By Comet Zeimer
On April 8th, the United States sat excited for a total solar eclipse. What made this eclipse more special than our past eclipses is that when the Moon passed over the Sun, the Sun was at its peak activity in its 11 year cycle. This meant that when the Moon passed, you could see solar prominences, which are eruptions of hot gas and plasma, coming from the Sun’s edges.
This is very different from the eclipse that we saw in 2017, where the Sun was in the middle of its cycle and wasn’t yet at peak activity. Not only is this phenomenal combination happening, but the “Devil Comet” would be passing by the Moon at the same time as the eclipse, creating a once in a lifetime event that is a scientific marvel. The Devil Comet only comes towards earth once every 71 years, getting brightest when it is closest to the sun.
The eclipse passed over the SouthEast side of the US, Mexico, and Canada. In the US, totality could be seen in Texas, Arkansas, Indiana, Ohio, New York, Vermont, Maine, New Hampshire, Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky, Missouri, and Oklahoma.
When viewing the eclipse, everyone was reminded that in order to safely view it, proper glasses must be worn. In preparation for the eclipse, many big and small store chains were selling cheap eclipse glasses. This not only led to a shortage of glasses before the eclipse, but many counterfeit glasses being sold online.
On the day of the eclipse, roughly 32 million people came together to view the total eclipse in person, with many more watching it via livestreams and even more seeing the partial eclipse. Many people came together to make the eclipse even more special, including an “Elope At The Eclipse” event where 359 couples tied the knot during the eclipse.
It is predicted that the next total eclipse will be in August of 2026, which will be viewable from Iceland and Spain. However, people in the US will have to wait until 2044 to view a total eclipse in America.
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