solar eclipse occurs.

During a solar eclipse, a few things happen. The moon must be in the New Moon phase of its cycle. This means that the visible side of the moon is darkened, because the moon is closer to the sun. Therefore, the moon will appear dark during the eclipse.

The moon casts two shadows on Earth. The penumbra is a large shadow that covers a wider area. This is where a partial solar eclipse occurs. The umbra is a shadow that covers a smaller area. According to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), it is the “dark center of the moon’s shadow.” People in the umbra will experience a total solar eclipse.

Eclipses happen about once every 1.5 years. So what makes this one so special?

It’s the first total solar eclipse to occur in the United States since 1979, and the first one to cross the continental United States since 1918. This solar eclipse will be a total one, meaning the moon will appear to completely cover the sun…but only if you’re in the path of totality. The path of totality stretches from Eugene, Oregon to Charleston, South Carolina.

By now you’ve probably heard all the warnings. If not, let’s discuss the most important one: never look at the partial eclipse without protective eyewear.

Looking at the sun during the eclipse without proper eyewear may result in serious eye damage and possibly blindness. To put it simply, looking directly into the sun will ultimately burn a hole in your eye. The light acts as a heat source and cooks your retina.

CE and ISO certified solar eclipse glasses will prevent that from happening. The glasses feature a special filter that blocks out all UV light and most visible light too. Wearing 3D glasses, your sunglasses (even if they are polarized) or anything else will not keep your eyes safe.

Middle Georgia is not in the path of totality. You need to wear certified solar glasses the whole time you’re viewing the eclipse.

Only people in the path of totality will be able to look at the sky with the naked eye during the length of totality. Then, even they will need to wear solar glasses while viewing the rest of the event.

The solar eclipse will be visible in Middle Georgia as early as 1:07 p.m. The peak eclipse will occur around 2:40 p.m. The peak eclipse only lasts for about two minutes, when the moon covers the highest percentage of the sun for the given area. After the peak eclipse, the moon will partially block the sun until the eclipse ends, shortly after 4 p.m. NASA will be live streaming the eclipse across America here.

Middle Georgia will not experience a total solar eclipse. Since we are not in the path of totality, there will be some sunlight visible. In fact, Macon will experience about 95% totality, resulting in about 5% visibility of the sun.

UPDATE: Clear skies will provide the best viewing experience. It looks like we will have to deal with a little bit of cloud cover in Middle Georgia, but overall, pretty good visibility for viewing. In fact, it looks like the path of totality across the nation will have rather nice conditions for viewing the historic eclipse as well.

Rely on 41NBC and the 41First Alert Storm Team for updates regarding the eclipse and its forecast. We will be covering the event throughout the day through our website, social media accounts and on air!